Runner-up of 10th grade exam in Ho Chi Minh City, owns a series of awards, wants to be a math teacher

Inspired by his teachers' lectures, Hong Phat gradually fell in love with math, achieved many remarkable achievements and often supported his classmates in overcoming difficulties in this subject, then achieved the second prize in the 10th grade exam.

Le Nguyen Hong Phat, former student of Hiep Phu Secondary School (Thu Duc City), runner-up in the 10th grade exam in Ho Chi Minh City in 2025

PHOTO: NVCC

Thick math achievements

With a score of 10 in English, 9.75 in math and 8.75 in literature, Le Nguyen Hong Phat, a former student of Hiep Phu Secondary School (Thu Duc City), achieved a total score of 28.5 in the recent 10th grade exam in Ho Chi Minh City. This achievement also helped him become one of the salutatorians in Ho Chi Minh City, only 0.25 points away from the top spot. He was also admitted to the specialized math class at Tran Dai Nghia High School for the Gifted (District 1) with a specialized score of 7.75.

Previously, Phat won second and third prizes in the math competition for gifted students in Thu Duc City in grades 7 and 8. In grade 9, he became the valedictorian of the Thu Duc City gifted student competition and third prize in the Ho Chi Minh City gifted student competition, both in math. Also in this year, the male student won first prize in the Ho Chi Minh City gifted student competition for gifted students solving math problems on handheld calculators and had the highest achievement in the block at Hiep Phu Secondary School with a score of 9.6.

"Math gives me a lot of emotions, especially the moment of excitement every time I conquer a difficult problem, especially the geometry part, along with pride in myself. Every day I practice solving a specialized math problem, a non-specialized problem, but unfortunately on the day of the math test I missed the requirement of the problem and lost 0.25 points," Phat confided and added that he spent a lot of time reviewing practical math problems and plane geometry.

The key to improving math performance, according to Phat, is to clearly recognize mistakes during the review process, such as choosing the wrong direction in approaching a problem or presenting the solution incorrectly... "For practical math, I solve many problems to develop reflexes and also learn how to summarize the problem, then draft possible solutions until I form the most accurate solution idea," the new runner-up shared.

Regarding literature, the male student admitted to the math class affirmed that "he did not spend much time studying". Mainly, Phat learned how to write correctly and present the requirements correctly. Then, Phat mastered the method to avoid confusion, such as distinguishing between social essays about life issues and social essays that provide solutions to practical problems. "Finally, I learned how to write well, improve my vocabulary and expression", Phat said.

In this year's social essay about "knowing how to read", which is explained as knowing how to recognize good values ​​that are being hidden, the male student said he developed two arguments to prove how "knowing how to read" helps individuals and society. "In my essay, I mentioned the controversy related to the charity story of 'Mother Bap' to show that seeing the bad sides will help build a fairer and better society," Phat shared.

Hong Phat (2nd row, 2nd from right) took a photo with his classmates from class 9A1, Hiep Phu Secondary School.

PHOTO: NVCC

Meanwhile, with English, the male student who scored 10 in this subject said that during the review process, he focused most on rewriting sentences, trying to avoid spelling mistakes and missing punctuation, "which are very silly mistakes I often make". In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to how to use tenses and conjunctions, avoiding grammatical errors in the "hole punching" exercise. Phat also said that for word forms, the habit of looking up the dictionary will help a lot.

Teach math to friends

Sharing more about his review journey, Phat said that he often sought out study partners to help each other improve their scores and reduce the pressure and stress during exam time. Furthermore, he also participated in many mock exams before entering the 10th grade exam, so he gradually became familiar with the pressure of the exam room and made the test-taking process "easier to breathe". This was also an important secret to help him achieve high scores, Phat said.

In class, Phat said he always paid attention and took notes on the key points that the teacher wanted to convey, even if the teacher did not emphasize that content. Before the exam, the male student focused on solving many problems and then reviewed his solutions to see if he had grasped the type of problem. "If not, I would find more similar exercises to continue solving," Phat said.

Talking about his future dream, the new runner-up of the 10th grade exam in Ho Chi Minh City said that he plans to study mathematics education, not only because he is strong in this subject but also because he has been inspired by the "ferrymen". "Many of my teachers are very happy to teach while still imparting knowledge well, and are loved by many students. I myself really want to become a teacher like that", Phat confided.

"Choosing to participate in many math competitions is also to serve this dream of mine," Phat added.

Hong Phat took a photo with teacher Nguyen Huynh Ngoc Sang, homeroom teacher in grade 9.

PHOTO: NGOC LONG

As Hong Phat's homeroom teacher for grade 9 at Hiep Phu Secondary School, literature teacher Nguyen Huynh Ngoc Sang commented that Phat is a "shining example" at school because of his continuous excellent achievements. "He often helps and guides his classmates to review math, both directly in class and online via Facebook. Sharing this knowledge also helps Phat gradually approach the path of pedagogy," said Mr. Sang.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/a-khoa-thi-lop-10-tphcm-so-huu-loat-giai-thuong-muon-lam-giao-vien-toan-185250624152609152.htm