Preschool Education Centers Help Rural Western Kids

In Yanjiacun Village in Ledu County in Qinghai Province, 3-year-old Yan Qifang is sent to a local preschool education center by her mother every morning.

Her mother Yan Shunyu says the little girl was reluctant to go to the school in the beginning.

"When she was sent to the center at the beginning, she held my legs tightly shouting: "Mom, please don't go, don't leave me alone. So I had to be with her at the center for about three to four days."

But Yan Shunyu says soon after her daughter started learning at the center, she got used to it and fell in love with the school. Yan adds the little girl has learned a lot after several months here.

There is no kindergarten in Yanjiacun Village or the nearby two villages. Only the county, which is located 25 kilometers away, has a large kindergarten.

Based on the plan by China Development Research Foundation, when there are 10 kindergarten-age children without access to preschool education, an early childhood education center should be established.

And in the nearby three villages including Yanjiacun Village, there are a total of 15 kindergarten-age children, so the education center is set up in the middle of the three villages at an abandoned local primary school.

Li Caixiong is a local volunteer teacher at the center. She says when the children were there in the beginning, few could understand or speak Mandarin, only the local dialect.

"When I was here for the first time teaching these children singing, I spent about a week teaching them (to sing in Mandarin.")

Li says after two years at the center, the children have become fluent in Mandarin and are more willing to actively communicate.

The courses in the center are designed to develop the children's language skills and intelligence, including Chinese language, music, painting and game classes.

Most children say they like the music class the most. Yan Yumei, 4, is considered the best singer in class, although she could not sing any song when she entered the center one year ago.

Many parents say they noticed big changes since their child entered the center.

"Before my child started learning here, she knew nothing and talked about nothing. But here, she has learned singing and dancing."

The preschool education centers are considered a new method for early childhood education in rural areas. But whether it can be established in all rural areas remains a question.