New school year at a special school

Teachers patiently teach students using sign language.

Each student has a story

In the small classroom, class 1A1 of Bac Kan Inclusive Education Center has less than ten students, each with their own circumstances and stories. There are blind students who frown and touch the Braille letters with their hands, some students cross their arms and look at the board innocently, and some students jump up and clap when they see strangers.

On the podium, teacher Nguyen Hoai Thu patiently wrote each word in large letters, then turned back to calm the class down and smiled encouragingly. Instead of the sound of reading aloud in unison, the classroom resounded with awkward, sometimes interrupted, and piecemeal sounds. But in each spelling was a persistent effort and a desire to learn.

Ms. Hoai Thu confided: I moved to the Center nearly 5 years ago. Even though I was mentally prepared when I first arrived, it took me nearly a year to stabilize my mentality. Not only did I have to learn signs, learn how to communicate and talk with disabled children, but I also had to be calm and patient.

Ms. Hoai Thu is in charge of two classes 1A1 and 1A2 with nearly 20 students. According to Ms. Thu, each student is tested and assessed at the beginning of the school year. The teachers not only prepare general lesson plans for the whole class but also have to prepare separate lessons for each group.

All students have their own intervention plan developed by their teachers. Those with more limited abilities will have individual intervention sessions with just one teacher and one student. Many students come here just starting to learn to speak and recognize the objects around them.

The second mother

The teacher enthusiastically fed the students.

The teacher takes good care of her students.

In the 2025-2026 school year, the Bac Kan Inclusive Education Center has 41 boarding students, like a big family of children. At lunchtime, teachers are present in the dining room to help arrange seats, ladle soup and feed severely disabled students. Of the 41 boarding students, 23 are from poor households, with especially difficult families. Their young age, limited economic conditions and feelings of inferiority and self-consciousness make the first days of the school year always full of hardship.

Ms. Trieu Thi Lan (born in 1995) is a student manager at the Center. Every afternoon, Ms. Lan and a student manager feed the students, guide them to bathe, wash their clothes, and put them to bed.

Ms. Lan confided: I have only been working here for three years. In the early days, I wondered if I could do it. I started learning signs to communicate with the students, and then they were the ones who helped me love my job more. For each student here, being able to feed themselves, wash their own clothes, and fold their own clothes is a huge step forward.

Currently, the Bac Kan Inclusive Education Support Center has 10 classrooms with 16 teachers, 4 administrators and only 2 support staff for the disabled. The number of support staff at the Center does not meet the actual needs. Therefore, when a student screams or reacts unexpectedly, the teacher has to stop teaching to comfort him, causing disruption to the lesson. In addition, the facilities are also limited, there are no multi-purpose rooms, specialized teaching aids, etc.

Ms. Pham Thuy Hang, Director of Bac Kan Inclusive Education Support Center, shared: In the 2024-2025 school year, the Center has 4 students who are integrated into the community and studying at local secondary schools. That is a joy and a great motivation for the teachers here. We hope that the students will receive more attention and sharing from the whole society...

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/giao-duc/202509/nam-hoc-moi-o-ngoi-truong-dac-biet-26a13d6/