Bringing digital transformation into vocational lecture halls
At the launching ceremony of the patriotic emulation movement for the period 2026 - 2031 of An Giang province held at the end of June 2026, Master Nguyen Duc Tai (39 years old), lecturer at An Giang Vocational College, was one of the 6 typical individuals awarded the Creative Labor Medal by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor.
The award is recognition for many years of persistent research, creativity and bringing modern technology into vocational training.
Concerned about the gap between teaching equipment and production lines at the enterprise, he did not wait for large investment sources but researched and designed practical models from readily available materials and equipment of the school himself.
From Tai's diligence and tinkering to forgetting to eat and sleep... many visual aids were born one after another, helping students access technologies being used by businesses. The most prominent is the "3-axis robot camera advance" model - a project that brought him the Creative Labor title.
Integrated model of precision mechanics, programming, control and image processing using AI, using Jetson Nano, Arduino platforms and Python, OpenCV and YOLO tools. Thanks to this, students not only learn theory but also directly program robots, train AI models and process automation problems right in the practice workshop.
Previously, in 2022, his "Robot self-propelled" topic was also honored by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor.
Lighting the fire for vocational students to master AI
After more than 10 years of being attached to the teaching profession, what Master Nguyen Duc Tai is most proud of is not personal awards, but the maturity of students. He builds a training environment in the direction of "real learning - real career", helping students access AI, Internet of Things (IoT) and automation right from when they are still in school.
Typically, Nguyen Quoc Thang, a final year student of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the school. Under the guidance of teacher Tai, Thang won the Second Prize in the "Start-up of Intermediate and Colleges in the Mekong Delta" competition in 2025 with the topic "IoT Application in Agriculture".
According to Quoc Thang, the most valuable thing that he brings is not only professional knowledge but also the confidence to dare to build robots, build automation models and pursue creative ideas.
Not stopping at teaching, Master Nguyen Duc Tai also founded the Mechatronics Engineering Innovation Club, where many students grew up from scientific research topics and won prizes at the national Eureka competition. From here, many products have also been born to serve the community such as automatic antiseptic hand washing machines during the COVID-19 epidemic or free electrical repair programs for people in difficult circumstances.
Lecturer model of the digital age
Currently, Master Nguyen Duc Tai is a research student majoring in Control Engineering and Automation at Can Tho University. But to colleagues, he is a role model for a young lecturer who constantly learns, researches and innovates.
Dr. Le Viet Phuong - Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, Vice Rector of An Giang Vocational College, shared: "The achievements that lecturer Nguyen Duc Tai has achieved not only contribute to improving the training quality of the school but also spreading the spirit of scientific research to the young teaching staff.
The models he researched have contributed to bringing new technologies into vocational training, creating a foundation for building a green, digital and innovative education environment for the Mekong Delta region.
From the professional practice workshop, the journey of the young lecturer has shown that digital transformation is not a distant thing. With knowledge, passion and creative spirit, Master Nguyen Duc Tai is not only contributing to training a generation of technical workers capable of mastering AI and technology, realizing the aspiration to pioneer innovation of young people in the digital age, but also the most beautiful and practical response of the young intellectual generation to the expectations of the Party and State and the advice of General Secretary, President To Lam at the 12th National Congress of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union: Youth must move forward to master the era of national rise with the strength of knowledge and technology.
