“I don’t set high goals; instead, I try to do my best.”
That was the confession of Nguyen Phong Anh Minh, a student in Class 4Salvador, when asked about the motivation to win the gold medal in the Hong Kong International Computational Olympiad 2023 (HKICO) with Scratch.
All persistent efforts will pay off
“That day, while I was in the taxi to travel, my mother checked the email and saw that I had won the prize. My family was overjoyed since the family’s efforts had been rewarded.”
The effort was made when he was attending a summer camp with plenty of fun activities, but he was always very determined and used the lunch or nighttime break to study for the exam.
That effort came from the parent’s companionship, who have always oriented, inspired, and encouraged him every day to be enthusiastic about programming and have accompanied him through each stage of his growth.
“The morning of the day he attended the HKICO International Round, we drove to the summer camp on Yen Tu to pick him up so that he could be presented to take the test in Hanoi at 1 pm. We then took him back to continue taking part in the summer camp,” Ms. Thuy Anh, parent of Anh Minh students, shared.
Anh Minh revealed his love for informatics, stating that his interest in programming derives from his desire to create various games. Especially in this subject, Minh learned perseverance and thinking skills. “I have to keep trying to repair the program’s bugs and find solutions. In terms of thinking, I need to think in order to solve problems. I did not set high expectations for HKICO 2023 initially since I knew it would be a challenging test, however, I did my best.”
Passion comes from childhood hobbies
The passion for programming was discovered by his parents early on so that he could develop those inclinations while also identifying the missing points in which he needed to learn and practice them more. “When he was a kid, he loved building with LEGO blocks,” Ms. Thuy Anh said. “By the time he was in first grade, we realized his passion for computer science and gave him a one-year course in Scratch programming. He then taught himself programming using books, websites, and Youtube channels until now. Anh Minh, in particular, is learning Python, a popular programming language now.”
Not limited to one platform
In addition to programming, he has a love for robotics. With their best efforts, Anh Minh’s team and “big sister” Ngoc Linh (10Sofia) were among 20 Vietnamese teams that have been officially awarded tickets to the 2023 International Robotics Tournament, which is held annually in the US in early May in Dallas, USA.
“Each student’s personality is shaped by their classmates, teachers, and the learning and teaching environment. The Dewey Schools are also an excellent place for students to freely develop their skills,” shared Ms. Thuy Anh. Because of his prior experience with scratch programming, the informatics teacher did not force him to take the same path as the rest of the class. Instead, the teacher was very adept at determining each student’s ability level and personalizing the lesson’s content to that level in order to give students appropriate homework and challenges. Mr. Vu Xuan Quyet, the former teacher of class 4Salvador, consistently encourages students, not just Anh Minh. He always follows, encourages, and is dedicated to the students’ accomplishments and activities.
Anh Minh, in addition to studying at school, has several interests, including programming, football, and his greatest passion, origami crafts. His mom happily smiled and said, “He frequently complains to me about not having enough time since he has so much to do.”
Congratulations to Anh Minh on your outstanding performance! We hope you will always keep the passion and enthusiasm of TDSers ready to conquer more upcoming learning challenges!
