No longer the shy student in the past
“Mr. Tate once joked with our class that his name sounds similar to “Tet” in Vietnamese. To me, the energy he conveys is just like the meaning and spirit of that festival—always warm and full of life, always deserving of respect.”
These are the endearing words that Phan Nguyen Chau Anh (11 Berlin) shared about her teacher. Looking at this dynamic, lively student with a constant bright smile, few would imagine that there was a very different Chau Anh just two years ago.
Shyness and timidity are natural emotions for a 15-year-old girl adjusting to a new learning environment. Enrolling at Dewey during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing inadvertently became a barrier that limited Chau Anh’s opportunities to interact and converse with her classmates. Naturally introverted and sensitive due to her adolescence, Chau Anh initially struggled to integrate with her new school and friends.
“Back then, I felt a lot of resemblance to the character Charlie in the book The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” Chau Anh reminisced. Like a silent flower blooming on the wall, Charlie once lived in seclusion, quietly observing the lives of those around him. In the early days at her new school, Chau Anh also had moments of withdrawing into her own world, immersing herself in the pages of books instead of playing.
The empathy and understanding of the teacher
The image of a serene girl, deeply engrossed in reading or sometimes lost in thought, caught the attention of her teacher. “I felt a special resonance with Chau Anh because, as a student, I also had moments of contemplation while engrossed in thinking about something in a book. I saw my younger self in her, a silent flower longing to bloom,” Mr. Tate shared.
The passion for books, movies, and science has become the thread connecting Chau Anh and Mr. Tate. Each class with Mr. Tate is always filled with energy for the young girl. In contrast to her usual shy and timid demeanor, she always shows enthusiasm and eagerness in every lecture given by her teacher. Chau Anh stated, “Our class curriculum is quite challenging, with lessons related to biology such as studying gene structure or the natural behaviors of various animal species, but the teacher always knows how to spark interest for the whole class with “fun facts” not found in textbooks.”
Not only did Mr. Tate inspire Chau Anh through each engaging lesson, but he also helped her untangle the knots in her heart. He listened, empathizing with the most fragile and vulnerable emotions of a young student trying to integrate into a new environment. “Our emotions are like the weather; there are sunny days and there are rainy days. But everything will pass. So, whether you are happy or sad, I believe these feelings will pass,” Chau Anh fondly remembers that advice from her teacher.
The growth journey and outstanding achievements of Chau Anh
With belief and gratitude towards her teacher, Chau Anh gradually became more open, actively participating in extracurricular activities and making more new friends. In her sophomore year, Chau Anh’s team won first prize in the Modern Dance category at the D-show competition. She also achieved remarkable academic success by consistently being awarded the Student of the Month title and being the only 11th-grade student to receive a 50% scholarship from the school. Witnessing her daughter’s transformation and maturity, Van Anh, Chau Anh’s mother, couldn’t hide her mixed emotions of pride and excitement.
For Chau Anh, the presence of Mr. Tate is like the arrival of spring sunshine. After long winter days, that sunshine has awakened new energy and vitality, allowing the once silent flower to bloom brightly on the wall.
Someone once said, “The most beautiful things in life cannot be seen or touched; they can only be felt with the heart.” The bond between Mr. Tate and Chau Anh is as beautiful as that sentiment.
This teacher-student relationship also reinforces The Dewey Schools’ belief in the mission of “nurturing and developing individuals” in education. A doctor may not cure every illness, and a teacher may not teach students everything. Knowledge is not everything in school; nurturing love, kindness, support, and creating conditions for holistic development in students is the true mission of education, and it is also the noble mission of a teacher.
