Teacher is always a shining lighthouse

Professor Dinh Xuan Lam is a great teacher, who has had a profound influence on both the professional aspects and career orientation and attitude towards the profession of many generations of students. I was not fortunate enough to study with him at university level. When I was a second-year student of the Faculty of History, Hanoi National University, he returned to the school after completing his State-assigned mission in the Republic of Madagascar (1982). I still remember that in a specialized class, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam visited the class. After that, he taught us one period. So officially, I only had one period to study with him. But later, during my research and teaching career, I was fortunate enough to be close to him and learn many things from him.

Professor Phan Huy Le and Professor Dinh Xuan Lam - two famous Vietnamese Historians

Professor Dinh Xuan Lam is a person who loves teaching and History passionately, with all his mind, intellect and heart. He once shared: “If there is a next life, I still want to be a history teacher!”. That love for the profession was passed down to me from the great master of History, Professor Tran Van Giau. From Professor Tran Van Giau to Professor Dinh Xuan Lam to the generations of teachers and students of the Faculty of History, it is like a long river that transmits that enthusiasm. It is true that one must have a great love, must have a bond like destiny to follow the teaching profession, the History profession to the end. That is also the most valuable thing that the great teacher has imparted to us, the generations of students.

From left to right: late Professor Tran Quoc Vuong, Professor Ha Van Tan, Professor Phan Huy Le and Professor Dinh Xuan Lam on the birthday of late Professor Dao Duy Anh

When teaching a topic on the History of the August Revolution at the Faculty of History, I decided to "reward" the students after the lively study and discussion sessions. Without warning them, I invited Professor Dinh Xuan Lam to visit the class. When they saw the teacher suddenly appear at the classroom door, some students burst into tears. Because for generations of students of the Faculty of History, even though the teacher had retired a long time ago, even though they had never met him, never heard him teach, they still greatly admired and respected him as one of the legends of the Faculty of History. I recount this memory to show that the teacher's name and image alone were a great source of encouragement and motivation for students and trainees of the History major.

In life, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam is a gentle and kind person. But in his profession, he is very strict. During the times I was fortunate enough to be close to him and receive professional teachings from him, he always reminded me: the most precious thing for a historian is historical data. When analyzing historical data, one must be careful and have a sense of criticism and debate from content to form. That is the most important "heart-felt message" that I learned from him.

Prof. People's Teacher Dinh Xuan Lam and Prof. People's Teacher Doan Thien Thuat (Faculty of Linguistics) at the Opening Ceremony of the 2012-2013 school year at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU.

He especially values ​​multi-dimensional dialogue in historical research and always puts himself in a position of academic dialogue with those who have different professional views. He always respects the opinions of other scholars but he never compromises on expertise. Only when he hears clear arguments about the source of historical data, the way to criticize, analyze historical data and draw appropriate conclusions will he accept.

Another thing we learned from the teacher is the spirit of cooperation in research. He wrote very few monumental works alone, but he had hundreds of works leading and sharing ideas with his students. He was also very good at "simplifying" historical knowledge so that even non-History majors could easily understand and enjoy it. This is also the concern of history teachers today, when the negative impacts of modern life push people to live pragmatically, live in a hurry, and find it difficult to find a quiet space to deeply appreciate the beauty of literature or history. How to convey historical knowledge to society in a natural way, not rigid and constrained? How to make students love their country and culture more when studying history? This is what teacher Dinh Xuan Lam has done and done very successfully.

The beloved teacher of generations of students of the Faculty of History - Professor, People's Teacher Dinh Xuan Lam turns 90 this year. And for us - those who are lucky enough to have received valuable professional and life knowledge from him - he will forever be a shining beacon to guide the way...