People in Din Chin commune, Muong Khuong district, Lao Cai province are now familiar with the scene as Lo Thi Lan joins her students to take water from a stream nearly 1 kilometre from the school early every morning and after school.
The task is not simply taking water but actually having to catch every single drop from the stream. In this dry land, every drop is treasured like gold. It takes Lan and her schoolchildren up to several hours to fill a can of water.
The young teacher has looked for other locations for water but they are too far and the roads are so tough that they even made marks on her hands and feet.
The source of water is so scared that teachers and students at Din Chin boarding school have to reuse rice water to wash vegetables and then wash dishes. Whenever it rains, everyone takes advantage of the rainwater to wash their clothes, clean, and store rain water.
Despite these hardships, Lan hasn’t ever felt discouraged toward quitting her dream of planting the seeds of knowledge in her schoolchildren. Since she started working at the school, Lan has been assigned to first graders, who all belong to ethnic minority groups.
The difference in languages make it difficult for Lan to commune with her students. As many students at the school wanted to quit school to help their parents with housework, Lan and her colleagues had to visit the families and encourage the parents to continue sending their children to school.
As a Bo Y ethnic woman, 30-year-old teacher Lan believes that education and knowledge are the only ways for ethnic children to escape poverty and not spend their whole lives doing farm work.
Her own experience has consolidated her determination to become a teacher and help children acquire knowledge and competency.
"I believe that any teacher is full of happiness when her students know how to read and write and do their first calculations, watching them grow up and mature,” said Lo Thi Lan.
Some might question why Lan decided to rush headlong into such a tough job. However, she always keeps in mind that if everyone chooses to do easy work, who will do the hard jobs.
“When deciding to become a teacher, I wanted to contribute a little help to the first steps in life for the next generation", Lan said.
"I believe that any teacher is full of happiness when her students know how to read and write and do their first calculations, and watching them grow up and be more mature,” she stressed.
“When I step to the class and look at the innocent faces of children eagerly waiting for me, all the hardships disappear, giving way to motherhood and passion for work”, she shared.
According to Tran Van Hung, Vice Rector of Din Chiu Boarding School, her enthusiasm, friendliness, and passion at work have helped Lan earn the trust and appreciation of both parents and colleagues.
Lan has been rated as a teacher of distinction for many years. Most recently, she was one of the outstanding faces at a programme hosted by the Ministry of Education and Training, and the Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs to honour ethnic minority teachers working in remote, mountainous areas, and on the seas and islands regions across the country.
