allonlinenovel Chapter 201 Going to school
Chapter 201 Going to school
"Oh! If you hadn't told me, I would have forgotten this. We have been farmers all our lives, and because we have no money to go to school, we can't read a single word.
Life in the village is better now, you kids really can’t be like us, you have to study, only by studying can you have a future.” Hou Yangmin also nodded in agreement.
They did what they said. In the past few days, the village sold a lot of goods and earned more than 2,000 yuan. Having money means you can be powerful.
Hou Yangmin called a few elders, and after discussion, it was decided that the children in the village would not have to pay for schooling, and the books would be purchased by the village and could be used repeatedly, but the children would have to pay for their pencils and notebooks themselves.
Pencils and notebooks are not a big burden for the villagers. If parents can afford it, they can buy more. If they can't, they can buy less. A notebook and a pencil are enough for one or two months. The rest of the time, they can just use wooden sticks to study in the sandbox.
After all, not every child can read. For those without talent, it is enough for them to study for three or four years, recognize most common characters, and be able to speak and write. For those with talent, both their clan and their parents are willing to pay for their studies.
Most of the children in the village have never been to school and cannot read or read. There are more than 120 children under the age of fifteen.
However, most of these children’s parents would not allow them to go to school, after all, twelve or thirteen years old are still small laborers.
After a village meeting and private discussions with villagers, it was finally decided that children aged twelve or thirteen could attend classes at any time, giving children as much freedom as possible. Being able to recognize words is always better than being blind.
When statistics were collected, there were still some families that did not allow their daughters to go to school. They were caught by several elders and scolded, and were not given any dividends if their daughters were not allowed to go to school.
At last count, there were seventy-five children who studied full-day, plus requests from relatives outside the village, a total of one hundred and eight.
The cost of running a school nowadays is not that high. The school is just a cave, and the biggest expenses are books, desks, and teachers' salaries.
Each family in the cave dwelling has to provide one person, and the village doesn't have to pay. Those who don't want to provide someone will give 50 cents.
Next are the table and stools, which are also made of the cheapest materials, just a wooden board and four legs.
Hou Yangmin applied for the position of teacher through the county government, and paid fifty dollars for the application.
At first, the higher-ups did not agree, but when they heard that Nanjiagou Village was paying the teachers' salaries out of its own pocket, the people from the Education Bureau smiled so happily and immediately said they would send ten people over.
Hou Yangmin was so scared that he waved his hands repeatedly, saying that there were few students and three or four people would be enough.
Finally, a Chinese teacher, an arithmetic teacher, a music teacher, and a principal were decided to be in charge of physical education.
The next step was to purchase books. I paid three hundred dollars and ordered more than a hundred sets of books, which completed the task.
At the beginning, these teachers were very dissatisfied with the conditions in Nanjiagou Village. After all, the desks and chairs were very simple, there were no educational facilities, and the wages were low.
The monthly salary for an ordinary teacher in Nanjiagou Village is eight dollars, while the principal only gets fifteen dollars. This salary is obviously 10% to 20% less than the normal market salary.
However, when their salaries were paid in advance the next day, everyone said it was really good, after all, teachers in government offices often did not receive salary for three to five months.
"Principal Liu and all the teachers, as long as you teach our children well, the village will pay you your salary on time at the beginning of each month.
If you are in financial difficulty, you can also apply for advance loans.
In the future, as long as the business of the village workshops is good, we will give you a salary increase every year.
And there is another benefit in our village, that is, food is provided.
Every month, the village would give each teacher a subsidy of 20 kilograms of cornmeal, 10 kilograms of flour, and 1 kilogram of pork.
The village’s sweet potato puree can also be sold to teachers at a low price, the price is very affordable!
Also, every festival, the village workshop will give everyone sweet potato candies produced by ourselves." Hou Yangmin explained to several teachers with a smile when distributing their salaries.
Several teachers who had originally disdained Nanjiagou Village as a den of poor refugees were so happy when they heard Hou Yangmin's words that their eyes lit up.
This refugee village was what my colleagues called a den of dragons and tigers when we came here! This was simply the best school in their minds.
"Captain Hou, don't worry. We teachers will definitely cultivate pillars of education for your village." The balding principal Liu took Hou Yangmin's hand and shook it vigorously.
On the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, Nanjiagou Primary School opened its doors amid firecrackers. Amid the sound of firecrackers, the primary school students walked into the school with their heads held high, carrying school bags made of quilt sheets made by their mothers slung across their shoulders.
From the children's perspective, it is so comfortable not to have to work at home and to play with a group of friends every day.
But they don’t know that studying is the real nightmare for primary school students.
"Ding, ding, ding!" The iron bell of the school cave was rung by the principal, and the children walked into the classroom with vigor.
On this day, Hou Xiaoge also said goodbye to his family and made arrangements for his family and clansmen. From then on, he could fly as high as the sky and fish as wide as the sea.
"Mother, uncle, Erda, and aunt, please go back quickly!
I'm going to the city to study, and I'll come back once a month. If you have anything to say, you can send a letter to the Yanhuang League." Hou Xiaoge dressed neatly and said to his family at the entrance of the village.
"Do you think you must go to study in the other side of the city? It's dozens of miles away from home, and we are really worried." Wang Maimiao adjusted Hou Xiaoge's collar and said worriedly.
"I followed my friend to study at a famous teacher's home. I'm different from ordinary students. Besides, I've been running around for the past few months, and I'm fine. Don't worry!" Hou Xiaoge lied without blinking.
"You have been doing amazing things these past few months. You are only ten years old, but you are almost as tall as me.
If you just look at your height, outsiders would think you are a young man of sixteen or seventeen years old!
But you are still young after all, so be careful when you go out, and ask someone to write back to your family when you have time, otherwise we will be worried. "Hou Yangmin patted Hou Xiaoge on the shoulder and said with a smile.
"Good boy, Erda has to thank you for helping my family. If it weren't for you, Erda's family would be dead!
You are a capable kid, go with confidence! I and your uncle are watching over you at home, nothing will go wrong." Erda, the big man, was quite sentimental and hugged Hou Xiaoge.
"Okay! I understand, Erda. We are all family, so there's no need to be polite to each other." Hou Xiaoge also patted Erda on the back.
"Heiwa, when you go out, you must eat well and dress warmly. If you miss home, come back and your aunt will make delicious food for you." Hou Cuiping cried with red eyes and was reluctant to leave her nephew.
"Haha! Aunt, I'll eat the noodles you made next time I come back."
"Everyone, let's go!" Hou Xiaoge got on his eldest cousin's donkey cart and waved goodbye, watching the village entrance gradually disappear from his sight.