Mother of the city's top math student: "11pm is curfew time"

(Dan Tri) - Male student Nguyen Duc Khai is the valedictorian of the Hanoi Math major in 2025. To balance between studying and endurance, Khai is forced to go to bed before 11pm.

Male student Nguyen Duc Khai (Photo: NVCC).

Nguyen Duc Khai is a student of class 9C1 at Archimedes Academy Secondary School ( Hanoi ).

In the 10th grade entrance exam organized by the Hanoi Department of Education and Training, Khai made a strong impression as the city's top student in math, with 3/4 exams scoring 10, including math, English and specialized math, and in literature alone he scored 8.

In the end, Khai was admitted to the specialized math block of 3 specialized schools including Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted (holding the valedictorian position), High School for the Gifted in Natural Sciences (VNU) and High School for the Gifted in the University of Education. After careful consideration, Khai has now decided to study at High School for the Gifted in the University of Education.

Admiring "future classmates", wanting to make friends and learn from them

Through the media, Khai said he had read information about his future classmate - male student Bui Nhat Minh - double valedictorian of the math major at the High School for the Gifted in Natural Sciences and the High School for the Gifted in the University of Education.

Khai and Minh had actually met before. Now, when the two valedictorians were about to become high school classmates, Khai wanted to tell Minh that he admired the achievements Minh had made in the recent exam. At the same time, Khai also looked forward to the day when he could interact, study, and train with Minh under the same roof.

The two valedictorians - Bui Nhat Minh (left) and Nguyen Duc Khai (right) - have known each other before, and from now on, they will be classmates at the National University of Education High School for the Gifted (Photo: NVCC).

In fact, based on his academic ability, the fact that Khai was admitted to many specialized schools was not a surprise to him. What really surprised Khai was that he... didn't think he would get such high scores.

In addition to being the valedictorian of the math exam organized by the Hanoi Department of Education and Training, Khai was also in the top 3 candidates with the highest scores in the math block of the Natural Sciences and Pedagogical University.

Khai said he doesn't put much emphasis on scores or achievements, so he doesn't feel pressured when taking the exam. He doesn't set any goals for himself, other than trying to pass the exam, so he goes into the exam with a very relaxed mindset.

Khai's logic of thinking and action in studying and life is to always keep himself calm. I believe that only when we are calm and mentally comfortable can we create truly good results.

For me, self-study is very important for an individual to progress. In the process of learning math, Khai focuses on taking notes to effectively serve the purpose of systematizing knowledge. He divides lessons into groups of knowledge, thereby creating separate tables of contents, convenient for looking up knowledge during the learning process.

Learning will always bring difficulties and challenges to learners. Khai himself also experienced a crisis. That was in 8th grade, he felt disappointed in himself when his test results were not as expected in the district-level excellent student exam.

But it was that "stumble" that helped him learn to regain his spirit, see the problem, and improve himself. In grade 9, Khai won first prize in the city-level math competition.

Standing at the threshold of high school, Khai aims to continue to progress in conquering mathematical knowledge, at the same time, he wants to improve his life skills. Khai hopes to gain more experiences to find out his future career orientation, and to make his high school years more joyful and meaningful.

Outside of school hours, Khai enjoys playing the piano to relieve stress. He feels balanced every time he plays the piano keys.

Balance between study and play, go to bed before 11pm to maintain stamina

Ms. Pham Thi Thuy Ninh - mother of male student Nguyen Duc Khai - said that in the journey of raising children, her family always focuses on helping their children balance between studying and playing, between intellectual, mental and physical development.

Duc Khai took a souvenir photo at the end of the school year with teachers at Archimedes Academy Secondary School (Photo: NVCC).

For those who show a passion for studying early like Khai, a problem that can easily happen is being too absorbed in studying, to the point of lacking discipline in daily life, not taking care of their health and not exercising much. These are things that the couple always try to avoid for their children.

The family always encourages Khai to play a variety of sports such as swimming, soccer, basketball... Ms. Ninh believes that "long journeys reveal good horses", especially in studying, parents should think about their children's long-term future. Therefore, Ms. Ninh always pays attention to reminding, hoping to help her children have good physical and mental health.

She does not encourage her children to stay up late to study. For Khai, at this time, 11pm is the "curfew" to stop all activities, including studying, to go to bed. Although sometimes, the family makes exceptions for Khai, but not often.

Everything can only achieve good results in the long run if we know how to balance, this is what Ms. Ninh's family and male student Duc Khai always aim for, to be able to "go the long way" on the journey of conquering knowledge.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/me-thu-khoa-chuyen-toan-toan-thanh-pho-23h-la-gio-gioi-nghiem-20250705204041069.htm