For a day of gratitude
(Baonghean) - Vietnam Teachers' Charter Day is always a day that brings special emotions to teachers. Then, from everyone's sincere feelings, they have the motivation to stick with the blackboard, white chalk, and the career of educating people, even though sometimes there are many difficulties...
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| Teachers from the Center for Education and Vocational Training for the Disabled instruct students in an industrial sewing class. Photo: Duc Anh |
Special gifts
The 2018-2019 school year was the first year that teacher Le Dinh Tam was transferred to be the Vice Principal of Que Phong Ethnic Minority Secondary School. Going back from Thong Thu commune to Kim Son town, from a difficult area to a convenient place, but after nearly half a semester down here, he still wasn't used to it, saying he "missed the mountains", even though the conditions were much more fortunate. The nostalgia came more often on occasions of celebrating Vietnamese Teachers' Day.
After 20 years of working in education in Que, talking about the past, Mr. Tam has not forgotten the days when he first started teaching in Dong Van commune. At that time, he was a poor kid, coming to the highlands with nothing, starting a business, getting married and having children was very difficult.
Because of pity for the poor couple, the commune leaders gave the teacher a piece of land in the center of the commune to build a house and "settle down". Later, when he moved to Hanh Dich and then Thong Thu, whether in the position of teacher or leader, he was cared for and supported by the local government, people and colleagues.
In response to that love, from a fresh graduate, Mr. Tam has become a good, excellent teacher, for many consecutive years being an excellent teacher at the district and provincial levels. He is also a key teacher of the Department of Education and Training of Que Phong district, has many innovative experiences, and has many excellent students winning prizes at the District and Provincial Excellent Student Competitions. In the 2017-2018 school year, the teacher and students at Thong Thu Ethnic Minority Secondary School won second prize in the Provincial Science and Technology Innovation Competition - a result considered a "miracle" in a school in a difficult area.
Mr. Tam considers Que as his second home. A few years ago, when he was given the opportunity to return to his hometown to teach, he refused and gave the opportunity to someone else.
“Teachers in remote and disadvantaged areas are at a much greater disadvantage than in many other places. However, the more difficult it is, the more people support and care for each other. Here, on holidays we don’t have valuable gifts, but the locals organize a happy day for parents and teachers in the remote areas. We are given “homegrown” gifts by the locals, although simple, but filled with precious feelings,” said Mr. Tam.
Being attached to the highlands, teacher Le Dinh Tam, teacher Nguyen Duy Thanh, teacher Nguyen Ngoc Huong and many other teachers we met at Que Phong Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities also shared many stories that made them love and attach more to this land with many difficulties. Among them, more than all is the heart of the students and parents for the teachers. Only here is there the image of the parents' association carrying a cart carrying each package of sticky rice to give to the teachers. Here, there are no flowers, not too many congratulations but just a word of thanks "thanks to the teachers, my child can read and write" is enough to warm the heart.
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| Teacher Thai Khac Minh guides deaf students in practicing electricity. Photo: Duc Anh |
Located about 16 km from Lat town (Tan Ky) is Huong Son Secondary School - one of the most disadvantaged schools in the district. Having been with the school since its inception, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong still remembers clearly the days when teachers and students "laid the first bricks" to build the school. 19 years later, although there have been many changes, the difficulties and hardships have never ended.
Sharing more about this, Ms. Duong confided: More than half of the school's students are from disadvantaged backgrounds and ethnic minorities, so the thing that teachers always worry about is how to get them to school every day. Because they love their students, the fact that the school's teachers bring their own food, rice, and even their own salary to pay tuition, cook meals, and take care of the students has become a normal thing in this school in a difficult area.
And like many other teachers who are teaching in remote areas, here, as long as students come to school every day and have the opportunity to study further, that is the most meaningful gift for teachers on November 20.Just one heart
At the Center for Education and Vocational Training for the Disabled, the Vietnamese Teachers' Charter Day is also very special, although there are not many fresh flowers, not many congratulations... Coming to the center at this time, the atmosphere is quite bustling, when the classes are preparing performances to perform at the celebration. In the younger classes, although they have to study culture and basic communication skills, the students have also prepared their own gifts to give to their teachers. Meeting student Luong Thi Yen Nhi when she was taking care of the last strokes to complete the painting to give to her teacher. Yen Nhi excitedly showed off her product: "I drew the painting to give to teacher Sa. My teacher loves me very much and takes care of me every day."
Those are also the simple gifts that teachers here receive on the occasion of November 20th. Talking with teacher Dinh Thi Sa - Teacher of the slow development class, she shared that: Compared to other schools, our students are all less fortunate, not able to develop like normal people. But being close to them, teaching them every day, the feelings between teachers and students are very warm, seeing each other as in a family. On holidays, we do not expect anything, just hope that the students make progress, that they know how to perceive and be happy with the joy of their teachers, that is already a truly happy thing.
The story of Vietnamese Teachers' Day also brought us to meet again teacher Samuel Desjardins - a Canadian teacher who is teaching at a private school in Vinh city. He shared that 4 months of being attached to Vietnam, being attached to the job of being a teacher in Nghe An has given him a lot, especially the feelings he received from his students. Coming to Vietnam, he also felt lucky to experience an emotional November 20th holiday: Teachers' Day in Vietnam is like a special festival for teachers and is also eagerly awaited by students every day. This is completely different from Teachers' Day in Canada.
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| Teacher Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong - who has been with Huong Son Secondary School (Tan Ky) since its establishment. Photo: Chu Thanh |
In our country, teachers' day is celebrated very simply. On that day, the leader will buy a cake, place it in the room, then notify the students to come and express their thanks to the teachers who directly teach them... Perhaps because of this difference, the first time he received flowers and cards from students, Mr. Samuel could not hide his surprise and emotion because of the students' feelings for him. The scribbles and cute drawings of teachers that Mr. Samuel received from students made him love and feel more attached to Nghe An.
Sincere feelings, words of thanks and deep gratitude are also the greatest happiness that teachers feel on the occasion of Vietnam Teachers' Day November 20. From there, it motivates them to love and be more attached to this meaningful and solemn job.