On 11/6, dressed in a white shirt, 36-year-old Sung A Chung, a member of the Mong ethnic minority and Secretary of the Kham Tren village Party cell in Nam Chay commune, arrived at the graduation exam venue at Van Ban Ethnic Boarding Secondary and High School. His graying hair made him stand out among the 18-year-old candidates.

"This is a very special experience," Sung A Chung said.

Sung A Chung (in white shirt) before the Literature exam on the morning of 11/6. Photo: Van Ban Commune Police

Sung A Chung stated that he had previously taken the high school graduation exam in 2014 but did not pass. Due to difficult circumstances, he was unable to take the exam in subsequent years.

Kham Tren village, where he serves as Party cell secretary, is home to a 100% Mong ethnic minority population. The village is remote with difficult transportation, and life remains challenging. In recent years, he has consistently encouraged residents to strive for education to improve their awareness. Therefore, he also wished to continue his own studies and earn a diploma to set an example for the community.

With life becoming less difficult and his wife's encouragement, he diligently self-studied. However, the new general education program was very different from his school days, and the exam format also differed significantly. Therefore, closer to the exam period, he asked to review with 12th-grade students from Van Ban High School No. 1.

After the first day of exams, Sung A Chung found "the exam was too difficult". The Kham Tren village secretary completed the Literature exam, but primarily based on his own thoughts, "unsure if it followed the correct structure or argumentative essay writing style of the curriculum". For the Mathematics exam, he filled in all answers, even for many questions he did not know how to solve.

"I haven't checked the suggested answers online yet," he said. "The results might not be good, but I'm happy because I put in a lot of effort."

Tomorrow, Sung A Chung will take exams in two subjects: History and Geography. Believing these subjects are more familiar and easier to study, he hopes to perform well to "save his scores".

According to high school graduation exam regulations, the graduation consideration score is calculated from the total score of the 4 high school graduation exam subjects (50%) and academic transcript scores from three years of high school (50%), along with priority and encouragement points.

To be recognized for high school graduation, candidates must achieve more than 1 point in each subject, and the overall calculated score must be 5/10 or higher.

For Sung A Chung, earning a high school diploma could inspire residents, especially the youth in the village.

"It will also help me gain more trust from the community or more easily find additional work," he said.

Duong Tam