Organizing a flashmob to celebrate an event has become trendy to Vietnamese teenagers. However, some school heads fear the consequences of these spontaneous set-ups and turn to ban students from engaging in these public activities. 

A picture taken from a clip shows 200 students gathering at the schoolyard to perform flashmob on May 18, 2012. (Photo: Tuoi Tre)

At the end of year ceremony on May 19, around 200 students from Ho Chi Minh City’s Le Hong Phong high school participated in a flashmob performance in the school  yard. However, according to some students, the school ordered students to disperse and turn off the music in the middle of the act. Some students expressed frustration on social networks, saying the school did not respect them.

A similar thing happened at the end year ceremony at the city’s Nguyen Thi Minh Khai high school on May 21 when students expressed their wish to have a flashmob and jump into the school’s swimming pool as a tradition.

However the school turned them down.

Previously the students were asked to sign a pledge not to jump into the swimming pool during the ceremony. However, on the day, they jostled with faculty and security guards hired from outside. 

The school wants safety for students

Pham Thi Le Nhan, principal at Nguyen Thi Minh Khai high school, said a group of students registered a flashmob performance at around 10am on the day of the ceremony for the end of the schoolyear.

“It was getting late and there were some performances pending so we could not add more,” she explained.

She said that when the ceremony ended, the students started to dance and she did not object to that. Later, the students formed furious groups. A vice principal who stopped them from jumping into the swimming pool was pushed and fell. Two boards used to block access to the pool were trampled.

The principal said the tradition of jumping into the pool on the last day of school is just known by word of mouth. Several years ago, a student tried to jump into the pool and hit a friend’s neck by mistake.

She explained that due to the small number of supervisors, the school hires security from outside to keep order and safety.

During the flashmob performance at Le Hong Phong high school, vice principal Lam Van Trieu confirmed turning off the music while students were dancing.

“We do not object to the students dancing but they should propose and register a list of participants. We also do not approve activities which are not organized by the Union” he said.

Aside from the two schools above, students at a high school in Binh Thanh District expressed their wish to have a flashmob and were encouraged to practice and perform at the ceremony marking the end of the school year.

“Instead of banning the performance, causing students to do it secretly, the school should give guidelines to provide students with an exciting experience on the last day of school,” said T., the school vice principal.

Source: Tuoitre