(Baonghean.vn) - Due to limited literacy and year-round food shortages, many students in mountainous areas have to follow their parents to the fields to find food before they even have a chance to learn to read and write. And at the beginning of each school year, when teachers in the lowlands have settled into teaching and students have returned to their normal study routines, in the western part of Nghe An province, the "ferrymen" have to travel day and night, searching every stream and hill, knocking on every door to persuade families to send their children to school.
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| On weekends, the teachers of Tri Le 4 Primary School spend their days climbing mountain passes to reach the fields and encourage students to come to school. |
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| Tri Le 4 Primary School (Tri Le commune, Que Phong district) is located more than 30km from the commune center and is home to 100 households of the Mong ethnic minority. The new school year has been underway for nearly a month, but teachers are still working to encourage students to attend school. In the photo: Teachers are persuading Mr. Xong Nhia Tu's family to bring their two children, who were working in the fields, back to the village to attend school. |
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| Tri Le 4 Primary School has 41 teachers, all of whom are men. Since they couldn't manage to go out during the day, at night the teachers divided into groups to visit families and encourage children to attend school. |
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| There are days when teachers have to spend the whole night trying to convince families to let their children return to school. However, there are many cases where teachers don't get the parents' approval. |
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| Thanks to the efforts of the teachers, over 90% of students at Tri Le 4 Primary School have returned to school so far. Teacher Xong Ba Thanh, a Hmong man, is one of the shining examples who has helped his community recognize the importance of education, thereby contributing to changing perceptions and encouraging children to attend school. |
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| Just like the teachers in Tri Le, the start of the new school year is also the time when teachers at Xa Luong Secondary School, Xa Luong commune, Tuong Duong district, go looking for students who didn't come to school after the summer break ended. |
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| Among the villages in Xa Luong commune, Na Be village, inhabited by the Khmu ethnic group, has the highest dropout rate. To date, more than 60 students have yet to return to school. Therefore, the teachers have to go door-to-door to persuade them to attend. |
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| Most students in Na Be drop out of school to earn a living and help their families. Some, according to relatives, have gone to China months ago but have not heard from anyone, while others have followed people to Quang Ngai province to work in gold mines or followed their parents to the fields to plant corn and herd cattle. In the photo: Teacher Tran Hung Thai - Principal of Xa Luong Secondary School - encourages and persuades Xeo Van Xay, an 8th-grade student, to return to school. |
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| Encouraging students in mountainous areas to attend school is difficult enough, but persuading the Dan Lai ethnic minority children in Mon Son commune (Con Cuong district) is even more challenging. |
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| Currently, in the Dan Lai ethnic minority villages of Bung and Co Phat, located within the core area of Pu Mat National Park, 22 out of 81 children are still not attending school. Teachers at Mon Son Secondary School say that almost every new school year, they organize 6 or 7 campaigns to encourage children to attend school. |
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| Due to extreme poverty and limited awareness, many parents in Dan Lai are reluctant to send their children to school. Understanding this reality, the teachers do everything they can to encourage, persuade, and even provide material support so that the children can attend school. |
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| Hunger and poverty are the invisible walls separating the people from the learning environment of the students. A common sight is the teachers shaking their heads when they discuss the students' education with their parents. |
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| However, many people, seeing the teachers' sincerity, agreed to let their children return to class. |
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| By this time, teachers at Mon Son Secondary School had persuaded the families and brought 7 out of 22 students back to school. And as soon as they received the families' approval, the teachers immediately transported the students back to school. |
Cong Kien - Xuan Hoa - Hoang Tung
