Love in a silent world
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E-mail China.org.cn, July 28, 2016
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Zhou Juan practices sign language in front of a mirror. |
"As a teacher, I can only be satisfied with myself when I fulfill my duties conscientiously," said Zhou Juan, a teacher from a special education school in Liangping County, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.
Zhou started her career as a teacher in 1994. Her first job was teaching left-behind children at a rural primary school in Liangping County. In her neighborhood, almost all middle-aged adults went to work in big cities, so many students in the school were looked after by other family members and lacked parental love. Besides teaching them, Zhou also showed great care for her students' life.
In Zhou's class, some students had to walk a long way to school. She discovered that on sunny days, the kids were always wet with sweat, and that when it rained their trousers would be covered with mud. To make them comfortable at school, Zhou put some spare clothes and shoes in the classroom so that they could change into clean clothes after reaching the school.
Moreover, Zhou discovered that the left-behind children usually got upset on their birthdays, because on such a joyful occasion they would miss their parents more than any other time. To cheer the children up, Zhou tried all means possible to hold celebrations for them. She also asked the kids to call their parents and thank them for working hard so far away from home. Under heavy work pressure, some of the parents had already forgotten the birthday of their children, and the phone calls reminded them of the long-lost warmth of family.
In 2001, a student was injured accidentally at home and couldn't walk. The child didn't want to lag behind in his studies, but his grandparents were too old to take him to school every day. When Zhou heard the story, she invited the student to live with her. For almost a month, she carried the child on her back to and from school, changed the dressing for his wound, washed his clothes and cooked delicious foods for him.
Unfortunately, in 2004, a tragedy struck Zhou. In mid-May, she suddenly couldn't hear clearly because of a buzzing sound in her ear, but due to the approaching final examination she didn't go to hospital immediately. When she finally got the time to see a doctor, she was told that she had missed the best time for treatment and that her deafness was irreversible.
The illness struck a heavy blow to Zhou, as it could have ended her career as a teacher. She cried a lot after the diagnosis, but she finally decided to pull herself together and face her fate head on.
After her illness, the school offered to move her to an administrative post, but she refused. She bought an expensive hearing aid and asked the headmaster to allow her to continue teaching. "I'm physically handicapped, but it doesn't matter, because what's really awful is the feeling of being trapped," she said.
In the autumn term of 2008, Zhou was transferred to the county's special education school. It was a boarding school with more than 90 students living on campus. Zhou had to teach the children basic living skills like washing dishes and making beds. Some of the kids were mentally challenged and incontinent. Whatever mess they made, Zhou would make them clean immediately. When Zhou was on night shift, she usually grasped her cell phone tightly in hand, so as not to miss her alarm. Every two hours, she would take a tour through the dormitories, tucking children in and helping those who tended to wet beds go to the toilet.
Compared with other children, it's very difficult to teach deaf children and mentally challenged children. Many people told Zhou not to take the job too seriously, but she didn't listen. "As a teacher of special education, I must be responsible for the children. All my efforts are worthwhile if they can grow up self-dependent."
Of all her duties, teaching phonics to children with hearing impairment was the most difficult. Zhou had to teach 20 students in a class individually and let them touch her throat to feel the sound vibrations. Yet, due to their illness, the students couldn't understand her well and would quickly forget what they had learnt. Zhou could do nothing but start from the beginning. The repetition at work was frustrating, but Zhou persevered. "Children are our future. Teaching children with special needs will help them have a brighter future," she said.
In recent years, with the spreading of her story, Zhou has become famous. On July 1, she was honored by Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is also the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, during the celebration of the Party's 95th anniversary in Beijing.
But the awards mean little compared to the happiness she feels seeing her students grow up independently. Although her deafness is worsening, her students' success has motivated her to stick to her post.
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