Untold story about the female valedictorian of the province from an ethnic minority

The “special” plan

Luong Cao Truc Linh is of Thai ethnicity and her family is currently living in Nghia Thinh commune, Nghia Dan district. Her parents are both farmers and the family has three daughters, but Linh’s family is quite progressive because all three have received full education from their families. Before Linh, her two older sisters both graduated from Vinh University and now have stable jobs in the South.

Growing up in a family with a tradition of studiousness, Linh was always a good student since her high school days and was selected by the school to compete in the English proficiency exam. After finishing 9th grade, Linh registered for the entrance exam to the Ethnic Minority Boarding High School No. 2 and was accepted, although her score at that time was quite modest compared to many other students. Since entering the boarding school, Linh also began to get used to being away from home, away from her parents, away from her family. Overcoming the nostalgia, she focused on studying for the rest of her time.

Luong Cao Truc Linh is the female student with the highest score in the 2022 High School Graduation Exam of Nghe An province. Photo: NCCC

Talking about her three years studying at the province's Ethnic Minority Boarding High School No. 2, Linh said that there were many special memories, especially when nearly two-thirds of the students' school time fell during the complicated Covid-19 pandemic. During the years studying away from home, Linh and her classmates also got used to collective life and the school's strict regulations such as not using social networks, not using phones and limiting contact with the outside. Particularly when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, the school almost became a military barracks, "no one in, no one out", for many months in a row the students were not allowed to visit their families.

Sharing about these unforgettable memories, Linh added: When we first came to boarding school, we were not allowed to use mobile phones and found it very difficult. But then, over time, we all forgot this habit and that helped us have more time to study.

Being naturally intelligent, Linh has always been a student highly appreciated by teachers and the school since she started boarding school. In particular, while most ethnic minority students are often poor at subjects such as foreign languages ​​and natural sciences, Linh learns quite easily. During her 3 years of high school, Linh was always an excellent student and had an overall score in the top of the class.

During her years at Ethnic Minority Boarding High School No. 2, Luong Cao Truc Linh was always an outstanding student. Photo: NVCC

With the above achievements, Linh achieved 55.4 points in the 2022 High School Graduation Exam and became the valedictorian of the whole province, which is not surprising to teachers. Sharing the secret to achieving high results, Linh said: I study all subjects equally and spend more time on university entrance exams. Every day, I make a separate schedule for myself and strictly follow what I have outlined. During the study process, I allocate reasonable time for each subject and try never to let the situation of "don't put off today's work until tomorrow".

Unexpected turn

With 55.4 points, Linh also achieved very high results in the admission score by block. In particular, if including bonus points, Linh's C block exam score is 30.5 points and D block is 29.4 points. Interestingly, although her C block score is very high, Linh did not choose C block for university admission. Instead, she registered for D block admission to the Logistics and Supply Chain Management major at Ho Chi Minh City University of Transport.

Truc Linh in traditional Thai ethnic costume. Photo: NVCC

Sharing about her choice, Linh also said that this was not a sudden decision, she had dreamed of studying this day for a long time. Because she chose Logistics, Linh also decided to change her study block from block C to block D, surprising many teachers.

Talking about her student, teacher Ho Thi Hoi - Truc Linh's homeroom teacher said: Grade 12, after Tet holiday, Linh suddenly asked to see me and said she wanted to transfer from block C to block D. At first, I was very surprised because if she tried hard in block C, she could be on the list of students receiving awards from the province. However, after hearing her wish to study transportation and go to the South to be closer to her sisters, I supported her because the most important thing is that they are happy and they can fulfill their dreams.

Changing the decision at the "last minute" also caused Linh many difficulties. Speaking more about this, Linh said: Of the 6 subjects, Math was the subject I had the lowest score (8.6 points) but this was the subject I was most satisfied with. Because, before, because I did not pay much attention to Math, my test score was only 5.5 - 6 points and it was difficult to pass the university entrance exam. But after knowing that I changed my major, the Math teacher encouraged and supported me a lot, making me no longer feel too much pressure. Continuously practicing questions helped me progress very quickly.

The valedictorian of Nghe An province registered NV1 at Ho Chi Minh City University of Transport. Photo: NVCC

In addition to Math score of 8.6, Literature score of 9.25, English score of 8.8, Linh also impressed with History score of 9.75, Geography score of 9 and Civic Education score of 10.
Teacher Ho Thi Hoi also added: When Linh chose block D, the teachers created conditions for her to review for the exam. However, when there was only 1 month left to review for the high school graduation exam, I always tried to help her master the remaining subjects. For example, in Geography, while other students had to do 10 questions, Linh only had to do one. But because she had good thinking skills, we often only gave her application and high-level application questions. And her results really made the teachers proud.

With this result, teachers also expect that Linh will be the first candidate selected at the Ceremony to honor excellent students and high-scoring students in 2022.

The valedictorian of the 2022 High School Graduation Exam in Nghe An province also shared a secret to success, which is to always be confident and create a comfortable spirit to avoid pressure before important exams.

Along with Truc Linh, class 12C2 - Ethnic Minority Boarding High School No. 2 achieved many achievements in the 2022 High School Graduation Exam. In particular, the average score of block C of the class was 28.1 points, the average graduation score of 6 subjects was 50.9 points. Many subjects had average scores higher than the average of the province such as the average scores of Literature, History, Geography and Civic Education. Photo: NVCC

In 2022, the Department of Education and Training plans to advise the Provincial People's Committee to select 50 students with high scores in the 2022 High School Graduation Exam. Accordingly, instead of rewarding students according to each exam group, the province will select 20 students with a total score of 6 subjects ranked from high to low (no subject below 5 points) for students registering for the Natural Science subject group and 20 students registering for the Social Science subject group.

Also willSelect 10 ethnic minority students with the next highest scores in the two subject groups of Social Sciences and Natural Sciences.