One major aspect of China’s education reform is to improve equality. Rural schools are at the center of this endeavor. Poverty, harsh natural conditions, and limited resources are the main reasons for this. So it’s especially important to make sure they don’t lose what they have before getting all they need.

It’s difficult enough just getting up to the mountain. The weather in Pu’an County is like this for half of the year. If it’s this bad in a car, imagine being on foot. It takes the students at least two hours to get to school.

In this dormitory, Chen Meirong prepares for class. She discusses with her husband, who teaches at a nearby junior high.

Chen Meirong said, "I teach Chinese, English, arts, and moral education. And I try to make materials to make my classes more interesting. We don’t have enough teachers, so we all have to do as much as we can."

When Chen first arrived three years ago, she was overwhelmed. There was simply too much to get used to for a girl fresh out of college.

Chen Meirong said, "I felt like crying. I thought this was not the kind of place where I’d like to start my career. I’m from the countryside, too. But it was much better than here. Then I saw myself in these kids and decided to give it a try."

From the moment she began her first class, it became a commitment. She wants to equip these children with the basic knowledge for a better future.

This primary school is the hope of a village. And teachers, of course, are the hopes of such schools. Most poor rural areas across China face the same challenge. While Chen chooses to stay, many of her colleagues turn to alternatives they consider better. So keeping good teachers is a top problem for the education system.

In 2006, China launched a project to encourage teachers with better qualifications to work in rural schools. They are usually college graduates, unlike local teachers.

Most of their salary comes from central government funding, and the rest from the local budget. Besides insurance and pensions, the teachers make 1800 yuan a month, or about three hundred US dollars. It isn’t much, but it’s more than the county alone can afford.

The school principal is happy to see the change.

Li Zhenggao, rural school principal, said, "We’ve seen a dramatic improvement in our education quality since these teachers arrived. More students are doing well enough to enter a good high school, which opens the door to universities."

Contracts under the project run for three years. The initiative has helped keep 95 percent of the teachers. Like Chen, some who stay have another goal.

Chen Meirong said, "I started with enough knowledge, but no experience. Now I have experience, but want to expand my knowledge, since I feel isolated living in the mountains. I wish to have a chance to study further, to get a master’s degree, for example. And when I come back to these children, I will have more to offer."

They love spending time together talking about dreams and the bigger world out there. These girls say they want to study English abroad or become architects or fashion designers. And to reach their goals, the kids in Pu’an County are making the most of their time in the class.