Blog 17
I think I mentioned that yesterday it was so hot that everyone nearly died and the chalkboard caught fire. Well, not quite but almost. The data projector stopped working. So off we went from on classroom to another which had ceiling fans and windows in another school for the afternoon session, and indeed the rest of the week. The schools here are generally fairly large in the cities and also fairly new and shiny. Here's one from Wuhan - the one in Zhiangqiu isn't quite so shiny, but still impressive looking. They are also numbered instead of named. For example, I was at Zhangqiu Number 4 until the projector stopped working and then went to Zhangqiu Number 5. Pretty straight forward but no chance for arch bishops, saints, towns or even monarchs to get their names into the mix.
When I say large, I mean in terms of student enrolment. The first one I was at had 5,000 students and the current one about 4,000. They also have dorms as well as many students have to come in from the country and it's too far to travel without the fear of being kidnapped en-route and being forced to work as a slave in a brick factory. The dorms are basically concrete shells with bunks and cold running water at the end of the hall. Does the job, really.
I haven't noticed any school mottoes displayed yet, but all the schools do have tremendously
large squares, where the pupils get together for morning exercise and the raising of the flag. The flag routine might be everyday or just once a week depending on the school but the exercise is pretty regular. Perhaps London should try and incorporate this in preparation for getting the city, and nation, healthy in time for 2012. I could see it going down a treat in Brixton.
large squares, where the pupils get together for morning exercise and the raising of the flag. The flag routine might be everyday or just once a week depending on the school but the exercise is pretty regular. Perhaps London should try and incorporate this in preparation for getting the city, and nation, healthy in time for 2012. I could see it going down a treat in Brixton.While there aren't mottoes, there are corridors where pictures of role models and "important thinkers" look down upon the passing students. Three pictures of some of these are shown. Now, of the three, which would you be least likely to find in a school in the West?
A) Einstein - Clever science man who came up with lots of complicated equations
B) Lin Ze Xu - Qing Dynasty reformer who stopped the trade in illegal drugs
C) Stalin - generally sound man with a penchant for killing thousands
Tough question, I'll admit.
It's interesting how they spell / pronounce Einstein's name, choosing the characters in Chinese which most approximate to the correct pronunciation.
The final thing to note today is the importance of the party. Not the racy and exciting kind you might imagine Swedish teenagers getting up to, but of the more 'red' kind. So we could change Lincoln's "If you want to get ahead, get a hat" with, 'If you want to get ahead, get a card' (a red party one). Look: they even have their own activity room. Lucky blighters. Handy that they've got it written in English for any passing spy that's trying to find their way. I'll see if I can do some James Bond action and get in there and take some sneaky pictures of the secret blueprints for the XL5, or whatever it is this school is a front for.
