Education is one of the most valued possessions in Vietnamese society and many children outside of the country’s urban centers expend a great deal of time and energy and, in some cases, risk their lives to obtain it.

This is the case in Dien Bien Province where, during the rainy season, students and teachers traverse deep, fast-flowing steams to reach their school, tempting fate each time the make the crossing, reports Tuoi Tre.   

This video was shot last rainy season and shows students being carried across the raging waters by strong men while wrapped in plastic bags (which keeps their uniforms dry).

Tong Thi Minh, a teacher at a village preschool who shot this video said this was standard operating procedure:

“It’s normal! That’s the only way to cross the stream because no bridge can stand floodwater,” Minh told the newspaper. 

So the next time your kid tells you that they don’t want to go to school, show them this video.

[Tuoi Tre]