Dedicated teachers changing lives
Print Edition
THE message read: “I have been employed as a public servant!”
It was from Chen Xuemei at Deqin County in southwest China’s Yunnan Province to Gao Yaqing, a teacher at the Liucheng Experimental School in Jiading. Chen got to know Gao nine years ago when she was a student in Deqin No. 2 High School, and Gao was a volunteer teacher of English language from Jiading.
Deqin is at the northwest part of Yunnan at an altitude of more than 3,000 meters. “There are only two buildings in the school, and the desks were terrible, worse than schools in my childhood in 1970s in Shanghai,” Gao said.
As the school is far away from students’ homes, all students had to live there, with dozens in each dormitory, some of which are classrooms during the day. The students ate potatoes and cabbage for their main meals.
Gao was determined to try his best to help them. As the school was short of English teachers, Gao had to teach students of three classes from grade six to grade nine, at a maximum of 27 lessons a week. Thanks to his hard work, Gao’s class won second prize in the county.
In addition, Gao took the responsibility of training the local teachers and the locals called him “Shanghai teacher” to show their respect.
His wife Lu Fang went to see Gao in the spring of 2006 together with officials from Jiading District Education Bureau. Lu was deeply touched by the children who lived in poverty but were so eager to learn. In 2007, Lu also went to Yunnan as a volunteer teacher for a year.
The couple’s good example also influenced their daughter Gao Jialei. In 2009, Gao joined an education support group of Fudan University and went to Menglian County in Yunnan as a volunteer teacher.
When she arrived at the mountainous area, Gao couldn’t adapt to the environment at all, but she managed to get used to it with encouragement from her parents. Bringing with her more than 3,000 books and the donations collected in shanghai, she visited students’ homes in mountainous area one by one.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
