64-year-old candidate stays up all night studying for high school graduation exam

In this high school graduation exam, 64-year-old Ms. Chi is the oldest candidate in Ho Chi Minh City.

Determined to pass university entrance exam...

When asked about her studies, contestant U70 Ngo Thi Kim Chi (born in 1959) shared that this is the exam she has dreamed of taking for over 30 years. As a child, because her family was poor, she had to drop out of school early to help her family. She herself was always self-conscious when someone boasted that they graduated from this school, had a degree from that school, while she had only studied up to grade 8.

Ms. Chi believes that having knowledge will help you work better, and your life will be better and more meaningful. So, according to her, learning is never enough and it is never too late.

With that in mind, 6 years ago, when her children had become successful and settled down, and "food and money" were no longer a constant concern, Ms. Chi determined to return to school to pursue her dream of studying.

During the first days of returning to school, she encountered many difficulties and obstacles. Ms. Ngo Thi Kim Chi confided: "At first, I also encountered many difficulties when going to school because of my age and health. When I went to school, there were only young children around me, and I was old, so I felt very shy and lost. There were many teachers who were older than me, or the same age, and there were also teachers who were younger than me, just the same age as my children and grandchildren. Being loved by the teachers, I felt happy, more confident, and gradually forgot that inferiority complex."

During the 6 years of returning to school, Ms. Chi tried very hard, was never late, overcame her inferiority complex to always be cheerful, exemplary, and actively build lessons.

Student Bui Minh Man, deputy class monitor of class 12A1 of the District 7 Vocational Education - Continuing Education Center, said that in the class, Ms. Chi is like a caring and gentle mother to all members. The determination and eagerness to learn of this "U70 female student" has also inspired many of the Center's special students to make more progress: "The learning spirit of our class has changed a lot compared to the beginning of the year. At the beginning of the year, the students were very passive, not volunteering to speak up and build lessons. But when Ms. Chi was there, she was always the proactive one, pioneering in building lessons. Her determination has motivated us a lot."

Mr. Nguyen Quang Phu, homeroom teacher of class 12A1, commented that Ms. Ngo Thi Kim Chi is a very studious person with great determination and willpower.

… to open the class of love

Realizing that at the age of over 60, getting a degree would no longer give her the chance to work, Ms. Chi was still determined to pass the entrance exam to Ho Chi Minh City University of Education.

Explaining her different thinking, Ms. Chi confided that she wanted to have the knowledge to open a charity class to help children in difficult circumstances learn letters and numbers.

In the upcoming high school graduation exam, Ms. Chi registered to take the exams in Math, Literature, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology with the hope of applying to the Mathematics Pedagogy major at Ho Chi Minh City University of Education.

At her age, she often forgets things, so in order to achieve her goals, Ms. Chi tries very hard and spends a lot of time studying. In addition to class time, she also studies extra, sometimes staying up until 2-3am to solve problems: "Some days I study until 2-3am and am very tired, but I have to try harder than the younger students to keep up. Besides, I want to have good results when studying, not accepting 1 or 2 points as a pass. Studying means acquiring knowledge to be able to help others. Just like that makes me feel happy, I don't dare ask for anything higher."

Commenting on this special student, Mr. Nguyen Quang Phu, homeroom teacher of class 12A1, shared that she is a studious person with great determination and willpower: "Ms. Chi is always ready to learn, because she knows that she is forgetful at an old age. Because she is forgetful, she reviews a lot of knowledge. Whenever she feels like she has forgotten or is lacking something, she reviews it. During the learning process, Ms. Chi writes notes in a very scientific and complete notebook, and every school year she organizes all the knowledge in a notebook. I see that Ms. Chi's performance is very stable. Currently, due to too much knowledge, Ms. Chi also forgets and her reflexes in taking multiple-choice tests are still slow."

In the upcoming high school graduation exam, the oldest candidate in Ho Chi Minh City - Ngo Thi Kim Chi will continue to write her dream. Regardless of the result, she has her own plans and intentions. That is, if she gets a high score, she will go to university - majoring in Mathematics Education, and if she gets a lower score, she will go to college - majoring in Primary Education. Because her biggest dream is to teach for free but must have a standard level of teaching to help children in difficult circumstances acquire and equip themselves with knowledge, step by step to improve their lives.

According to VOV