Lieutenant Colonel, teacher Nguyen Minh Tu: 'Honored to be a typical national vocational education teacher'

Happy to be a vocational teacher

Returning from Hanoi after the meeting and receiving Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, teacher Nguyen Minh Tu said: "This is an honor not only for me but also for the school community, and is a great source of encouragement for teachers working in vocational schools.

Having attended the meeting, heard many stories from colleagues from remote, disadvantaged areas and listened to direct instructions from the head of the Government, I understood more clearly the saying, to have good students, there must be good teachers. Students can only acquire knowledge most effectively if they receive guidance and instruction from teachers who are capable, dedicated, responsible and have methods to inspire and motivate students.

Previously, in a meeting at the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Lieutenant Colonel, teacher Nguyen Minh Tu was also honored to give a speech sharing his experiences in 20 years of teaching at the Ministry.Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense, especially promoting initiatives to improve techniques and equipment to serve teaching work: "My colleagues and I have sought out feasible measures, creative and effective ways of doing things, proactively working with the team to promptly resolve difficulties so that teaching and learning can achieve the best results. The solution applied by the whole school is to promote initiatives to improve techniques to serve teaching and training".

Teacher Nguyen Minh Tu was born in 1979 in Anh Son district. After graduating from high school and starting to choose a career, he never thought he would become a teacher and later switch to working in the military.

However, his choice of studying automotive technology seemed inevitable: "When I was young, I was very passionate about mechanics and cars. So, when choosing a career, while many friends chose economics, transportation, and finance, I chose to study engineering. After graduating, fate brought me to Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense and I have been attached to the job until today. For me, it was a blessing, because here I can still do the job I love and be a teacher, a soldier in the army".

According to Mr. Tu, vocational teachers have their own characteristics compared to general teachers, from students, working environment and work. Besides, there are more difficulties and challenges, not only for students but also for those who directly teach.

When starting a new course, I always tell students that if they choose a career, they must first love it and be passionate about it in order to stick with it. Furthermore, if they learn a career, they must accept the difficulties and hardships.

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Minh Tu - teacher at Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense.

Vocational school teachers "fear" most is falling behind

Teaching at the Faculty of Automotive Technology for 20 years, teacher Nguyen Minh Tu has also experienced many different positions and developed from a lecturer and is now Head of the Faculty of Construction Machinery and Deputy Head of the Faculty of Automotive Technology.

For a vocational school teacher, there is no unique curriculum and no technology that is forever. Therefore, if students study without a curriculum, the teacher must stick to reality to write curriculum, monographs, and update new knowledge. Vocational teachers must also constantly learn because technology, especially automobile technology, in the world develops every day. To keep up with the world's trends, learning is never-ending.

Lieutenant Colonel, Teacher Nguyen Minh Tu

From practical experience, Mr. Tu added: "With more than 20 years of practical experience teaching at school, I have accumulated a lot of experience for myself, especially in promoting initiatives to improve techniques and equipment to serve teaching work."

To have high quality products, we, our colleagues and students must adhere closely to the program, curriculum, and reality. When the finished product is put into use, it must be aesthetically pleasing so that it can be easily understood and accessed by students. Most importantly, when students have learned on model devices, they must be able to practice and repair them on real devices.

At Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense, Automotive Technology is currently one of the key majors, approaching international professions, attracting the participation of a large number of demobilized soldiers and students. With the increasing requirements of the teaching program, in recent years, Lieutenant Colonel, teacher Nguyen Minh Tu and his colleagues have researched and produced more than 30 initiatives, improving teaching aid models used in schools to improve practicality for students.

In particular, Mr. Tu himself directly presided over 12 initiatives that were applied in schools, units, service workshops and won high prizes in self-made training equipment competitions at provincial, ministerial and national levels.

During his teaching career, Mr. Tu also boldly made recommendations on organizing seminars to innovate teaching methods, training, demonstration teaching, professional group activities, organizing training for excellent students, tutoring weak students, and reviewing for graduation exams. At the same time, he always proactively coordinated between organizations to approach world-class standards, helping teachers of the Faculty of Automotive Technology, students, and pupils to access new technologies, thereby adapting to have effective training methods. In addition, he also participated in guiding and training many teachers of the faculty to become good teachers, such as teacher Le Quyet Thang, who won the first prize in the Nghe An Provincial Vocational Teachers' Association in 2022; teacher Nguyen Huu Chinh, who won the first prize in the Nghe An Provincial Vocational Teachers' Association in 2017, the second prize in the National Vocational Teachers' Association in 2018, and the title of excellent teacher at the Ministry level in 2019.

Teacher Nguyen Minh Tu is also a pioneer in innovating vocational education management methods, accompanying the faculty and school to be creative and flexible to improve the quality of human resource training. The achievements that Mr. Tu has won include: First Prize in the National Vocational Education Teachers' Teaching Competition 2021; Second Prize in the 17th "Creative Youth in the Army" Award, Certificate of Merit for the "Good Teaching, Good Learning" Movement; A Prize in the Nguyen Viet Xuan Award; Certificate of Outstanding Youth Model at the Military Region Level in 2011 is a testament to his efforts and dedication to the collective and the school.

With the achievements, at the age of 44, the sweet fruit has come to the teacher, soldier Nguyen Minh Tu with many times being awarded with a scarf, a certificate of merit. However, for him personally, he believes that the most meaningful "sweet fruit" for a teacher is the maturity of his students: For me, a student who finishes school, graduates, has a stable job, has opportunities for development, that is joy. Moreover, the school's graduates are welcomed by the market, which affirms the school's prestigious brand.

Over the years, the training quality of our school has been increasingly affirmed and attracted many retired soldiers and students to study. Contributing to that overall achievement, there are the tireless efforts of teacher Nguyen Minh Tu and many other teachers in the school. With Mr. Tu being honored, this is not only his honor but also the honor of the school. This is also the motivation for teachers in the field of vocational education to constantly strive to do a good job of teaching, training many good and excellent students to serve the development of the province as well as the country.

Colonel Nguyen Truong Son - Party Secretary, Principal of Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense