GUIYANG, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The mountainous areas of southwest China's Guizhou Province are an enticing travel destination. But for Cheng Jianing, a college student who has worked as a volunteer teacher there over the past year, life was about more than charming scenery.
In July 2017, Cheng, 23, a fresh graduate from Huazhong Agricultural University in central China's Hubei Province, joined a national volunteer teachers program which was launched in 2003 to encourage college students to work as volunteer teachers in poor and ethnic minority regions for one to three years.
She said the decision came after her visit to a primary school in Hubei in 2016.
"I was shocked when I saw the poor conditions there. Children had to walk hours from home to school every day and studied in abandoned houses," Cheng recalled. "At that time, I decided to offer my help as a volunteer teacher."
In July, after several days of preparation, Cheng and her four classmates left the city for a remote village primary school in Guizhou.
Dashi Village, surrounded by high mountains and excruciating poverty, can be accessed only by several narrow paths winding through the mountains.
There were only three teachers for over 70 students in the village primary school. Cheng's arrival inspired the school and the students.
"We had a heavy teaching load every week. I taught Chinese and math to grade three students, English to grade four students and sports to grade one students," said Cheng.
"It was really hard in the beginning, but I believed everything will get better if you put your heart into it," said Cheng.
Her easy demeanor has enabled her to quickly make friends with the students. Cheng also taught them to sing pop songs, play games, and acquire knowledge of things they had never dreamt of before.
Most of her students were left-behind children and lived a hard life. They had to wash clothes and cook by themselves as well as do farm work when they were only seven or eight years old.
"After classes, we often visited students' families to learn more about their lives and find out who were in need," said Cheng.
"I grew up with these children. I taught them knowledge and they taught me to be strong in face of difficulties," said Cheng.
Cheng also brought many surprises to the village.
During her stay, Cheng and her classmates raised nearly 20,000 yuan (about 3,100 U.S. dollars) to construct a greenhouse, which was put into operation in April, three months before they left.
"Students can plant vegetables and flowers in the greenhouse, which will help enrich their extra-curricular life," said Cheng.
Local villagers also learned to plant vegetables that are popular at the market. "We hope locals can find more means of livelihood and stay in their hometowns with their children," said Cheng.
The volunteers' efforts paid off. Since 2005, more than 20 students from the primary school have entered universities to further their education.
Over the past years, more than 1,500 college students across the country have been dispatched to mountainous areas in Guizhou as volunteer teachers, which has contributed to the development of all-round education in these regions, according to the Guizhou provincial volunteer program guidance center.
Cheng said she will leave Dashi and return to university in July. "I hope to come back again in the future. There are more students who are in even more need of help," said Cheng.
