“Can AI erase human memory?”
A question that once seemed to belong to a distant future has now become the starting point for a journey into the past, a journey that TDSers from Grades 6 to 11 vividly portrayed in their Year-End Report of Literature and Vietnamese subject through the theatrical performance “The River of Memory.”
Set in a world where AI dominates every aspect of life, the play opens with the story of a young person swept away by the current of memories. On this journey against the flow of time, the students guided the audience through four realms of memory, four brilliant and turbulent chapters in the nation’s history.
From The Beginning, where the legends of nation-building echo with the sounds of bronze drums and the lullabies of Mother Au Co, to Heroism and Fate, where history is written with blood, tears, and the courage of the Vietnamese people. War and Peace reconstructs the fierce yet hopeful days of resistance, while The New World, featuring a wedding scene from the subsidy era, stirs deep emotions in parents, like a film reel playing back their own memories.
And so, at the journey’s end, when the main character returns alongside those whose memories had once been erased, a proud declaration resounds once more: “Vietnam has the right to freedom and independence.” It is a powerful reaffirmation: “AI may control everything, but it will never control human memory.” There are values that cannot be erased by time or technology. That history, through the clear eyes, passionate hearts, and vivid imaginations of the younger generation, is being written anew, full of hope.
More than just a theatrical performance, “The River of Memory” is the culmination of a rich learning journey, creativity, and companionship in the Literature and Vietnamese program at Dewey. The students not only wrote the script, designed the sets, and portrayed the characters, but also breathed life into every detail with their own hearts – a heart that understands history, cherishes culture, and knows how to tell stories through the language of contemporary folk art.
Ms. Le Thi Thu Hong, a parent, shared her excitement: “I was truly impressed watching the students embody historical figures. Through every glance, gesture, and line of dialogue, I could fully feel the storyline and the depth of each character. The children are not just learning literature, they are living it. They are empathizing, expressing emotions, and giving their all on stage. This is a wonderful testament to the inspiring innovation in the way Literature and Vietnamese are taught at Dewey.”
On that stage, the students were not merely performing a play, they were fully immersed in each slice of history, in every breath of the nation’s memory. The journey of studying Literature and Vietnamese at Dewey, therefore, goes far beyond acquiring knowledge. It is a journey of returning to one’s roots, of awakening a deep love for the homeland and its people, so that, from there, the students grow up alongside history, mature with their nation, and carry in their hearts a sacred memory that will never fade.
Rooted in the profound human values that literature conveys, the journey of learning Literature and Vietnamese at Dewey nurtures in each TDSer a heart that knows how to love, empathize, and truly listen. At Dewey, students have discovered the greatest meaning of learning Literature and Vietnamese: not just knowledge, but gratitude, resilience, love for the homeland – and ultimately, the full journey of becoming human.
