Learning in Rural China: Challenges for students

The first thing I notice is that in this neighborhood of simple homes and farmland , which is the school , not a shopping center, which is the cleanest and most impressive building in the area . Elementary Lian Qiao Tou He can afford only 29 staff to care for 714 children attending . Most children go to school all week as they have to walk several hours to reach their homes . So the school has become his family, although one where children have to take an incredible amount of individual and social responsibility , with a very limited adult support.

Some 3,000 kilometers southwest of Shanghai, a city that houses the most important educational system in the world, elementary school Qiao Tou Lian He is one of the fruits of China's efforts to educate its citizens living in rural areas sparsely populated as this . While economic and social development of these areas has been remarkable by any standard, the coastal areas of China are racing ahead at an even faster rate, thus widening disparities . That, in turn , feeds an endless stream of people moving to cities: students seeking a better education , parents in search of work , and teachers who excel in their jobs and are looking for more satisfying careers . Shanghai alone, 1,000 additional vehicles registered each day for those who have made it up the social ladder .

A lack of options to achieve high-quality education to children of the mountains , China has begun to consolidate rural schools to form viable centers that bring together infrastructure and critical mass of teachers who need to build strong educational systems. That is never easy. For generations , schools have become the heart of communities, when the kids leave , communities see their future in jeopardy. But there have been serious problems of implementation in China, especially in transport , which have bogged down progress and , in some areas, led the consolidation process to a halt. But Lian Qiao Tou school He is an example that is well on its way to turn challenges into opportunities. Provides children of four ancient remote schools educational opportunities - and a future - that neither they nor their parents could have imagined in their villages.

Children in school Lian Qiao Tou He lives in a residence composed of tiny rooms that each have 12 beds and 18 children ( you can do the math ) . But the room after room is in immaculate order, with each child 's belongings neatly arranged . A cheerful squad fifth and sixth grade walking from one room to another , with notebooks in hand in the notes about hygiene and discipline are recorded , and helps younger children in the best way they can . And Overloaded Only one teacher is appointed to meet the needs of these hundreds of young children in a given day.

Every education system aims to make resilient children so that your can find their way in a world of constant disequilibrium - trying , failing , adaptation, learning and evolution . Resilience is not supposed to know exactly how it will develop , we will be surprised, we are open to learning from the extraordinary , that we will make mistakes along the way, but that persist and invest ourselves. Few children will be better prepared for this than the students at the school He Lian Qiao Tou , even if this price is so high. Those who return to their communities after their training will be able to help communities adapt to rapid economic and social changes in China. In the meantime , however , when students return home , they often have no one to talk to : your parents may be working away , but even if you are at home, you may not understand the world is opening up to these children.