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hello from the local fruit vendor
There is a smiling hello every day as I pass his fruit-stand.During the morning, my friend Arthur called me at my apartment and suggested a visit to one of the elite schools of Taizhou, not far from the college. Students were about to take a nation-wide battery of demanding college-entrance-examinations, spanning the next 4 days. The results are to decide each student's future. I was not prepared for what was waiting for me:
The school is situated next to a wide and important street, and consists of a large complex of impressive buildings, with a grand entrance and iron gate, gold and red banners flapping in the morning wind. I have passed the school several times with little fanfare, but this morning there was great commotion. The street was no longer accessable to any motored vehicle, blocked at both ends by police cars. Hundreds of mothers and fathers, in their "Sunday-Best", were parading and escorting their sons and daughters as far as the imposing gate, where security guards permitted only the testing-candidates to enter the campus. I noticed their prayers as they glanced toward heaven :-) The exited throng of parents, with their eyes following the steps of their children until they could no longer see them, was held back
fresh produce in season
Fresh fruit and produce in season is available every day. at the gate's entrance by stearn security, and the parents too seemed to find solice in a prayer and a ciggarette. In the success of this 4 day test, all the hope for a grand future for their youngster is about to be realized, OR about to be doomed, by failing the challenge.
Some 9-10 million students across China are about to benefit from their years of focused and intense studies. Should they fail, they will reap serious distress and an awful shock, having dissappointed their immediate and extended family. Parents waved to their 17/18 year olds in trembling uncertainty and hopeful encouragement, as hundreds of young, aspiring academians walked through a gauntlet of many more hundreds adults, toward a destiny, to be decided by THIS one examination. Caravans of busses brought more hundreds of students from the country-side, and anticipation and anxiety were expressed in each of their face. Arthur told me, that this same scene was repeating itself in every large and small city of China over these next few days, and does so once every year at this time.
The elation and joy and pride of successful candidates, along with their families, friends, and
the bicycle
Still the main transport, bicycle repair is available at every corner. teachers will be great. For those who do not pass, this day will certaily become an immeasurable catastrophy, for they must confront this life-altering failure at home with families, and at school with class-mates and teachers, and later in their work-place, every day of their life, perhaps for the rest of their life. The challenge to achieve among 1.4 Billion people is great, and to shine in this society, education is accepted as the most formidable tool.
During the late afternoon, my Western collegue Sue and I, were interviewed by the Taizhou City newspaper. The reporter seemed interested in the morning impressions and observations in front of the school. She wanted to know, if similar strategies were used in the United States and Australia, promoting and challenging student's enthusiasm to enter college?
Our interpreter listened to both of us carefully, and she explained our thoughts to the reporter in Chinese. We suggested, that testing is only one of the criteria for admission to a good school in our countries of Australia and the U.S. Leadership, character, continuously good scholarship, community service, money, teacher-recommendations, possibly sports, and each student's personal desire to achieve, are some other important components
the local supermarket
choice cuts by the butcher of college admission in our culture. As teachers, we both felt empathy for the Chinese families and students, enduring such focused pressure at a young and formative age. Though I could not understand the translation to the reporter, our responses seemed to have invited a
lifely discussion and perhaps even some agreement amongst themselves.....
I do have a telephone in my apartment, but at the moment I can only make local calls. It is possible to receive calls from other countries: In the US you would have to dial:
011-86-523-666-7847.
email: s_hans@bellsouth.net
Thank you for all of your kind comments and wishes, they mean alot, and I miss all of you.
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yosleny
non-member comment
wow the test sounds like the sat but harder and more demanding...and everyone complains here about it...i hope the students do well... as for the pictures...hmm i wonder what the fruit guy is soo happy about when YOU pass by=D?!!! i meant to ask....do you buy fruit off of him every morning?!