Damaged and dilapidated schools in border areas

Hundreds of students in the border area of ​​Kon Tum (formerly), now Quang Ngai, have to study in conditions where school facilities are seriously degraded, posing potential safety risks, especially during the rainy and stormy season.

For many years, teachers and students of Dak Plo Primary and Secondary School (formerly Dak Glei District, Kon Tum ; now Dak Plo Commune, Quang Ngai) have had to teach and learn in conditions of extreme deprivation.

Leaky and moldy schools affect teaching and learning.

PHOTO: DUC NHAT

The school has 3 campuses with a total of 15 classrooms. Of these, 6 are solid classrooms built in 2009. The remaining 9 were built in 1997 and are now seriously degraded. There are rows of classrooms and office rooms at Bung Ton campus that are dilapidated, have leaky roofs, and cracked walls, posing a potential safety risk, especially during the rainy and stormy season.

The school has 24 administrators, teachers and staff who are also living in makeshift rooms with many shortages. The offices of administrators and functional rooms such as: Team activities, library, IT… are all degraded.

At Peng Lang school, class 5 taught by Mr. A Dang has 35 students studying in a room of only about 20 square meters. Without a boarding room, many students have to fall asleep on their desks after lunch. Some students live far away and are reluctant to return to class in the afternoon, especially during the rainy season.

"Not having a place to rest at noon makes studying in the afternoon less effective. As both a teacher and a parent with children studying at the school, I find having a boarding place for students extremely necessary," Mr. Dang shared.

Mr. Dang Quoc Vu, Principal of Dak Plo Primary and Secondary School, said the school has no library, no multi-purpose hall, and lacks even subject classrooms. The dining hall for boarding students can only serve 50 students at a time, the remaining students have to eat in shifts and wait for their turn to rest.

This situation becomes even more urgent when, from the upcoming 2025-2026 school year, the school will receive students from three communes, Dak Plo, Dak Nhoong and Dak Man, after the merger. The number of students is increasing while the current facilities cannot meet the demand.

"We are looking forward to investing in building new classrooms, upgrading student dormitories, teaching equipment, desks and chairs, electricity and water systems," Mr. Vu added.

Similarly, Xop Commune Primary and Secondary School (formerly in Dak Glei District, Kon Tum; now in Xop Commune, Quang Ngai ) is also in a state of disrepair. The school has 384 students, of which more than 200 live 5-10 km away. According to regulations, to ensure 2 sessions/day of study, these students are entitled to boarding status.

After many years of use, Dak Plo Primary and Secondary School has seriously degraded.

Photo: Duc Nhat

The school called on businesses to contribute, but they could only build a small temporary cafeteria, with enough space for about 100 children at a time. The remaining children had to wait their turn, take turns eating, and then rush back to class. After lunch, with no boarding rooms, many children fell asleep at their desks or played in the schoolyard waiting for afternoon classes.

Mr. Tran Ngoc Manh, Principal of Xop Commune Primary and Secondary School, said that the school's facilities have seriously degraded, with 8/21 classrooms having cracked walls, leaky roofs, and rickety desks and chairs. The school lacks specialized classrooms, a multi-purpose hall, playground, library, or school counseling room. Comprehensive educational activities are almost impossible to implement.

"If it rains, all activities must stop. Such shortages greatly affect the quality of education," Mr. Manh said.

More than 30 staff and teachers of the school have to travel from 20 to more than 100 km to get to class. The official residence only has enough space for 12 people, the rest have to rent temporary accommodation. The school also does not have a stable clean water system, in the dry season they have to use pond water which is not hygienic.

"We just hope to have a more solid school with food and accommodation for students. That is the foundation to maintain their studies and give them the opportunity to excel," Mr. Manh said.

According to the Department of Education and Training of Quang Ngai province, the two schools mentioned above are currently in a state of disrepair and serious damage. The construction of new schools to serve the needs of teachers and students in the new school year is very urgent. In the coming time, the education sector will conduct a survey and implement the construction of new schools for these two schools.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nhung-ngoi-truong-hu-hong-xuong-cap-o-vung-bien-185250709193212948.htm