"The Math Tree" of the rice-growing region

(Baonghean) - Thanks to his hard work, diligent practice, and innate intelligence, Tran Quoc Nam (born in 1998) from Yen Thanh Town has strived to excel academically and won many high prizes in provincial, regional, and national mathematics competitions for gifted students...

Tran Quoc Nam has been known as a math prodigy since childhood. His father, Tran Quoc Trien, said: "At the age of three, Nam could read numbers and memorize more than 20 phone numbers of shops near his house. At five, he could mentally calculate difficult math problems from the elementary school curriculum. By the age of five, he could read and write fluently."

During his primary school years in Yen Thanh Town, Tran Quoc Nam won high awards in many district and provincial-level competitions. Besides his talent in mathematics, Nam also enjoyed chess and English. In the 5th grade, Nam won first prize in the English Olympic competition organized by the Nghe An Department of Education and Training in collaboration with the Van Xuan Language Institute. That same year, he also won second prize in the provincial-level chess competition.

Tran Quoc Nam is studying.

Ms. Chu Thi Tu, Nam's homeroom teacher in 5th grade, said: "Nam learns math very quickly. Every time I teach math, I have to add a backup plan to the lesson. This is because he might ask additional questions about the lesson content or have a faster method of solving problems than his classmates."

Nam attended Bach Lieu Specialized Junior High School in Yen Thanh District. In 7th grade, he won first prize nationally in an online math competition. In 9th grade, he achieved top honors in Math and third prize in Chemistry at the provincial level. His homeroom teacher, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy, commented: “Nam is the ‘math prodigy’ of our school. He learns very quickly and always has excellent methods for solving math problems, which impresses his teachers. Not only is he good at Math, but Nam is also well-rounded. His overall grades in all subjects are above 9.5…”

In the 2013-2014 school year, Nam was simultaneously admitted to two specialized high schools: Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School in Nghe An province and the Specialized High School affiliated with Hanoi University of Education. Despite their meager teacher salaries, Mr. and Mrs. Trien still managed to enroll their son in the Specialized High School affiliated with Hanoi University of Education.

Living far from home and independently, facing countless difficulties, Nam overcame them all to excel in his studies. In 10th grade, his overall GPA was 9.8, with perfect scores of 10/10 in Math, Physics, and Chemistry. Nam was ranked first in the school's Math team. With these academic achievements, Nam received a scholarship from the National Key Program for the Development of Mathematics (2013-2020) of the Ministry of Education and Training.

In May 2014, Nam won a Gold Medal in the competition for specialized high schools in the coastal and northern delta regions with a perfect score of 20/20. In 11th grade, Nam continued to win a Gold Medal in the same competition with a perfect score of 20/20. Even more remarkably, in February 2015, Nam won third prize in the national excellent student competition in Mathematics.

Meeting Nam at his home in Block 1, Yen Thanh Town, during his summer vacation, and asking about his secret to academic success, Nam smiled and said: "I don't have any secrets. Besides the knowledge taught by my teachers in class, I collect math problems from various sources to find my own solution methods, then gradually increase the difficulty from easy to hard. For any math problems I don't understand, I discuss them with my teachers and friends; I also manage my time effectively to play sports and participate in other social activities."

Speaking about his dreams, Nam said: "I will soon be taking the entrance exam for Hanoi University of Science and Technology and will try my best to study abroad in the US. My dream is to become a mathematics researcher and return to serve my country."

Tien Dung