After the flood, schools in the suburbs of Quy Nhon city and districts of Tuy Phuoc or Van Canh have been trying to overcome the consequences.
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Soldiers help the teaching staff tidy up Dieu Tri junior high school in Tuy Phuoc district. Photo X.T
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All swept away
The playground of Nhon Phu junior high school has still caked with mud after the flood went down for five days. All offices were full of written records and papers.
“The school’s force prepared for dealing with the flood, but they couldn’t do anything because it was so fierce, collapsing 260 meters of fences and flooding all machines and papers,” said deputy headmaster, Ngo Le Hoa.
After the flood, the teaching staff promptly cleaned the school’s facilities so that students could soon return to school.
A few of students have begun to go to school since November 6. “90 percent of students live in flood-hit areas; thus, they could only go to school on November 9,” Hoa said.
“My house was absolutely flooded and all of my clothes and books were swept away,” said Le Thi Sim, a ninth-grader living in Nhon Phu ward. “When going to school this morning I had to buy a notebook and a pen to use.”
“My colleagues living in the city gave me some clothes because all my properties were swept away in the flood, even my lesson plans,” said Tran Thi Thu Suong, a biology teacher.
When coming to the school, both teachers and students did nothing but encouraged each other because there were no books.
Cao Van Dung, headmaster of Dieu Tri town junior high school said the flood damaged 200 tables and chairs, 21 computers, and all books and written records worth nearly VND1 billion.
Soldiers have helped the school tidy up its facilities. Previously, the school had received a financial assistance of VND500 million to upgrade the facilities and buy new equipment, but all were destroyed.
“167 classrooms were damaged, let alone thousands of school furniture and hundreds of computers severely destroyed,” said Tran Huu Tuong, head of Tuy Phuoc district’s education and training office.
Overcome the consequences
Coming to Dieu Tri town junior high school on November 5, we saw soldiers helping teachers clean the schoolyard, tidy up all classrooms, and rearrange the school furniture.
“Our unit was assigned to help the locals since November 2,” said sub lieutenant Huynh Ngoc Son. “When the water went down on November 4, we focused on cleaning schools so that students could return to schools.”
In the severely flood-stricken areas in the east of Tuy Phuoc district the schoolyards were still full of water until November 7. All teachers gathered to clean the school and repair the roofs.
“Living in the flood-hit area we have much experience in dealing with upcoming floods,” said Dang Thi Anh Tuyet, headmaster of Phuoc Thang primary school No.1. “Before any storm all school furniture was moved to higher positions and the library was placed upstairs.”
Students in flood-hit areas have returned to school since November 9; however, the schools haven’t still been busy as usual.
The teaching staff is now planning to teach extra classes to help student to catch up with the curriculum. “Our students had to stay at home for nearly one week owing to the spread of H1N1 flu virus several months ago and they are now off school due to the flood,” said Nguyen Thi Thanh Ha, headmaster of Nhon Binh high school. “We don’t know how to plan the schedule to teach extra classes.”
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