Even before the flood, boarding students had to 'leave school'
(Baonghean) - Although the school has a full dormitory, boarding students of previous years used to live normally. However, recently, the local government and the board of directors of Yen Tinh Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities (Tuong Duong) had to move 160 boarding students of the school to rent accommodation outside to ensure safety during the flood season.
There is a dormitory but no accommodation
 |
| Yen Tinh Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities where 160 boarding students have to stay outside to study. Photo: Ho Phuong |
“Renting a room outside makes me lose focus when I need to study, and going to school far away is also causing me a lot of difficulties. However, I still prefer living outside because I no longer have to worry about being swept away by floods.”
Yen Tinh is one of the most disadvantaged communes in the mountainous district of Tuong Duong, where more than 2,000 people of Thai, Kinh, and Kho Mu ethnic groups regularly witness deaths, houses, trees, and roads being swept away by floods. Therefore, the children here are always worried about floods during the rainy season.
Yen Tinh Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities currently has 253 students, of which 160 are eligible for semi-boarding (according to Decree 116/2016/ND-CP of the Government regulating policies to support students and secondary schools in communes and villages with special difficulties). In previous school years, the semi-boarding students of this school still stayed in the dormitory as usual. All other activities such as eating, bathing, etc. were carried out in the dormitory area.
 |
| The dormitory system is quite solid and spacious but cannot accommodate students. Photo: Ho Phuong |
However, since the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year, at a meeting between representatives of the Tuong Duong District People's Committee, the District Department of Education and Training, the Yen Tinh Commune People's Committee, Yen Tinh Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities and many parents of boarding students have "accepted" to take their students out to rent accommodation.
Every year during the rainy season, the school is often flooded and swept away by floods because the Cha Ha River rises high and fast. There are years when the flood water sweeps away many important school equipment, school supplies, students' clothes, and staff and teachers' records are also soaked and damaged. In particular, the flood often comes at night, making it very difficult and tiring to move students and equipment.
 |
| A lesson of students at Yen Tinh Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities. Photo: Ho Phuong |
And the consequences
Letting secondary school students, especially those from ethnic minorities, rent rooms outside is causing many consequences and disadvantages.
Initially, when the policy of sending students from the village to rent accommodation outside was introduced, many parents in the village expressed concerns about food, security and managing their children's studies. Because of this, some parents wanted to ask their children to stop going to school. However, up to now, the school and the village management board have analyzed and convinced families to continue sending their children to school as usual.
 |
| Students are cleaning up mud stains left by the great floods. Photo: Ho Phuong |
For students living in the community, there are also many worries and fears about the quality of management and learning. The quality of learning is also difficult because living in the community is not very guaranteed, because many families also have difficult circumstances, which somewhat affects the quality of learning of the students.
Renting a room outside for students who have been used to living in dormitories for a long time creates a lot of confusion for them. However, when asked about this issue, many students still choose to rent a room outside. The common reason these students give is that they are "not afraid of being swept away by floods anymore".
Luong Thi May Nhi, a 6B student from Na Cang village, said that this was her first time studying far away and she had never lived in a dormitory, so she did not know how convenient or difficult it would be to live outside or inside. However, “I think living in a dormitory will help me have a better learning environment. Instead of studying alone, I will be able to study with my friends, and there will be teachers nearby to guide us when we encounter difficult math problems,” Nhi said.
 |
| Students from Huoi Pai village are studying at the home of a Cap Chang village resident. Photo: Ho Phuong |
Regarding the project of relocating this school to a safe place, the district has tried its best to mobilize capital sources for the project to be implemented. Up to now, the first phase of leveling the ground and building the embankment has been completed. To complete the project and ensure long-term safe teaching and learning requires the efforts of the Party Committee, government, school, parents and students.
