A teacher's moving story

"I wanted to have more time with my students during the day and be able to better concentrate my mind, prepare for class and study at night," Cheng says.

She moved into a classroom that had been converted into a dorm and, over the following four years, excelled at her job.

Yet, in 2015, Cheng decided to give up life at the relatively well-equipped school when she found out that Beitang Primary School, located far away from her home, was on the verge of closing due to a shortage of teaching staff.

Although she prepared herself, she was still taken aback by the reality.

"There was really nothing in place, just a building in front of me. The playground was overgrown with weeds, and there was no kitchen, janitor's room or dormitory," she recalls.

Another challenge arose when she took the registration form and waited for a whole day in the classroom, but not a single parent or child showed up.

She wasted no time. She gathered up her things and, under the guidance of local village authorities, spent the following day visiting the homes of all the school-age children in the area. After several inquiries, she learned that because of the poor educational conditions, local parents had sent their children to schools further away.

Cheng made a solid effort to persuade 17 students to return, while promoting the school on her social media account. She called upon her college classmates to offer a helping hand, and hired people to drill wells for clean water and install wiring for electricity.

It didn't take long before three teaching volunteers arrived in the mountain township to join Cheng's cause.

"Between them and my family, I got the courage and support to deal with the problems I was facing," Cheng says, adding that, during the rough start to her tenure at the school, it was her parents who helped with the cleaning that facilitated its reopening, while her husband helped with equipment installation and the teaching staff didn't take any salary. "They supported me unconditionally, so even though it was difficult, I had to persist and make it as good as possible," Cheng says.