Test Scores Rise Following Opening of Room to Read Language Lab
In August 2005, Room to Read established a language lab in Cho Gao General High School in Southern Vietnam so that students would have a better opportunity to learn foreign languages - both English and French. In less than a year and a half, the lab has already had a profound impact on education at the school - test scores have risen dramatically and one student placed third nationally and was accepted into university to continue his studies.
Cho Gao District, Vietnam
With a population of about 100,000, the Cho Gao District of Tien Giang Province is a poor district, far from the light of modern society. Most people rely on rice farming to make a living, a labor intensive profession subject to the variables of unpredictable weather and market pricing. As a result, the standard of living in Cho Gao is much lower than most of the developed world.
The Cho Gao High School is one of the larger schools in the district, with over 2,300 students and 100 teachers and is considered one of the better schools in the province. Both English and French are taught by the twelve foreign language teachers, who demonstrate both talent and passion. However, before Room to Read's help, the school desperately needed a language lab to improve the foreign language program to help the students learn proper pronunciation and gain confidence in their speaking abilities.
So, in the summer of 2005, Room to Read partnered with the high school to establish a lab that would enable foreign language teachers to better teach their students. The community contributed a spacious room, furniture, lighting, air conditioners and fans, and the television and VCD player, and Room to Read supplied the rest. The result was a beautiful language lab with 40 individual consoles and a teacher's station.
Progress Report
In the fall of 2006, our Vietnam team received a wonderful letter from one of the English teachers at Cho Gao High School, Mr. Vo Ngoc Anh. In the letter, he highlights a few successes attributed to their new language lab - passing rates for Baccalaureate English exams at the school rose from 60-70% historically to 90%! Additionally, one 12th grade student, Dinh Nguyen Kieu Oanh, placed third nationally on a national exam for English and was admitted to the Foreign Trade University in Ho Chi Minh without having to take the entrance exam. Mr. Anh goes on to say "Before the lab, our students ... could hardly keep pace with their counterparts in big cities such as Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi. Dinh was the first to make a great breakthrough... In conclusion, we feel sure that the practice of studying English [is] more thorough and more productive with the ownership of a language lab."
This is a great example of the potential that often lies dormant in many rural communities in the developing world. With proper resources, these children can gain the lifelong gift of education and excel both locally and nationally. Room to Read will continue to partner with the Cho Gao High school to improve the lab and receive more fantastic success stories from its students.
