Introduction to a School in Gansu

Xinxiang Central Primary School was established by Li Sixu in 1939 as a private school and has almost 80 years of rich history.  It is the largest elementary magnet school and because of its long history has exerted a strong influence in the area.

The school is located in a rural mountainous area with poor soil and limited agricultural land in Xinzhung Village northwest of Huining County.  There is an old saying describing this area as suffering drought nine out of ten years.  Only coarse grain crops can grow and the crop harvest volume is only one hundred jin per mu( the equivalent of about 150 pounds per acre, compared to 20-30 tons of grain per acre in the U.S.). Naturally, the villagers find very difficult to make a living here and many older people over fifty have to leave the farms to find work to supplement their meager income.

Even under such arduous conditions, parents do not hesitate to decide that it is worth their suffering for their children to attend school.  They encourage  them to go to school and get educated.  “The best men are loyal and filial, with only two simple thoughts- reading and farming are essential.”  With such values, the students here are hardworking and take pains on the quality of what they do.

Today’s Xinzhuang Township Central Primary School is rooted in the culture of the rich heritage of the Losses Plateau.  It has the reputation of a “Champion Town” and they aim to cultivate a new generation of responsible students.

However, the school is dilapidated and most buildings have leaky roofs.  The student’s desks were purchased more than a decade ago and most of them are broken.  Faculty buildings are not equipped with any modern teaching aids.  There is no equipment for any music, physical education or art supplies.  Every year the school relies on fundraising but it is not enough and varies from year to year.  Solution to the school’s problems can’t addressed effectively.

The school has six classes with a total of 195 students with 99 girls and 25 staff members. Both the teachers and students have the strong spirt of area and therefore the quality of education steadily improves year after year.  The teachers are responsible and conscientious in educating their students.  There is an emphasis on studying  teaching theory as well as actively participating in classroom teaching reform and advancing quality education.  The teachers are engaged in a bold effort for new curriculum reform and thus the teaching quality is steadily rising.

With your support and with that of all levels of the village, new Township Central Primary School will better address the needs of it ‘s students and of the region.