Guizhou Liupanshui Haiga Elementary School teacher leads students to form band
Mountain teachers take students to play rock to make children more confident
Beijing News (reporter Zhang Jingshu Zhou Yi) in Haipan Primary School, Liupanshui, Guizhou, located in a mountainous area nearly three thousand meters above sea level, was recently searched for a video of a "primary student rock band". In the video, a song "Singing a Song for You" played by the children under the leadership of the teacher playing the guitar and drumming is quite "rock fan".
Recently, a reporter from the Beijing News contacted several teachers from Haiga Primary School to understand the story behind this band.
"Let's go up the mountain"
The Jiucaiping in Liupanshui, Guizhou, was hailed by the locals as the “Roof of Guizhou”, and the Haiga Village of Dawan Town, which is almost at the top of the mountain, is the highest village in Guizhou. A few years ago, the only school in Haiga Village was almost closed because there was no teacher.
The condition of Haiga Primary School is very poor, the mountain road is high, and the teacher cannot be retained. Under the vicious circle, most students also go downhill to study in other villages and towns.
Zheng Long has been the principal of Haiga Primary School since 2002. He remembered that by 2014, there were only a dozen lower-grade students and a full-time teacher left in the school, and Zheng Long was transferred to Lazhai Primary School as the principal.
Unable to wait for help, Zheng Long decided to "proactively attack" and began to "work" for teachers in the same dormitory in Lazhai Primary School.
Gu Ya was one of the teachers who taught Chinese at Lazhai Primary School. "Teach children, wherever there is a child who needs it, isn't that what it should be?" At the same time, Xiong Weihong, who teaches mathematics, is also tempted.
The three hit it off and decided to go up the mountain to "live up" Haiga Primary School.
Later, Gu Yala went to Hu Jing, a good buddy, and the two formed a band together in high school. At that time, Hu Jing taught Chinese at Sanhe School in Dawan Town, "Children in the countryside, it is not easy to learn anything. They have to go up the mountain."
Over the next year, Zheng Long ran to several schools in the town and mobilized his teacher to go up the mountain. Zheng Long said that he had no knacks. "Very directly, I told everyone that the school on the mountain lacked teachers, and it was too difficult for the children to go down to school."
This reason convinced Yuan Lijuan, who was 22 years old. Yuan Lijuan's hometown is in Yunnan. She said that she was a child from Shancun Elementary School. When she learned that the children had to go down to school for more than two hours, she recalled that when she was a child, "It would be better if we went up the mountain and let them go less."
Children's eyes are glowing
In 2016, Zheng Long quit his job as a part-time principal at Lazhai Elementary School and took the four teachers who were successfully persuaded and the three newly recruited teachers from the town to the mountain. In addition to the original 1 person in the school, a team of 9 teachers was formed.
Going up the mountain, Zheng Long took the teachers to "work" for the villagers. "House to house telling them that there is a teacher, the children can go to school at home."
At the beginning of the new semester in 2016, the number of students in Haiga Elementary School changed from a dozen to seventy. There are a lot of courses in Chinese, mathematics, English, moral character, science, sports, art, music, and other courses offered elsewhere.
Gu Ya and Hu Jing carried their guitars from their homes. During lunch break, they would sit in an empty classroom and play the piano. Slowly the two found out that when they were playing the piano, a child looked at them from the crack of the door, and then the windows were filled with small heads.
Gu Ya found that these children who were "walking with their heads down and watching people's eyes dodge, very shy" had their eyes glowing at the moment.
They had a bold idea, and it would be better to teach everyone to play guitar than a music class. Seeing that the children who were exposed to musical instruments became excited, Zheng Long went to the school under the mountain and borrowed two drum kits, and bought a second-hand drum kit with school funds. The elementary school in Shanli became lively.
Later, the school also successively obtained some donated musical instruments, including acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, ukulele... Shanliwa's music lessons began to become "luxury".
Music brings confidence and happiness
No longer satisfied with teaching children to play simply, in March 2019, Gu Ya set up a small band in each class. In addition to singing and playing, he also taught them to stage. After training and performances were held in Haiga Elementary School, the children under Gu Ya's lens became more and more chic and confident.
More opportunities also followed, and Gu Ya took the band out of Haiga Village to participate in local music festivals and performances.
Yuan Lijuan did not understand music, but she could feel that the children became confident and sunny.
On June 18th, the video of the rock band of Haiga Primary School covering the songs of Tongyang Band was circulated on Weibo. After the official account of Tongyang Band forwarded, they said, "I hope I can sing a song for you."
Named and praised by the favorite band, Gu Ya was a little nervous. After telling the news to the children, he was asked what was so nervous. "The children are very happy and look forward to watching their performances. I worry too much."
This makes Gu Ya feel very happy, "Isn't that our original intention? Music really makes children confident and happy."
In the summer of 2019, Haiga Elementary School, which has been "recovering" for three years, finally ushered in the first batch of sixth grade graduates in more than 20 years since its establishment. In the graduate commemorative short video, 13 children expressed their wishes towards the camera, and several people hope to be a teacher in the future.
In the same year, Zheng Long was commended by the Ministry of Education as "National Outstanding Educator". Facing the honor, he just said, "Because I am their teacher."
■ Dialogue
Band teacher Gu Ya: Use music to break the loneliness of Dashan
"At the beginning of doing this, I felt that music can make people happy." On June 19th, band teacher Gu Ya said in an exclusive interview with the Beijing News reporter, "The students and teachers in the mountains are already lonely. I think music can make We are more motivated to work and study, hoping to make everyone happy through music."
Talking about teaching
Mainly to cultivate interest
Beijing News: What subjects do you teach at Haiga Primary School, why do you want to teach children to learn musical instruments?
Gu Ya: I came to Haiga Primary School in 2016 and have been teaching Chinese.
The thought of teaching them to learn music is because when they first came, they found that the children were afraid of life, did not like to talk, and rarely communicated with the teacher, feeling that the atmosphere was not so good. Then it was also an opportunity. Once, I was playing piano in the school office and found that many children were watching through the cracks in the door. I wanted to try it and take them to sing.
Later, when there was a music class, I took the instruments to the class accompaniment and taught them to sing. I feel they are very excited. Some children took the initiative to move the strings with their fingers. Later I tried to teach them to play some chords and melody.
Beijing News: What content do you mainly teach children? What fun things happened with the children?
Gu Ya: In addition to instrumental music, it also teaches some of the simplest knowledge of music theory. I won't say too much, but simply involve some knowledge of music theory in the process of playing the piano. Mainly to cultivate their interest and make them feel fun.
The overall performance of the children is fun. At the beginning, they could simply pop the chords into rhythm. Later I said that if you want to perform to the students, you still need stage performance. The children began to try to shake the stage movements of their bodies. At first they were shy, they looked at each other and laughed.
Talk popular
Seeing Weibo's hot search "covered"
Beijing News: How did you think of forming a band for the children?
Gu Ya: Because some students do not have confidence in learning, they always feel that basic chords are not enough. They want to start a small band and stimulate other students to study hard and join the band.
At the beginning, try to arrange the band members in the same class, one band per band, without too formal selection, it is to choose students who have a strong sense of music and good abilities. Later, because of limited energy, he focused on training students in the fifth and sixth grades.
In fact, many of them may not continue to study music after graduation, just hope that they will have a good memory when they grow up.
Beijing News: When did you find that your video got attention, including being transferred by the official band of your favorite band, what thought?
Gu Ya: I saw Weibo hot search a few days ago, and I was blinded. Then I admired the band manager to contact me, I still want to know what is going on. After receiving attention, there are actually many worries, and some people may not understand it, which may cause controversy. As a result, after I talked to the students, they were so happy and they laughed at how worried I was.
Talk about the future
I hope more people will actively participate
Beijing News: You mentioned in the previous interview that you want to use these videos to break the stereotypes of children in the mountains. What role do you think music can play?
Gu Ya: At first, I thought that music can make people happy, and it is a tool to make everyone happy. Because the students and teachers in the mountain area are already lonely, I think music can make us more motivated to work and study, and hope to make everyone happy through music.
Everyone thinks this is a "heat". If it can be seen by more teachers in the mountains, I hope to encourage everyone, don't feel lonely, but still find a pleasant mood from many details, to be happy Mood to face learning or work.
Beijing News: What other teaching plans are there in this regard?
Gu Ya: I believe this matter is "sustainable development". Even if I am not in this school one day, I hope more people will actively participate and pass on this matter.