Portraits of the two students who won first prize in the National Biology competition.
(Baonghean.vn) - At the 2021 National Excellent Student Selection Exam, the Biology team made a mark with 100% of its members winning awards. Most impressively, the two first prizes were won by two students from class 12A5, and they have also won awards in this competition for two consecutive years.
Nguyen Viet Anh: A spectacular breakthrough.
Three years ago, Nguyen Viet Anh was a prominent name in the entrance exam to...Phan Boi Chau Specialized High Schoolwhen I was the top student in the specialized Biology class.
For Viet Anh personally, the result in this competition was not easy because just a few months earlier, Viet Anh had been a failed contestant in the provincial gifted student selection competition for the city team.
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| Nguyen Viet Anh is not only an excellent student but also an active participant in many clubs and skilled in various sports. Photo: My Ha |
Notably, before his defeat in this competition, Viet Anh was considered the most promising contestant. This was because, while attending Le Mao Secondary School (Vinh City), Viet Anh had won the city-level award for excellence in Biology for two consecutive years. In 8th grade, he was the runner-up, and in 9th grade, he was the top scorer in the subject.Biology.Recalling this experience, Viet Anh added: "That was my first setback, and I burst into tears when I found out the result. Personally, I don't know why, maybe I was too overconfident," Viet Anh recalled.
Viet Anh's family has a tradition in the medical field, but it wasn't until the 8th grade that he began to consciously pursue Biology to follow in his family's footsteps. Since then, Viet Anh has also become serious about his studies; before that, he was a mediocre student and spent most of his time playing games.
The person who changed Viet Anh's thinking about gaming was his father, even though his father never put pressure on him regarding his studies. Recounting the process of "quitting" gaming, Viet Anh added: "When I first entered 6th grade, I played a lot of games, sometimes for 6 or 7 hours straight. Because I was addicted to games, my studies were greatly affected. Then, my father spent an entire night talking to me about the harmful effects of games and gave me two choices: quit gaming to prioritize my studies, or I could spiral downwards... I've always admired my father, and I was determined to quit gaming so he wouldn't be upset."
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| In the National Excellent Student Selection Exam, in addition to the two theoretical exams, candidates must also take a practical exam. Photo: MH |
Giving up gaming and getting accepted into Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School became the motivation for Viet Anh to excel throughout his three years of high school, especially since Viet Anh was always praised by his teachers for his intelligence and quick thinking.
In 10th grade, I completed almost all the difficult extra assignments given by the teacher with flying colors, even though I already had a lot of knowledge from 11th and 12th grade.
When selected for the national team, Viet Anh was also a standout figure because for two consecutive years participating in the National Excellent Student Selection Exam, he achieved high awards: second prize in 11th grade and first prize in 12th grade. Notably, in this year's exam, with 34.35 points, Viet Anh was the second highest-scoring candidate nationwide, only 0.25 points behind the top-scoring student.
Returning to the national team for the second time, Viet Anh shared: "My biggest goal is to get into Hanoi Medical University, and with my 11th-grade results, I could have been admitted directly. However, in 12th grade, I'm still determined to take the exam again because I want to conquer the international arena and give myself another chance."
Vu Tran Quynh Trang: Confident, overcoming oneself.
To date, Vu Tran Quynh Trang is the first female student from Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School to win first prize in Biology at the university.National Excellent Student Examination.With a score ranking 4th nationwide, Trang also advanced directly to the second round to select the national team to participate in the International Olympiad.
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| Vu Tran Quynh Trang is the first female student to win first prize in Biology. Photo: My Ha. |
Despite being a girl, Trang was the most trusted and relied-upon student in Phan School's Biology gifted student team this year. Therefore, although Trang herself admitted that this result was "a surprise," it was understandable to her teachers.
The female student from class 12 A5, formerly a student of Ho Xuan Huong Secondary School (Quynh Luu), also won first prize in the provincial excellent student competition in Biology in 9th grade and was one of the top 10 candidates in the entrance exam.
To achieve high scores in the National Excellent Student Selection Exam, Trang's simplest secret is hard work. However, Trang doesn't consider herself a bookworm; the most important thing is having a scientific study method: She spends a considerable amount of time reading books and reflecting on what she reads. In addition, to study well, one must have a solid grasp of basic knowledge and then relate it to relevant issues.
Before winning first prize in the 12th grade exam, Quynh Trang had also won third prize in the National Excellent Student Competition in the 11th grade. After this result, Trang even considered stopping her studies to focus on preparing for the university entrance exam because her biggest aspiration was to get into the General Medicine program at Hanoi Medical University.
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| In 2020, while in 11th grade, Viet Anh and Quynh Trang won second and third prizes respectively at the National Excellent Student Competition. Photo: PV |
When Trang decided to join the national team for the second time, she had to "gamble" on herself: either she would succeed and get straight into medical school, or she would fail and possibly miss the university entrance exam. Later, through her passion and hard work, Trang fulfilled her dream.
The remarkable achievement of a teacher born in the 1990s.
Biology used to be one of the obstacles for Phan High School students in the National Excellent Student Selection Exam. However, for the past three years, Biology has become a strength of the school, with students consistently winning first prize nationally. This year alone, with 2 first prizes, 2 second prizes, 4 third prizes, and 2 consolation prizes, Biology is one of the most successful subjects, with 100% of the contestants winning prizes.
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| Teacher Phan Thi Huong and her students during their exam preparation days in Hanoi. Photo: PV |
As the homeroom teacher of class 12 A5 and one of the three teachers coaching the team, Ms. Phan Thi Huong is truly happy with this "unexpected" result. The 2021 National Excellent Student Selection Exam was also the first time the female teacher, born in 1990, was entrusted with leading the team, marking her first achievement after nearly three years of working at Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School.
When I was assigned to be the homeroom teacher for the specialized class, I felt a lot of pressure. This was because Phan's goals weren't just for the national team, but also for international competitions. Meanwhile, I was young, lacked experience in coaching national teams, and hadn't had much exposure to international competition.
Having been with the 12 A5 class and the team members for nearly three years, teacher Phan Thi Huong has many memories. She recounts that Viet Anh was a very promising student who caught the teachers' attention from the moment he entered 10th grade. However, Viet Anh's weakness was his poor handwriting and sloppy presentation, lacking neatness. Therefore, in the early days of grading Viet Anh's papers, if his handwriting was too bad, I would immediately cross it out and not grade it. Many times, Viet Anh brought his paper to me to "complain," but I resolutely refused to change the result so that he could adjust and overcome his weaknesses on his own.
With Vu Tran Quynh Trang, teacher Phan Thi Huong felt a special sense of empathy because she herself had been a member of the national team and had also had to overcome the difficulties of being a female student who "accidentally" fell in love with Biology.
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| Besides being a teacher, Ms. Phan Thi Huong is also a sister and a friend to the members of the team. Photo: My Ha |
Teacher Phan Thi Huong also accompanied and encouraged Trang to continue pursuing the National Excellent Student Examination for 12th graders because she believed that "Trang is a student with strong inner strength and great effort."
Speaking about Trang, Ms. Huong further shared: When Trang first joined the team, she was a very confident student. But perhaps because of the immense pressure of the National Excellent Student Competition and the Biology subject (having to study all 8 topics from grade 10), the more she studied, the less confident she became in herself. Therefore, in addition to supplementing Trang's knowledge, I had to constantly encourage and motivate her to improve herself.
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| With second and fourth place finishes respectively, Viet Anh and Quynh Trang advanced to the second round of selection for the national team to participate in the International Olympiad. Photo: My Ha |
During the training days for the team, young teacher Phan Thi Huong also learned a great deal from her colleagues. Therefore, together with teacher Tran Mong Lai and teacher Nguyen Thanh Ha, the teachers truly "inspired" the students and found common ground, which is that everything is for the sake of the students...
After much effort, the sweet rewards achieved in the first days of 2021 have further strengthened the team, the teachers, and the students of Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School. This will also be the foundation for the students to continue conquering the second round of the national team selection with the belief in a successful day!
Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School102 students participated in the National Excellent Student Selection Examination. The results showed that the entire delegation had 81 students winning awards, including 7 first prizes, 25 second prizes, 27 third prizes, and 22 consolation prizes. Specifically, in Biology: 2 first prizes, 2 second prizes, 4 third prizes, and 2 consolation prizes.