The female principal of the "village elementary" who returned to the nest to serve retained young teachers and lit up hope for rural children
Ma Licui is determined to become a beam of light to illuminate the future of children in her hometown, which is her original intention to devote herself to education. Since returning to her hometown in 2012 to teach, she has worked in the field of rural education for a full decade.
The 33-year-old graduated from Shandong University of the Arts with a major in art education, and is now the principal of Xizhangzhuang Primary School in Huangji Town, Yuncheng County, Heze City, Shandong Province.
Xizhangzhuang Primary School used to be a disadvantaged school in the local "village school". However, with the joint efforts of Ma Licui and all teachers and students, in just a few years, the quality of education in the school has jumped to the top three in the town.
Ma Licui told The Paper that she has been working at Xizhangzhuang Primary School for four years. Having experienced the transformation of the school, she is full of confidence in the future development of the school and looks forward to her efforts to bring more light to rural children.
She chose to become a teacher because of the influence of a person named Teacher Huang in high school. Ma Licui admits that her grades in the student days were not satisfactory, "Maybe I didn't find the way to learn Xi and didn't realize the importance of learning Xi." However, after meeting Mr. Huang, Ma Licui's life began to take a turn for the better.
Mr. Huang gave me a lot of care and warmth, which helped me regain my self-confidence as a student who may even have difficulty going to university. With the encouragement of Mr. Huang, Ma Licui began to strive to surpass herself, and her dream of becoming a teacher also laid a foundation in her heart.
Ma Licui is a young teacher who loves education and loves his hometown. Although I once longed for a job opportunity in a big city, I never let go of my hometown deep down. "If we don't go back, who will change the fate of rural children?After graduating, she resolutely decided to return to Huangji Town, Yuncheng County, to become a teacher.
During her teaching career, she cherished this profession and devoted herself to preparing lessons and treating her students with heart. When asked why she was so good to her students, she always replied because there was a teacher who treated her the same. "Whenever I see children who don't study Xi seriously, I am very anxious, hoping to arouse their self-awareness. I hope to be like my teacher and pass on warmth. She said.
When she first started working, she was worried about her lack of teaching experience, so she worked hard in her spare time. During her tenure at Huangji Town Central Primary School, her classes always ranked first in the town, which also showed the school leaders her teaching ability.
In August 2019, she was transferred to Xizhangzhuang Primary School and became the youngest female principal in the county at that time. Although there is more room for development, there are huge challenges.
The school is the most remote in town, and the road to the school is rugged. The nearest bus stop is 5 kilometres from the school, and before the road was built, the road was rough and teachers and students came on foot, often covered in gray or mud.
Ma Licui's biggest concern is the shortage of teachers. The school is remote, and teachers have always been a bottleneck restricting the development of the school. When she first took office, there were only 17 teachers and six substitute teachers for the school's more than 300 students, and she was worried about the imbalance in the ratio of teachers.
Young teachers have become "jack-of-all-trades", but when they come, it is difficult to stay. Ma Licui once retained a young teacher, but because his family was not in the local area and he did not know how to drive, he eventually left.
She put in a lot of effort to keep her teachers. At school, she strives to create a homely atmosphere and help teachers solve problems. In the cold winter, she would bring a cup of hot milk tea to each teacher. During overtime, she would cook a hot meal for the teachers out of her own pocket.
She hopes that teachers will find professional pride in this small village. Whenever a teacher has an honor, she sends a bouquet of flowers to make them proud and satisfied.
In the past year, the teachers of Xizhangzhuang Primary School have won a total of 8 municipal and county honors. This is a new record for the school, and the honor makes the teachers happier and more confident to work here. Ma Licui said.
The situation of Xizhangzhuang Primary School is thought-provoking. There are a large number of left-behind children in the school, and according to Ma Licui's survey, about 70% of the students' parents are working outside the home. Compared to the town's schools, the children here seem to lack self-confidence.
Due to the lack of family education, many children fail to develop good XiXi learning habits. When Ma Licui first came to the school, the students' academic Xi was very low. Not only do they not study Xi, but they also do not complete their homework. Some teachers may take a strong line to make the children settle down. But Ma Licui realizes that this is not a long-term solution, and such an education method may have a negative impact on the child's psychology.
To change this, Ma Licui began to take action. On the one hand, she led the teachers out of the campus, allowing them to learn Xi in other schools in the county, experience the teaching management methods of excellent schools, and feel the relaxed and happy classroom atmosphere. On the other hand, she also began to organize various extracurricular activities such as speeches and calligraphy competitions in the school, hoping to provide more children with opportunities to show themselves.
These subtle changes are beginning to show. The classroom atmosphere gradually became lively. After class, teachers play games with the children, and the teacher-student relationship begins to develop in a healthy direction.
In order to better understand the students' thoughts, Ma Licui also set up a principal's mailbox to listen to the students' opinions. She was touched by a letter from a fourth-grade student: "After each flag-raising ceremony, you encourage us and give us the motivation and goal to Xi. Every day when you come to the school gate, your gentle voice and smile are as warm as a mother. Your words are deeply imprinted in my heart, and I want to be a teacher like you when I grow up. ”
These few short sentences moved Ma Licui, and she knew that this was the power of education. She said: "It was Mr. Huang who ignited my dream of teaching, and now I am sowing this dream. ”
Faced with the choice of staying or going, Ma Licui was also hesitant. Other schools have extended olive branches to her. "At that time, my child was about to go to primary school, and if he was transferred to a better school, obviously he would have a better education. ”
However, a letter from the young student changed her mind. "I am not only a mother to my own children, but a mother to all my students," she said. If the principals are gone, who will give them strength and hope?”
Since then, she has decided to stay here and work to bring Xizhangzhuang Primary School to a better future. At the beginning of the new semester this year, her child has also become a first-grade student at Xizhangzhuang Primary School.
Xizhangzhuang Primary School has won a good reputation in the local area, and the new young teachers have begun to integrate into it. Ma Licui told reporters that in June this year, a primary school in the town invited a teacher from Xizhangzhuang Primary School to teach, but was eventually rejected by the teacher. "The teacher told me that there was no shortage of teachers in that school, but when I left, there was a shortage of children in Xizhangzhuang Primary School. Ma Licui was deeply moved by these words.
With the support of national policies and the joint efforts of teachers and students, more and more teachers are willing to stay here. The situation of teachers in Xizhangzhuang Primary School has also been improved. Ma Licui said that the school is no longer looking for substitute teachers due to teacher shortages, and the teaching staff within the establishment has also remained stable. Not only that, but last year the school also introduced four young teachers, all of whom are now under the age of 40.
On the occasion of Teacher's Day, Ma Licui put forward new expectations for the teachers of Xizhangzhuang Primary School. She hopes that teachers can truly love their students, not only to dedicate their emotions, but also to constantly improve themselves.
Children in rural areas rarely have the opportunity to see the outside world, and I hope that teachers will continue to learn and Xi expand themselves to see the wider world. Ma Licui said that she has a simple wish, that is, to try her best to narrow the gap between Xizhangzhuang Primary School and the first-class schools in the city, so that children in the village also have the opportunity to receive high-quality education.
The above content information is ** on the Internet, and the author of this article does not intend to target or insinuate any real country, political system, organization, race, or individual. The above content does not mean that the author of this article agrees with the laws, rules, opinions, behaviors in the article and is responsible for the authenticity of the relevant information. The author of this article is not responsible for any of the above or related issues, and does not assume any direct or indirect legal liability.