Poor county in Yunnan works magic with students

KUNMING: Poverty-stricken Huize county in Qujing, Yunnan province, has found an effective way to help the younger generation escape poverty — a better education.
Huize, with a population of 1.06 million, is one of the 27 severely poverty-stricken counties in Yunnan province. But in recent years, its students have performed many miracles in the national college entrance examination.
This year, 703 of the county’s 6,796 participants in the national college entrance examination had scores higher than 600, which could help them get enrolled in many top-level domestic universities. Eleven were admitted to Peking University and Tsinghua University.
Through the annual national examination, the county has managed to help 80 percent of its students gain access to domestic universities. More than 30 percent of all students going to college were from poverty-stricken families. The education system in the county deserves credit for helping younger generations escape poverty, the county government said.
Since 2016, the county has invested more than 1 billion yuan ($150 million) to support the studies and lives of poverty-stricken students, according to the county.
Local authorities plan to invest 746 million yuan in the construction of four kindergartens, two primary schools and two junior high schools. Also, the county government has set up a senior high school education group to integrate educational resources. In addition to the large allocation of money and measures to help students get a good education, the county has taken steps to ensure that teachers have good working conditions, considering their contribution to the system. – The Daily Mail-China Daily News exchange item