A Hmong girl wins the title of top student in the 9th grade in Nghe An province.

One winter morning, the border district of Ky Son was shrouded in fog and biting cold. Yet, at Ky Son Ethnic Boarding Junior High School, laughter and chatter still echoed joyfully. The students and teachers alike were proud and delighted to hear the news.Results of the Provincial-level Grade 9 Excellent Student Selection ExamThe competition just took place. According to Principal Nguyen Que Truong, all 14 students from the school who participated won 14 prizes. These included 1 first prize, 1 second prize, 7 third prizes, and 5 consolation prizes.

“This is the first time in the school's history that we've had such a large number of students participating and winning awards as this year. Because 100% of our students are children of ethnic minorities in the district, the efforts of the teachers and students are something that many people admire,” shared teacher Nguyen Que Truong.

In class 9A, groups of students surrounded student Cu Gau Xu to congratulate her. Sharing her joy, the Hmong student said: Gau Xu's family lives in Tien Tieu village, in the border commune of Nam Can. Her father is a commune official, and her mother is a freelance worker. Gau Xu is the second child in a family of four siblings. When she was in elementary school, with her talent, Gau Xu participated in and won many awards at the district level. Among them, she won second prize in a storytelling competition about the exemplary life of President Ho Chi Minh. This was also an honor and motivation for Gau Xu to strive to overcome the prejudice and barrier of "girls don't need to study" in the outdated thinking of many Hmong people.

Upon entering secondary school and passing the entrance exam to the district's boarding school, Cự Gầu Xư developed a passion for Civics, a subject that many of his classmates considered dry and uninteresting.

"Many people say that, but in every lesson I find joy and valuable, useful lessons. I feel this subject suits my abilities and supplements the knowledge and skills I lack in life and in dealing with relationships outside of school," Gau Xu shared.

Therefore, in the 8th grade, in the district-level excellent student competition, Gau Xu won first prize. Then, in the selection rounds for the provincial-level excellent student competition, she also demonstrated her abilities by consistently ranking first. Gau Xu said that, besides the school's schedule of two review sessions a week, she studied on her own the rest of the time.

“To excel in this subject that many consider dry, I first set goals for myself. Initially, I set small goals, and after achieving them, I set bigger ones. I consult books, newspapers, documents, and television programs, and draw my own lessons from them. My learning method is simply that,” – Gau Xu revealed.

Teacher Tran Thi Thu Hang, the teacher who directly mentored Gau Xu, said: This school year, all four of her students won awards in the Civic Education subject at the provincial level, and all four are Hmong. Gau Xu consistently maintained his excellent performance in all the tests.

“Besides classroom review sessions, I also make time for nighttime tutoring for the students, regardless of rain or shine. In return, the Hmong students like them are all very well-behaved and diligent. In particular, Gau Xu is someone who always has a fresh and creative perspective on everything,” Ms. Hang shared.

Speaking about his aspirations, Cu Gau Xu shared: “In the future, I want to become an editor because I've been passionate about it since I was little and have also participated as an MC in many programs. My hometown has majestic mountains, a bustling border market with cultural beauty that many people have never known. Becoming an editor is an opportunity for me to introduce my hometown to friends from all over the world.”