In recent days, the atmosphere in the small village of Na Lom - a highland village in Thai Son commune (old Bao Lam district, now Yen Tho commune, Cao Bang province) has become more bustling than ever.
The whole village was excited and happy to hear that the San Chi student - Dang Thi Tay - achieved almost absolute scores in the C00 block in the 2025 high school graduation exam.
Born into a purely farming family, his parents are attached to the fields all year round, and his life in the West lacks both material things and learning conditions.
Three years ago, I left the village alone to go to Hanoi to study at the T78 Friendship School - a place that welcomes ethnic minority students from the northern mountainous provinces and Lao students.
The luggage for the trip is just a small bag with a few sets of clothes, a few notebooks and full of hope from parents, relatives and the whole village.
"I still remember the feeling when I got in the car. Tears kept falling because I missed home, because I was worried I couldn't do it. But I told myself that if I gave up, I would disappoint my parents, teachers and everyone who had put their trust in me," Tay emotionally recounted.
After three years of studying away from home, Tay's results are a worthy reward of 10 points in History, 9.5 points in Literature, 9.75 points in Geography - a total of 29.25 points in C00 block, among the candidates with the highest scores in the country.
"When I saw the spots, my heart felt like a heart attack. Can't believe my eyes, I have to look back a few times. So many emotions burst out, it was fun, proud, and grateful to myself for not giving up during the long nights of studying until morning," Tay shared.
Sharing about the learning method, Tay said he made the most of his knowledge in class. With Literature, I learn from both teachers and learn more online. I have systematized History for each event, taking notes on mistakes and reviewing them carefully. As for Geography, I focus on preparing questions and analyzing questions.
My family is in a difficult situation, my parents are mainly farmers. When he is free, his father goes to Cao Bang city to work for a stilt house to earn more income.
That small amount of money has helped me nurture my dream of going to school - "going to school far to get a closer future", as I told myself.
"My child has been studying well since I was a child, but my family is poor, just hoping that he is eligible for further education is a happy thing. Now that I can do this, the whole family is so happy, I can't sleep all night," Mr. Dang Van Tam - Tay's father emotionally shared.
With the achieved score, Tay has registered to be admitted to the Literature Pedagogy major - Hanoi National University of Education. I dream of returning to my hometown to become a teacher to inspire ethnic minority children like me.
I want them to believe that, even in the highlands, even when there is a shortage, as long as they are determined and diligent in studying, the path of knowledge will always open up, Tay said.
Talking to reporters, Dr. Le Phu Thang - Principal of T78 Friendship School said: "This year's high school exam has 451 students participating in the exam belonging to three groups of ethnic minority students, students of the autonomous families and Lao students. The passing rate is 100%. Of which, 13 students achieved 27 points or more, while Dang Thi Tay achieved 29.25 points".
"This is the result of the efforts of the entire school, from the management to the teachers and the students themselves. The school has allocated nearly 200 million VND from spending savings and legal revenue to organize free tutoring for students.
As for Lao students, we have proposed to the Ministry of Education and Training to allow the use of Vietnamese certificates instead of Literature. Next school year, the school will continue to tighten enrollment and improve teaching quality to achieve even higher results, Mr. Thang shared.
