ISOSU: Teacher's day in Vietnam - Different way of learning
Issue date: 2/5/08 Section: Forum
You may ask me "What is the Teacher's day?" People in Vietnam always say the United States has the best education system in the word.
That is why many Vietnamese families sacrifice their financial situation to save money so they can send their children to the United States for study.
It made me think that the United States would have a big celebration to say thanks to teachers.
In Vietnam, Nov. 20 is the Teacher's Day. This day was set when Ho Chi Minh sent a thanks letter to all teachers across the country for their effort in educating the young generation. Highly respecting teachers is one of our traditional customs for many centuries now.
There was a saying, "the person who taught you even one word is your life time teacher."
I guess this idea came from Chinese Confucianism, from which Vietnam received a strong influence in early history.
In the 11th century, under the Ly Dynasty, Chu Van An, who was the teacher of prince and princesses, was awarded the honest position in the country.
Later on, his name became the name for many schools in Vietnam.
I still remember when I came to school, the first lesson I learned was "first learn manner, then learn knowledge."
For children, "manners" are the ways we behave in family and school. If we disrespected a teacher, they would kick us out of the school.
You may think, "Okay, I can apply to another school then." It is not the case in Vietnam, as it is hard to find a school which could accept those considered to behave badly. If you were disrespectful to your teacher, you had simply decided to stay out of the society.
People from other cultures might think we could have been very scared of our teachers. Well, if I had not done my homework or I destroyed the learning atmosphere of the class, I felt scared and embarrassed.
In fact, schooling time was some of the best years of my life. Although we had around 50 children in one class, our teachers remembered our birthdays, parents' names, home addresses and kept close contact with parents.
That is why many Vietnamese families sacrifice their financial situation to save money so they can send their children to the United States for study.
It made me think that the United States would have a big celebration to say thanks to teachers.
In Vietnam, Nov. 20 is the Teacher's Day. This day was set when Ho Chi Minh sent a thanks letter to all teachers across the country for their effort in educating the young generation. Highly respecting teachers is one of our traditional customs for many centuries now.
There was a saying, "the person who taught you even one word is your life time teacher."
I guess this idea came from Chinese Confucianism, from which Vietnam received a strong influence in early history.
In the 11th century, under the Ly Dynasty, Chu Van An, who was the teacher of prince and princesses, was awarded the honest position in the country.
Later on, his name became the name for many schools in Vietnam.
I still remember when I came to school, the first lesson I learned was "first learn manner, then learn knowledge."
For children, "manners" are the ways we behave in family and school. If we disrespected a teacher, they would kick us out of the school.
You may think, "Okay, I can apply to another school then." It is not the case in Vietnam, as it is hard to find a school which could accept those considered to behave badly. If you were disrespectful to your teacher, you had simply decided to stay out of the society.
People from other cultures might think we could have been very scared of our teachers. Well, if I had not done my homework or I destroyed the learning atmosphere of the class, I felt scared and embarrassed.
In fact, schooling time was some of the best years of my life. Although we had around 50 children in one class, our teachers remembered our birthdays, parents' names, home addresses and kept close contact with parents.
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