Years of investment sees high-quality schools constructed, more professional training programs

Education has long been a top priority for Licang district in Qingdao, Shandong province, with the district government taking various measures over the years to improve its quality.

That includes renovating school buildings, collaborating with key schools outside Qingdao and offering student-centered tutoring.

"Education that makes students' lives colorful is the cornerstone of our work. We hold high-quality courses at our core, give love to every school and work hard to satisfy people's demands," said Wang Xiaoguang, Party secretary and director of the Licang education and sports bureau.

The Qingdao Licang District Experimental Junior High School is one of the model establishments that demonstrates the district's efforts in promoting modern education. CHINA DAILY

"We are striving to elevate education and sports in Licang to a new level in the hope of building Licang into an innovative and green downtown district fit for work, living, health and mood."

Currently, Chongqing Middle Road School located in Licang district is undergoing a large-scale renovation.

To speed up the construction, staff members of the construction company and government officials held regular meetings online during the pandemic.

Green applications such as fresh-air systems, antibacterial tiles, anti-smog windows and artificial stones have been used in the building, said Zhang Bo, project manager.

According to the district government, Qingdao Dongchuan Road Primary School has been expanded and now boasts generous space both for teaching and other activities. Qingdao Guangshui Road Primary School has built seven new functional areas that enable students to make the most of their lives.

In a building of the Licang Experimental Primary School, there is an internet of things studio.

The facility is designed to help students find everything from sensors, oscilloscopes, laser cutting machines, 3D printers to an electrician's toolbox. Since 2017, Licang district has built 19 new public schools and kindergartens and offered 13,000 new places for students.

It is now accelerating the construction of 35 schools and kindergartens with an investment of 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion).

These new schools are expected to add about 880,000-square-meters of space and offer 27,000 new places. In addition, noting that the abilities of headmasters and teachers are key to a good school, the district government is promoting strong leadership skills among them.

Every headmaster should audit at least 40 lessons every semester, a local official said.

Students from Qingdao Binchuan Road Primary School play on a football pitch. CHINA DAILY

Teachers of the district's 45 primary and middle schools are given chances to visit renowned schools nationwide.

"Since April 2018, teachers from our school have made six trips to Xiejiawan Primary School in Chongqing. Building on its impressive debate courses, we have developed our own courses on artificial intelligence and sewing," said Liu Yanlin, principal of Qingdao Zaoshan Primary School.

The district also offers a three-year training program for new teachers. Among them the core group can study at East China Normal University.

This year, 869 students who applied for the entrance examination for high school were admitted to Licang's high schools, a record high.

Behind that is local schools' constant online tutoring throughout the COVID-19 outbreak.

A class of students from the Qingdao Siliu Middle Road No 3 Primary School practice skipping rope. CHINA DAILY

In order to promote students' initiative learning in classroom teaching, the Licang Experimental Primary School began to optimize its teaching model as early as 2015.

"Considering that our students are from families where the ratio of parents with a high-school degree is less than 10 percent, parents may find hard to help their children study," Li Yahui, the high school's principal, said.

"The students' personal development is the core. We want them to learn things on their own."

According to Li, starting from the spring of 2019, each discipline has been led by an experienced team leader.

By the end of every semester, each discipline is required to come up with three to five teaching models.

For example, the Chinese department has established five classroom teaching models.

They are narrative reading, expository reading, dissertation reading, classical Chinese reading and writing.

Because of these carefully designed courses, students of the Licang Experimental Primary School have achieved great results in the past four years and parents' satisfaction with the school have increased year by year, Li added.

The district also pays close attention to student safety on campus. The primary and middle schools and kindergartens in the district are equipped with an emergency alert system and more than 200 of them have conducted safety drills.

yinruowei@chinadaily.com.cn