The arduous road to school for an 11-year-old boy entering first grade

The oldest student in the school

5 years ago, Nguyen Van Tu in Tan Hoa block, Vinh Tan ward (Vinh city) was a special student of Vinh Tan Primary School, because he officially entered grade 1 at the age of 11. Recalling that time, teacher Nguyen Thi Thao - Principal of the school said: "Tu was brought to school by his adoptive mother and asked to enter grade 1. He could not read yet, his mother could not read or write, so she sent him to school because she did not want Tu to be uneducated like herself. Because of difficult circumstances, Tu's mother told him to go to school for one session, one session he might have to miss to go to work...".

Nguyen Van Tu and the certificates of merit he received during his primary school years at Vinh Tan Primary School. Photo: My Ha

When he first entered first grade, Tu was small and dark-skinned, so even though he stood next to children 4 or 5 years younger than him, he did not look much different. However, Tu's thoughts and actions were different, because he always had his own complexes. Speaking more about Tu, teacher Nguyen Thi Thao said: "Tu started first grade without needing a teacher to tutor him because he could study and absorb lessons well. But because he was older, at first Tu was quite naughty and caused headaches for teachers. Knowing Tu's situation, I often encouraged him, sometimes even met him privately to share and encourage him. One time Tu sat listening to his teacher confide in him while his tears flowed down. Because I felt sorry for Tu, during the 5 years he studied at Vinh Tan Primary School, the school waived all contributions and often gave him gifts of encouragement on holidays, Tet or at the end of the school year."

When I started teaching Tu’s class, I paid special attention to the “oldest student in the class”. During the teaching process, I also learned about Tu’s situation and felt sorry for him. Tu studied 2 sessions/day but never had lunch at school. After finishing school in the morning, he often went home and said he would “cook for the two of us”.

Many times, I asked him to get food from school to make things easier for us, but he always refused, saying he could take care of himself. Later, thanks to the guidance of his teachers, Tu became more self-disciplined, diligent, and made much progress in his studies. At the end of 5th grade, he completed all his subjects and was awarded a Certificate of Merit by the school for "making great progress in his studies".

Teacher Nguyen Thi Vinh - Tu's 5th grade homeroom teacher

My mother left when Tu was 2 years old. I only remember that since birth, I have lived with my grandmother in a shabby rented house near Vinh market. Tu's grandmother's situation is extremely difficult. She is blind in both eyes and does not know where her family is. She has been wandering here since she was young to make a living. At the age of 83, she is close to death but she still has not had a single day of peace because she still has to take care of her grandchildren and her family. When she was still strong, she lived by singing on the streets. Later, when she was old, she lived by selling goods on the street with a stall containing only a few simple items such as toothpicks and pens.

She also knew that no one bought the items she sold: "Maybe people felt sorry for me and bought the items to give my grandmother and her grandchildren some money to feed each other."

Tu with his adoptive mother. Over the years, despite the difficulties, his adoptive mother always encouraged Tu to go to school so that he would not be uneducated like his mother and grandmother. Photo: My Ha

Due to special circumstances, before the age of 11, Tu did not have a birth certificate and had never been to school. The boy would have grown up in such a dark environment if he had not met his "adoptive mother" - Ms. Nguyen Thi Nguyet. She rented a room in the same building as Nguyen Van Tu's grandmother and knew about the family's situation. Feeling sorry for the orphaned grandmother, she discussed with her grandmother to let Tu go to first grade and was also the one who made Tu's birth certificate. She adopted Tu and from then on, Tu called her mother.

Nurture the dream of going to school

At the end of May 2022, Tu finished primary school. During the summer break, Tu asked his mother and grandmother to work in Thanh Hoa because he had an acquaintance who worked in construction (mainly painting and ceilings). The first time he worked, the work was quite hard, but Tu was very happy because he was provided with food and accommodation and was also paid. Near the end of August, Tu's adoptive mother called and asked Tu to come home to prepare for 6th grade.

Receiving a phone call from his mother, Tu hesitated at first because his biggest concern was that he was old and “feared that his friends would laugh at him if he went to school”. Moreover, after more than a month of working and receiving a salary, Tu wanted to continue earning money to take care of his grandmother. To encourage him to go to school, Tu’s grandmother had to comfort him, and his adoptive mother also encouraged Tu to continue studying so that he could learn a trade and have a stable job later. In his first month’s salary, Tu sent almost all of it to his adoptive mother and grandmother. With the remaining amount, Tu bought a few small gifts and asked his adoptive mother to take him to the elementary school to meet the principal, the school’s Youth Union leader, and the teachers to thank them.

With his first month's salary, student Nguyen Van Tu came to thank his former teachers at Vinh Tan Primary School. Photo: NTCC

After meeting her and her teachers, and being encouraged by them, Tu decided to go back to school and enrolled at Vinh Tan Secondary School. Before the opening day, although illiterate, Tu's adoptive mother asked an acquaintance to buy enough books and notebooks for Tu to go to school. Overcoming the initial obstacles, Tu was determined to at least finish grade 9, even though there were still many difficulties ahead.

Trying to prevent Tu from dropping out of school, his grandmother and foster mother still have many concerns, because the life of a family of four is still full of difficulties. Currently, Tu's family is still living in an old rented room at No. 17, Alley 1, Ngo Thuc Tu Street, Vinh Tan Ward, and for many years has been classified as "temporary residents". Of the four people, only Tu and his foster mother's child are literate, the rest cannot read or write.

Tu’s adoptive mother’s situation was also very difficult, because she grew up in the Vinh Tan fishing village and had no relatives. When she was young, she lived thanks to the care of a poor family who lived on the river. Later, her grandparents passed away, leaving her alone. At the age of nearly 50, she now has a little daughter (this year in 4th grade) and makes a living by “digging worms to sell for a living”.

Nguyen Van Tu's adoptive mother and grandmother. After many years of waiting, Tu's mother was happy to have an appointment to complete the household registration. Photo: My Ha

Because Tu’s adoptive mother and grandmother’s income are “sometimes there is, sometimes there isn’t”, they both agreed to contribute money to pay for the rent, electricity, water, and daily meals. The family’s dream for many years has been to have a household registration in Vinh Tan ward to enjoy the poor household policies such as health insurance, support for the elderly, or exempted tuition fees.

At the end of August, after many efforts, Ms. Nguyet was given the opportunity to register her household and make a citizen identification card. She also hopes that after her, Tu's children and grandmother will be able to immigrate so that they can soon stabilize their lives. In recent years, Tu's family has been supported by many people, especially the landlord. Even knowing that Tu's family did not have a household registration, the landlord was willing to lend Tu's foster mother the household registration to buy household items on installments. During the two years of the Covid-19 pandemic, the whole family did not work, had no income, and the landlord even waived the rent for many months.

Tu's study corner in his rented room. Photo: My Ha

With the current difficult circumstances, the family hopes that Tu will continue to receive support when he returns to school. This is also a source of encouragement for him to be confident in his future journey and continue his dream of going to school.