Poor new valedictorian with passion for information technology

(Baonghean.vn)- Although he was admitted directly to university, Tu was still determined to take the exam to test himself and achieved the title of valedictorian of Hanoi University of Science and Technology with a total score of 29. Before the university entrance exam, Tu was honored to join the Party.

Valedictorian Pham Anh Tu with the laptop given to him by his uncle

With buck teeth and an intelligent face, Pham Anh Tu makes a first impression with his gentle, quiet and frugal personality. Tu is the eldest son in a family with difficult circumstances. His father is a worker who retired early, his mother is unemployed, after a period of selling water at Vinh market, she had to quit because of poor health. Since his mother stopped selling water at the market, all family expenses depended on his father's 2 million VND pension, so Pham Huu Linh applied to work as a worker at a wood chip factory in Nghi Xuan district, Ha Tinh to earn more than 2 million VND per month to cover the cost of his children's education.

Although his family's economic situation was difficult and he did not have the conditions to study here and there, Pham Anh Tu studied very well and became a shining example for his peers. Even when he was in secondary school, he went to school one day and pushed a water cart to sell water with his mother the next day, but Tu continuously achieved the title of excellent student. In grade 8, Tu began to approach the subject of information technology in the textbook program and was helped by a teacher at Le Mao Secondary School. The more he studied, the more passionate he became, and from that moment on, Tu wanted to become a programmer, a good expert in information technology.

The happy little family of the new valedictorian Pham Anh Tu

After completing secondary school, Pham Anh Tu passed the entrance exam to the specialized Math - IT class of Vinh University High School for the Gifted. And it was here that Tu's dream took flight when he studied with excellent, dedicated teachers who always created the best conditions for Tu to develop his full potential. During this time, Tu continuously achieved success in various competitions. In particular, in grades 11 and 12, Tu was excellently selected to compete in the national excellent student competition in IT. In grade 11, he won a consolation prize. A year later, he won 3rd prize and was directly admitted to university.

Because his family was poor, Tu's parents wanted him to enroll directly into a university in the police or military sector, but Tu was passionate about his dream of information technology. He enrolled directly into the University of Technology under the Vietnam National University, Hanoi. However, with the encouragement of his teachers at school, especially his homeroom teacher Nguyen Duc Toan, Tu registered to take the Computer Science exam at the University of Science and Technology. Tu confided that after completing the A block exam, both teacher and student reviewed the exam and thought he could score over 28 points, but he did not dare to think about being the valedictorian. "Maybe I was also lucky because my friends who took the exam for the University of Science and Technology were all excellent. When I took the exam, I was a bit subjective in Math and lost 0.25 points, so I kept regretting it," Tu said.

Tu's study method is to do a lot of exercises, many types of math, and carefully, to get full marks.

Although he was sure that he would pass the entrance exam to the University of Science and Technology because of his good test results, Tu still wanted to try his hand at group B. He said that the school he was applying to had not yet announced his scores, but based on the answers from the Ministry of Education and Training, Tu was confident that he would get about 24 points in group B.

When he received the news that he was one of the three valedictorians of Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Pham Anh Tu immediately informed his parents and homeroom teacher. Pham Huu Linh smiled and said: his parents' life as workers was very difficult, hoping that Tu would develop his full potential in the new environment and decide his own future.

When talking about their son's achievements, both Tu's parents often mention the homeroom teacher Nguyen Duc Toan and Vinh University High School for the Gifted. Because their houses are close to each other, Tu has been tutored by teacher Toan since grade 10 and is considered a family member. Meanwhile, the school's board of directors also created conditions to help Toan a lot. During the 3 years of study, he received scholarships. Notably, last June, right before the university entrance exam, Tu was honored to join the ranks of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

“My whole family will always remember the memory of when I went to the national excellent student competition, I lost my bicycle because I was careless. The school supported me to buy a new bike, the subject teachers also cared about me a lot, so in my heart, I always thought I had to do something to repay the kindness of my homeroom teacher and the school. This initial achievement is partly due to my luck, mostly thanks to the teachers who taught me,” Tu said, sitting next to his laptop, tinkering with the programming code. Tu said that although he majored in mathematics and information technology, his parents did not have money to buy a computer, so this laptop was bought for him by his uncle.

Talking about his student, homeroom teacher Nguyen Duc Toan said that Tu is a good student, studious, careful, has beautiful handwriting and always has a strong will to improve. The score that Tu achieved in the recent exam was within the expectations of the homeroom teacher as well as some subject teachers. Dr. Nguyen Van Thuan, Principal of Vinh University High School for the Gifted, said that Pham Anh Tu is an example of overcoming difficulties and winning high prizes in exams.

“With his ability, Tu will certainly go further in the future. Tu's achievements are a further affirmation of the tradition of studiousness and good learning of Nghe An, and a testament to the increasingly improved quality of education of the school. Like previous years, this year's university entrance exam season, the school is waiting for more positive signals, not only the valedictorians and salutatorians of top universities but also the promise of a successful exam season with a high university admission rate, contributing to further enhancing the teaching and learning tradition of Vinh University High School for the Gifted”, affirmed Dr. Nguyen Van Thuan.

Nguyen Khoa