For the 2025 - 2026 school year, Thach An High School welcomed 197 Grade 10 students, divided into 5 classes. Most of them are from ethnic minority groups such as Tay, Nung, Mong, and Dao, with Tay students forming the majority. Therefore, the use of indigenous languages in school holds practical significance, helping to create a friendly learning environment, showing the respect to cultural diversity, and encouraging students to take pride in their ethnic roots.

During the opening ceremony, welcoming speeches, introductions to the school’s traditions, introductions of homeroom teachers and classes were delivered bilingually in Vietnamese and Tay, creating a sense of closeness and familiarity for the newbies. This creative approach helped boost the students’ confidence as they stepped into a new learning environment.

Organizing a bilingual welcoming ceremony for new students demonstrates the close connection between teaching and experiential activities, while integrating cultural education in line with the new general education curriculum and the orientation for sustainable development in culturally rich localities like Cao Bang. It also highlights the active role of the “Geopark Ambassador” Club at Thach An High School - one of the clubs highly appreciated by the Management Board  of Non nuoc Cao Bang Geopark for its creativity and dedication in spreading heritage values to the community.

The initiative has received strong support from students, teachers, and students’ parents, while opening up many prospects for the school to continue implementing ethnic cultural education activities throughout the 2025 – 2026 academic year. More than just a highlight of the opening ceremony, this activity marks a new direction in integrating the preservation and promotion of ethnic languages in schools, contributing to fostering pride, raising awareness of cultural heritage preservation, and promoting ethnic languages’ values among today’s young generation.

Author: L.T