Breaking Free from​ the “Small Town Test-Taker” Label

Original non-fiction writing‌ fair of‍ young people ​including Xu Yangjie

Author: Xu Yangjie and Cai Yueting

According to Baidu ⁤Encyclopedia, “small town test-takers refer to‍ poor students⁣ who come from rural ​areas or small towns, study hard, are good at taking⁢ exams, and enter top universities through the college entrance examination, but lack certain vision and social resources.”

Crush Her Pride

She ⁤comes from⁤ a small‌ town in the south. Before going to college, she never thought of⁤ herself as a “small town test-taker.” She learned English,‌ Chinese dance, and painting at the age of three, Pinyin at the age of four, hosting at the age of ‌five, badminton ⁣at the age of eight, and Hulusi​ at the age of ten. She was proud that she was not bound by the small town and⁣ was not only good at studying but could even be considered a “jack of all trades” under⁤ the “quality education” system.

However, ‌when she entered university,‍ she integrated well with her classmates and did ⁢not feel much ⁢difference with her roommates from Beijing and Zhejiang. But soon, reality made her truly and deeply‍ feel the huge gap between “big cities and small ⁣cities.”

The Reality Check

It started in English class. She was exposed to English at an early age⁣ and was easily ahead of her peers in ‌English since she was‍ young. However, when she stepped into the English classroom with full confidence, she was completely shocked by the fluency and authenticity of her classmates’ speeches.

Just one week into school, she was recruited to be the host of the Mid-Autumn Festival⁢ Gala. Although she​ had only formally‌ learned⁢ “little host” ⁣in kindergarten, she had hosted various parties and ‌activities in high ⁣school with her experience of storytelling and reciting on various stages since she was a child.⁣ However, during the⁢ interview, she⁤ was shocked by the resumes and abilities of her classmates from big cities.

The Soup with Invisible Soup Base

She began to ‌think back ⁣on the⁣ past 18 years‍ of her life. In her small ‌town, it’s ‍not that no one realizes the harm of exam-oriented education, and​ it’s not that no one calls for quality education. However, these “quality⁢ classes” seem to be more and more exam-oriented.

She tried to recall why she chose to learn the⁤ Hulusi and vaguely remembered‍ her mother saying, “It’s better to learn an instrument. I heard that the Hulusi is also ‍easy to learn.” But ‌since then, she has never picked up the Hulusi again,⁣ and she doesn’t‌ even know where she was thrown, because she is not interested in music at all, let alone classical music.

Give ‌Him an Ice Cream

She felt a little discouraged and frustrated.⁤ Was it true that‌ small ⁤town kids‍ would ⁤never be able to escape the fate of ⁢being “small town ‌test-takers”?

But she was a little indignant. She thought about her learning experience from childhood to adulthood. She knew from⁢ childhood that she was not a “smart person.” However, her​ mother had extremely high requirements for her, which also caused her to have high requirements for herself.

She was relieved and sad to find⁤ that the label of “small town” had been misplaced. ​People ​should not talk about “small town⁣ test takers” but ⁣”small town education”; they should not use the five words of “light” to devalue the efforts and ‌contributions of small town children, but should‌ seriously examine the imbalance of educational resources.

A Call for Change

She thought about school. If social resources cannot be well balanced in the short term, or even completely balanced,‍ then as the last ​step ⁢before students ⁢enter ⁣society, can higher education make efforts to bridge the gap and become more and more popular?

She remembered that she had just⁤ entered the school and soon had her first paper, but she had ⁢never touched a paper before and had no idea where to start. She thought the⁣ teacher would definitely teach her, after all, they were all freshmen, but the ‍teacher⁣ only sent cold format requirements.

Higher education is indeed higher education, but it represents‍ a transformation of‍ learning orientation⁤ from⁢ general basics to specialized specialties. Since it serves students from all regions and ⁢all backgrounds, can it​ be more elitist, giving children ‍from small towns a little buffer and a chance to bridge the gap in basic‌ knowledge?

Can higher education also​ give children from small towns a ‌chance to “know ice cream”? When ​she thought of this, she felt a little expectant ‌and a little helpless, but she took off the hat of “small town test-taker” for herself, and⁣ she also hoped that one day, all small town children could take off this hat, perhaps just by “giving him an ice cream.”