Education

Lighting up the desire for change in ethnic minority students

Content: Thanh Quynh - Technique: Diep Thanh • September 9, 2025 16:45

With their love for the profession, perseverance and appropriate educational methods, teachers at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School have become a solid foundation, helping many generations of ethnic minority students achieve impressive results in domestic and international exams.

Content: Thanh Quynh - Technique: Diep Thanh

With their love for the profession, perseverance and appropriate educational methods, teachers at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School have become a solid foundation, helping many generations of ethnic minority students achieve impressive results in domestic and international exams.

To better understand teaching methods and how to effectively accompany students, Nghe An Newspaper, Radio and Television reporters had a conversation with Meritorious Teacher Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa - Principal of Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School.

PV:In recent years, many ethnic minority students of the school have not only achieved good results in provincial and national competitions but also won high prizes in international competitions. In your opinion, what is the effective method that the school has implemented to help students assert themselves in the international arena?

Meritorious Teacher Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa:Over the years, students ofNghe An Ethnic Boarding High Schoolhas had many remarkable sweet fruits. Not only stopping at high prizes in provincial and national excellent student competitions, but the students also boldly stepped into the international intellectual playground and achieved very encouraging results when in the 2 school years 2023 - 2024 and 2024 - 2025, at the international TIMO Math competition, they brought home 11 Silver Medals, 1 Bronze Medal, 3 Encouragement Prizes.

At the INTARG International Invention and Creativity Competition in Poland, the school's students won 1 Gold Medal and 1 Special Prize. At the WICO World Invention and Creativity Olympiad in Korea, they continued to make their mark with 3 Gold Medals and 3 Special Prizes. Many students also strived to obtain IELTS and International IT Certificates, and some even excelled in winning full scholarships from the British University Vietnam.

To achieve these results, we always have to calculate appropriate strategies. In fact, the starting point of ethnic minority students is limited, especially in English and skills in approaching science and technology. Therefore, the school persistently accompanies and creates its own ways to support them to develop their internal strength. In addition to teaching subjects according to the program, we especially focus on nurturing students in Math in English, helping them have more opportunities to participate in international competitions such as TIMO. In addition to regular school hours, teachers organize evening tutoring, especially for 12th grade students. During the summer, teachers still spend time organizing free online classes to accompany students.

For students with weak academic performance, teachers always patiently spend more time, directly tutoring in the form of "1 teacher for 1 student", both creating closeness and helping them improve every day. The results of that perseverance have been demonstrated through many students who originally had a low starting point but have risen strongly. A typical example is Lo Thi Bay (born in 2007) - an O Du ethnic group in Na Hy village, Nhon Mai commune, who has made constant efforts and excellently passed the Preschool Department, Hanoi Pedagogical University 2 with 27.23 points. She is one of the few O Du students to achieve such high results.

In addition, we also build English Clubs in schools, organize events and themed experiential activities for students to practice communication skills. Right from the beginning of the course, the school surveyed and classified levels to establish intensive classes. Thanks to that, many students have achieved IELTS 7.0 - 7.5.

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I believe that every student, no matter what their starting point, as long as they are loved, cared for and properly oriented, will have enough strength to overcome all challenges.

Meritorious Teacher Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa

In addition to teaching, teachers always encourage students to turn knowledge into practical products through scientific and technical projects. At the same time, the school proactively seeks social resources, calling on businesses and sponsors to create conditions for students to participate in many domestic and international playgrounds.

And perhaps the most important factor is the warm and friendly boarding environment. Here, teachers are not only teachers, but also second parents, always there to encourage and take care of every meal, sleep, and even evening self-study habits. Children grow up in that embrace, equipped with knowledge and nurtured with faith and will.

All of these things have created resilience for our students, so that they are not only good at knowledge, but also confident, courageous, and ready to conquer new heights.

PV: During your time at the school, you must have witnessed many touching stories about students’ achievements. What meaningful messages do these stories bring to today’s education?

Meritorious Teacher Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa:It is true that during the years I have been attached to the school, I have witnessed many touching stories. Those stories not only motivate students but also inspire teachers to continue to stick with and contribute to their career path.

Among the many stories about the perseverance of students to overcome difficulties, I remember the most Lang Thi Ai My (born in 2002) in Ke Noc village, Mau Thach commune. Coming from a poor family, her parents worked hard all year round, lacking food and clothing, but Ai My always tried hard to study and maintained high achievements throughout 3 years of studying at school. Thanks to that, she passed the entrance exam to the University of Procuracy (Hanoi) with an impressive score. With the support of teachers and benefactors to overcome the days of material deprivation, she maintained her will to study and successfully graduated from university. Now, Ai My has a stable job in Ho Chi Minh City, building a good and independent life for herself.

Not only Ai My, many other students of the school also left a deep impression on me. Some were orphans, some were so poor that they thought they would have to drop out of school. However, with their own determination and aspiration, they made constant efforts and passed the entrance exams to major universities. Behind each admission notice is a long and arduous journey, where the will to overcome circumstances, turning challenges into stepping stones for them to reach their dreams.

These stories convey a very meaningful message: Education is not only about teaching letters, but also about lighting the fire of dreams and confidence in each student. We believe that, regardless of their starting point, as long as they are loved, cared for and properly oriented, they will have enough strength to overcome all challenges.

Reporter: It is known that the school not only accompanies students throughout their high school years but also continues to connect with businesses and philanthropists to support them after graduation, especially those with difficult circumstances who are studying at university. Can you share more specifically about this meaningful activity?

Meritorious Teacher Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa:This is one of the things that we are always passionate about and have been persistently doing for many years. For us, accompanying students does not stop at the gate of high school, but continues on the journey of adulthood later.

In reality, many students, despite being admitted to university, still face numerous difficulties when studying and living in big cities. Therefore, the school proactively seeks support from businesses, benefactors and kind-hearted people to further motivate the students.

To date, more than 40 students who are alumni of the school have been regularly supported by the business community and philanthropists. Particularly in the 2025 entrance exam, immediately after the results were released, we received feedback from students about the difficulties they faced when preparing for school, immediately reviewed and made a list of 6 cases in need of urgent support to promptly connect resources, helping them confidently enter the classroom.

The valuable thing is that the support is not only material but also spiritual, helping the students feel that they are not alone, adding confidence and determination to overcome challenges. For us, this is a long-term journey and will certainly continue to be maintained, so that each student, wherever they are, can feel the warm support from their old school.

PV: Looking ahead, in your opinion, to continue improving the quality of training and effectively accompanying ethnic minority students, what goals will the school set and what steps will be taken to realize those goals?

Meritorious Teacher Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa:This is something that the school’s board of directors and teachers are always concerned about. We look to the future with great hope, but are also aware of the challenges that need to be overcome.

Our biggest goal is to improve the overall quality of students, helping them not only gain solid knowledge but also have enough skills to confidently integrate. We hope that they will return to build their homeland and contribute to the development of the community.

To do that, we will focus on three main things. First, is to innovate teaching and learning methods. We will constantly update modern teaching methods, encouraging students to explore and be creative. At the same time, the school also pays special attention to career counseling from the beginning, helping students choose a combination of subjects that suit their abilities and interests. This ensures that students have a clear direction right from when they are still in school. Second, is to expand support resources. We will continue to connect with businesses and philanthropists to find scholarships and financial support for students.pupilhave difficult circumstances. And thirdly, and most importantly, is to build a boarding environment that is both disciplined and warm. The children live far from home, the teachers are their second family. We will continue to take care of them from meals, sleep, to self-study and daily activities. At the same time, we will also organize more activities for them to develop life skills, integration skills such as English, IT, cultural activities, arts, sports... so that they are always proud of their national identity.

We believe that, with the efforts of both teachers and students, and the support of the community, the road ahead for the students will be wider and the school will continue to be a place to light up the dreams of generations of students in the highlands of Nghe An.

PV: Thank you for the conversation!

Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School currently has 735 students who are children of ethnic minorities. In the 2023-2024 school year, the school's average high school graduation score ranked 4th in the province; The university admission rate in recent years has always been above 90%, with many students admitted to prestigious universities, among the top of the higher education system.

The school was honored to receive the Third Class Labor Medal twice (1994, 2023), the Second Class Labor Medal (1999), the First Class Labor Medal (2004) and the Third Class Labor Medal in 2024 from the President.