Starting on 24/2, a series of 53 videos featuring students in physical education uniforms exercising to catchy music simultaneously went viral on TikTok. The videos garnered from a few thousand to nearly 3 million views. A common element attracting attention to this video series was the distinct Tet holiday family setting, complete with peach branches, kumquat trees, and a spring atmosphere.
Pham Nhu Quynh, a second-year journalism student at VNU, stated that her exercise video, posted on the evening of the 2nd day of Tet, garnered nearly 310,000 views and tens of thousands of likes. Utilizing her living room space in Me Linh, Hanoi, Quynh set up her camera and completed the approximately one-minute exercise. "Capturing my workout amidst the gladiolus vase and Tet peach branches became an unforgettable memory of my student days," Quynh said. Thanks to thorough in-class instructions, she only needed a few practice runs before filming officially.
Unlike Quynh's enthusiasm, student Nguyen Thuy Linh initially intended to record a perfunctory video for submission and then delete it after the instructor checked, despite investing 30 minutes in its creation. However, when views unexpectedly surged to over 500,000, Linh changed her mind.
The person behind this interesting trend is instructor Phung Hoai Nam, 26, a physical education lecturer at VNU. According to instructor Nam, this content is part of the physical education course. The original assignment was a 60-movement continuous bare-hand exercise routine. Concerned students might forget the routine after the long holiday, affecting their exam results, he required each student to record a 40-movement video and post it on TikTok with the course's specific hashtag.
"This format helps me monitor and correct individual errors remotely, while also supporting students in maintaining their fitness after the Tet holiday festivities," the instructor stated. He was surprised that the students' exercise videos became a trend, attracting millions of views. Below the posts, many curious viewers eagerly encouraged each other to "hunt" for the complete collection of 53 videos from this class.
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Instructor Phung Hoai Nam, 26, a physical education lecturer at VNU. Photo contributed by subject |
Instructor Nam's innovative assignment method also attracted interest from students at other universities. Hoang Khoi, a student at Foreign Trade University, expressed a desire for his university to soon adopt a similar assignment approach to have the chance to become a "million-view TikToker".
Evaluating this creative approach, Doctor Trinh Kien, Deputy Director of the Center for Physical Education and Sports (VNU), was very positive. According to him, online exercise formats were originally developed during the Covid-19 pandemic to maintain health. The movements in the routine are designed to be suitable even for confined spaces, allowing students to train anytime, anywhere.
"The trend not only spreads a spirit of sport and an active lifestyle but also effectively promotes the image of the university's students," Mr. Kien commented. In the future, the university plans to continue diversifying its courses, incorporating music, and introducing modern sports and folk games into the curriculum to generate more interest.
Quynh Nga
