Overcoming the waves to get to class, Nhon Chau teachers and students keep the fire of their dreams burning

GD&TĐ - In the middle of the vast ocean, two small schools in Nhon Chau island commune (Gia Lai) are like persistent flames that light up the learning aspirations of fishermen's children.

Although more than 20 km from the mainland and lacking in every way, teachers and students here still persevere every day to stay in class, stay in school, and maintain faith in letters and the future.

The difficult way to school

From Ham Tu port, it takes nearly two hours by boat to reach Nhon Chau island. The boat cuts through the vast blue sea, white-capped waves crashing against the rocks. In the middle of that space, two small schools nestle along the coastal road, quietly serving as a knowledge base for students from kindergarten to junior high school.

Life on the island is inherently difficult. Most parents are busy making a living and have little money to invest in their children’s education. Children have limited access to information technology and few opportunities to interact with friends on the mainland, so they are disadvantaged in many ways.

In the past, many students, especially girls, dropped out of school after 9th grade because of their families' financial difficulties and the strong male-dominated ideology. To prevent students from dropping out of school, teachers diligently knocked on each family's door, inviting parents to discuss and encourage them. Thanks to this perseverance, the rate of students continuing to high school has been improving.

What is admirable is that amidst all the hardships, Nhon Chau students still strive to excel. In the 2024-2025 school year, a student from Nhon Chau Primary and Secondary School was admitted as valedictorian to Quy Nhon National School, entirely thanks to self-study and strong will. To study at high school level, students have to "cross the waves" to the mainland, spending more on travel, accommodation, and rent, so the path to education becomes many times more difficult. To go to university, that journey requires even greater effort.

Fortunately, many organizations, groups, and philanthropists have promptly provided support, donated bicycles, scholarships, etc., adding motivation for island students to continue studying. Phan Hoang Phat, an 8th grade student at Nhon Chau Primary and Secondary School, had a bright look in his eyes when talking about his dream: “I want to go to high school and then university. Seeing my parents working at sea in hardship and danger, I want to study to have a different future, take care of my younger siblings, and show filial piety to my parents.”

Phat has two brothers, both of whose parents are fishermen. Only on rare trips to the mainland can he see that the city has many amenities, which are completely different from life on the island. Despite the hardships and deprivation, Phat has maintained good grades for many years, a testament to the determination of students from the front lines.

Phan Hoang Phat, an 8th grade student at Nhon Chau Primary and Secondary School, dreams of going to high school and then university.

The one who sows letters in the middle of the ocean

Not only students, teachers on the island also have to overcome many challenges. On Nhon Chau Island, Ms. Tran Thi My Le, a contract teacher of Natural Science at Nhon Chau Primary and Secondary School, has entered her second year on this land. Her home is in An Nhon, about 30 km from Quy Nhon city center. Every time she returns to her hometown, she has to take a boat to the mainland and then catch a bus home. The travel expenses are expensive, so she only dares to return once every two weeks or a month.

Ms. Le said that whenever the sea is rough, transportation becomes more difficult, and there are even no boats coming in and out. Food sources are also scarce, so she often prepares vegetables and meat from the mainland to save money. “On the island, learning conditions are limited, there are few extracurricular activities, and there is not much access to technology. But the children are very obedient and eager to learn. In my free time, I often tutor them to help them gain more knowledge,” Ms. Le shared.

Talking about the teaching staff, Mr. Huynh Cong Thanh - Principal of Nhon Chau Primary and Secondary School, could not hide his concern when the whole school has 9 classes, 207 students, with 15 teachers, of which 4 teachers came from the mainland to teach on the island.

Sometimes it takes Tran Thi My Le two weeks or a month to return to the mainland because the travel expenses are quite high.

For teachers from the mainland, the journey home is a difficult one. If you go by boat, the fare is only 40,000 VND/trip but it takes nearly 2 hours on the waves. The hardest part is on Friday afternoon, when they finish teaching, the boat has already left. If you go on Saturday morning, you have to return on Sunday to prepare for the new school week. As for the canoe, although it is fast, the cost for each round trip is about 300,000 VND, which is beyond the teachers' salary. Therefore, many people only visit home once a month.

“Fortunately, most of the teachers are young and unmarried. If they had their own families, it would be difficult to stay on the island for long,” Mr. Thanh sighed.

This school year, the school is short of two teachers, so it has to hire a Natural Science teacher and an elementary school teacher to maintain teaching activities. In recent years, finding teachers for the island has been almost impossible. The main reasons are difficult travel conditions, limited salaries, and no special preferential policies. Although spacious public housing with full amenities has been built to serve teachers, it is still not enough to retain human resources.

“There is a primary school teacher who has just retired, a secondary school teacher who has transferred jobs. We posted recruitment but no applications have been submitted,” Mr. Thanh said sadly, adding that the school’s biggest concern right now is how to attract and retain teachers. A special treatment regime is needed for the island commune area, so that teachers can work with peace of mind, and at the same time, encourage more volunteers to go to the island to spread knowledge.”

To get to Nhon Chau island commune, teachers must take a train, boat or canoe because it is about 20 km from the mainland.

Hope to have supportive policies

While primary and secondary schools still have additional staff from the mainland, at Nhon Chau Kindergarten, the shortage of teachers has lasted for many years.

During the school year, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dai, a teacher of 5-6 year olds, rarely has the opportunity to go to the mainland, usually when she goes on training or on business trips. Otherwise, her life and that of her colleagues are tied to the small island, with the sound of waves day and night and classrooms lacking in every way.

For many years, Nhon Chau Kindergarten has only had 3 teachers. Each person has to take care of a whole class with all the work, so it is extremely difficult. Ms. Dai confided that the teachers all hope to have more staff to reduce the pressure.

The school has a main campus in Tay village and a satellite campus in Dong village, with 46 children divided into 3 classes. On this small island, the difficulty comes not only from the lack of facilities, but also from motivating children to go to school. Most of the children's parents earn their living by fishing or working far away, leaving their children to be cared for by their grandparents.

The consolation for teachers and students is the attention from the local Party Committee and government. The new kindergarten is being built and is about to be put into use, opening up the hope of a more spacious and well-equipped school.

Nhon Chau is the only island commune of Gia Lai province.

However, the biggest concern is still human resources. For many years, recruiting preschool teachers in Nhon Chau has been almost "blank". No one has registered, so those who remain have to shoulder more work. Ms. Ho Thi Hue - Principal of the school, said: Currently, the school has 6 staff, teachers and employees. Because there is only one manager, she has to take on many tasks, while there is no medical staff.

“Every time we go to the mainland for meetings or training, the school has no management staff. Sometimes when the weather is bad, we are stuck on the mainland for a few days, making management even more difficult,” Ms. Hue worried, adding that although the number of students is not large, the 3 teachers in charge of the class still have a hard time. Luckily, the school only organizes 2 teaching sessions, no boarding, so the workload is somewhat reduced. However, for the past 7-8 years, no applications have been submitted. We hope to have more special policies to attract teachers, helping teachers feel secure to stay long-term.

According to Mr. Ho Nhat Duy - Vice Chairman of Nhon Chau Commune People's Committee, located about 20 km from the mainland, Nhon Chau is the only island commune in Gia Lai province. The whole commune has two kindergartens and primary - secondary schools, with 23 staff and teachers, teaching work on the island always faces many difficulties.

Especially during the rainy and stormy season, when the sea is rough, teachers have to stay for weeks, even half a month, unable to return to the mainland. Currently, cadres, civil servants and public employees in Nhon Chau island commune are entitled to an additional regional allowance of coefficient 0.3 (equivalent to more than 700 thousand VND). The commune government hopes to have more special policies to attract cadres, while increasing investment in education on remote islands.

According to Mr. Duy, the commune currently has 21 students who have to "cross the waves" to study on the mainland. From this school year, the students will receive support of 1,070,000 VND/month from the Provincial People's Committee to reduce accommodation and travel expenses. Boats on the island also flexibly support, ensuring the safe transportation of students, with full life jackets and regular vehicle inspections.

In a land of many difficulties, teachers and students of Nhon Chau still persevere to ignite the dream of studying. In the eyes of the children, the belief in a better future is always burning, like the resilient fire of those who sow knowledge in the middle of the ocean.

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/vuot-song-toi-lop-thay-tro-nhon-chau-giu-lua-uoc-mo-post752122.html