Luo Pengcheng discovered the worrying signs in his almost 10-year-old son in January 2023.

　　"Rebellious and restless, the teacher said (the child) often had small conflicts with his classmates and was not happy getting along in the class... Sometimes (he) did not listen well to what the child's mother said."

　　In the past six months, Luo Pengcheng taught at Ganzi Luding Middle School and returned to Chengdu once a month on average; the child's mother taught in a private middle school in Chengdu, leaving early and returning late every day. Most of the time, the child was taken care of by the elderly.

　　After returning from this winter vacation, Luo Pengcheng suddenly realized that after his absence for half a year, the little boy in his memory was already a teenager who had entered a critical period of growth.

　　This middle school mathematics teacher who is best at solving problems encountered a thorny problem - if he continued to stay in Luding, he would miss more than two years of his son's extremely critical growth; if the volunteer teaching ended early, but "two classes, a hundred As a student, the college entrance examination is just around the corner, what should the students do?"

　　After thinking about it, Luo Pengcheng found his own idea of ​​"solving the problem": taking his son to teach.

　　1

　　I grew up in a rural area and know how important a good teacher is

　　Whether it was growing up as a child or later studying and finding a job, Luo Pengcheng always felt that he was lucky.

　　After graduating from junior high school, he was admitted to the county high school from the town; after graduating from high school, he was admitted to his dream normal university; after graduating from college, he successfully joined Chengdu Shishi Middle School and became a mathematics teacher.

　　Compared with many of Luo Pengcheng's college classmates, he can be said to have "reached his peak right after his debut": "I'm already working in one of the best middle schools in Sichuan, so there's nothing to worry about. I can just teach with peace of mind."

　　But in 2022, when he was 35, a lecture on rural revitalization and education changed Luo Pengcheng's career trajectory. At the seminar, he recalled his childhood school experience. "I was lucky enough to leave the countryside through studying. Especially after I joined Shishi Middle School, I realized more deeply how important a good school and a good teacher are." He even felt sorry for his classmates in his hometown. “If there were such schools and teachers at that time, maybe the fate of many people could be changed.” But now, “As long as I sign up and get approved, I will be the person who may change the fate of more children. I feel It’s something worth doing.”

　　But at the same time, his family was also changed.

　　My wife is a middle school teacher and head teacher. “Almost every day she goes out at six or seven in the morning and comes home at eight or nine in the evening.” If Luo Pengcheng went to Luding to support his two children, one aged 9 and the other 5, the children would have to be taken care of by the elderly.

　　The family discussed it several times but could not reach an agreement. But he couldn't resist Luo Pengcheng's insistence, and his decision to teach was finally approved by his family.

　　2

　　Participated in the growth of a group of children, but missed the growth of my son

　　In August 2022, Luo Pengcheng and the teachers who formed a group to support teaching came to Luding for the first time.

　　He took over two classes, one was a freshman in high school and the other was a senior in high school. After a quick survey, Luo Pengcheng discovered that students here generally have a weak foundation in mathematics. This also means that he has accumulated more than ten years of teaching experience in top prestigious schools, many of which are not applicable to students here. In some aspects, he "must overthrow his former self and find a new set of methods."

　　To make up for the basics, time is the most basic investment. Teaching takes up almost six and a half of his seven days a week - from Monday to Friday, he finishes every day after 10 p.m. The whole day of Saturday and half of Sunday afternoon are taken up by extended service classes, and the remaining half day sometimes involves home visits.

　　The planned return to Chengdu once a week had to be changed to once a month. This was still under the premise of finding another teacher to change classes.

　　Even so, after returning to Chengdu, he spent very little time with his two children - after class ended at 6 pm on Saturday, he immediately set off from Luding and drove for 3 to 4 hours. It was almost 10 pm when he returned home to Chengdu. . On Sunday morning, he met the children briefly, and after lunch he had to rush to Luding - he had to appear in the classroom on time before the evening self-study for his senior year at 6:30 p.m.

　　Naturally, the phone became the most common way for him to communicate with his two children. But more than half a year later, Luo Pengcheng clearly felt that his son talked to him less and less on the phone. "He answered every question and rarely took the initiative to share his study and life. Sometimes his tone was even a little impatient."

　　But Luo Pengcheng didn't take it too seriously, "It's normal for a boy to not talk much to his father."

　　In January 2023, after returning to Chengdu during the winter vacation, some disturbing news came from family members and teachers.

　　"There are two brothers and a sister. The younger sister is young and well-behaved. But the elder brother is almost 10 years old and has already shown signs of rebellion. He is mainly active and irritable. He often has small conflicts with his classmates and the relationship between them is not harmonious. The elderly in the family He didn't quite listen to what he said, he was a bit like a 'little bully'." When he first heard this, he was of course angry, but when his son stood in front of him without saying a word, Luo Pengcheng suddenly realized: Half a year later, my son has grown a lot taller. In my mind, the little boy is already a young boy who is about to enter puberty.

　　No words of blame could be uttered, only guilt was left. "In the past six months, I have accompanied the growth of another group of children, but missed the growth of my own son. Am I not the father who deserves the most blame?"

　　3

　　My son moved from Chengdu to the county town and asked, "Are you stupid about teaching?"

　　The top priority is obviously to spend more time with and guide his son. But where does time come from? Going home every week? Not realistic. Aren't you going to teach? Not possible either.

　　After tossing and turning for several nights, Luo Pengcheng suddenly came up with an idea: Since he can't go back to Chengdu often, can he let his son go to Luding?

　　"From a well-known private primary school in Chengdu to a county primary school in a remote mountainous area," Luo Pengcheng knew how difficult it was for his family.

　　Sure enough, my wife was the first to object strongly. "The education gap between the two sides is so big. What should I do if I can't keep up when I return to Chengdu? You are so busy at work, how can you take good care of your children?"

　　Luo Pengcheng considered every question his wife had. But what is more important at the moment is that the child is in a critical period of character formation. Should we still allow our son to be "semi-free" like this?

　　But this still couldn't convince my family - "Everyone else transfers from the county town to Chengdu. If you want to transfer from Chengdu to the county town, you are stupid to teach."

　　Unable to reach a consensus, Luo Pengcheng could only change his mind: "Why don't you listen to your son's opinion? After all, he is the person involved, and his opinion is also very important."

　　Unexpectedly, my son not only agreed readily, but also had a cheerful attitude: "As long as I can be with my father, I can go to school anywhere."

　　This free and easy reason pierced into Luo Pengcheng's heart like a thorn: "I thought he had stopped kissing me..."

　　4

　　More than scores, I want my son to understand what responsibility is

　　In February 2023, after the Spring Festival, Luo Pengcheng set off for Luding again. This time, there was an extra son in the car.

　　The father and son live together in the teachers' apartment, and the 30-square-meter single room feels like home because of their son's arrival. What surprised Luo Pengcheng even more was that judging from his son's performance, many previous worries were somewhat unnecessary.

　　For example, the family is most worried about adapting to the new environment. Not long after his son arrived in Luding, he told his father that there was no need to send him off. He had already figured out the bus route and could take the bus to and from school by himself.

　　Another example is that when Luo Pengcheng had too many classes, he could hardly take care of his son. But when he returned to the office after studying in the evening, he found that his son was either quietly doing homework or reading a book. "Asked him if he had eaten dinner, he said that it had been settled in the school cafeteria."

　　As for learning, judging from my son’s feedback, the teachers in Luding are very strict about learning, especially major subjects such as Chinese and mathematics. "This is also good, as it can give children a stronger foundation."

　　Weekends are no longer spent traveling between Chengdu and Luding. The father and son will buy groceries and cook together, and after dinner, each will hold a book and read. The son even finished reading the books he brought with him very quickly. As soon as he returned to Chengdu, he asked his father to take him to a bookstore to buy books.

　　One year has passed, and Luo Pengcheng has been gratified and blessed more than once by his son's changes and growth.

　　"Although the educational software and hardware here are not as good as those in Chengdu, if my son and I have been separated in the past three years and lacked companionship and communication, no matter how well I have developed and gained in the past three years, if my son has not To grow up better, this will definitely be my biggest regret as a parent."

　　Luo Pengcheng also has preliminary plans for his son's upcoming education. "When my son is in sixth grade, I will make some connections for him to transition from elementary school to junior high school. When my support teaching is over, it will be easier for him to adapt when he returns to Chengdu to attend junior high school."

　　In fact, through many changes in his son over the past year, Luo Pengcheng no longer worries about his son's gains and losses in scores. He was going to find an opportunity to have a good chat with his son about his volunteer education. He wanted to tell his son that he left Chengdu, him and his sister, not because of selfishness, but because there were more brothers and sisters who needed him. "Taking it a step further, I think people still need some sense of responsibility and mission in their lives. If children can understand this through living with me in Luding for the past few years, it will obviously be far better than getting excellent test scores. more meaningful."

　　Chengdu Commercial Daily-Red Star News reporter Yin Keran