Pain of Education in the Time of Change - A Self-Narrative of Professional Development of Teachers at Shanghai North Suburban School

Author: Zheng Jie
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: I graduated from the Chinese Department of Shanghai Normal University in 1990. At that time, in the early 1990s, teachers' were very poor, and most of my classmates did not become teachers after graduation. I liked a stable and leisurely life. Thinking that I didn’t have much else to offer, as a scholar, I only had a mouth and a pen. I didn’t have big ambitions from a young age, and teaching was within my capabilities. I estimated it wouldn’t be too exhausting, so I didn’t try to get into high-paying units through connections. I remember my monthly wage was 170 yuan, while my classmates who didn’t become teachers had at least a thousand yuan. That’s why some young people later became teachers and then quit. In the education system, there weren’t many male teachers my age like me. Now, looking back, it was the right decision to stay because there were few competitors. The leadership treated me like a treasure and gave me many opportunities. Every time I participated in teaching competitions at the city or district level, I won awards. Every time I was evaluated for professional titles, I could break through the "green channel" for young teachers. So, to this day, I have no regrets about becoming a teacher. The money was a bit low, but that wasn’t a big problem. The success rate was high, and the work wasn’t too exhausting. There’s less freedom with more money, and more money with less freedom—that’s fair.
After graduation, I was assigned to Xinhu High School in Hongkou District as a teacher. At that time, you couldn’t freely choose schools; the only way was to go through connections. I never liked going through backdoors, giving gifts, or flattering people. I also didn’t like others doing that to me—it was too vulgar. You had to rely on yourself and your abilities for a long-term career.
Xinhu High School was a comprehensive school. When I arrived, there were only nine senior high classes, but later they started recruiting junior high students. I started teaching senior high, and the next year I became a class monitor. The third year, I was appointed as the full-time Party Secretary of the Youth League, and six months later, I became the deputy director of the teaching department, responsible for moral education. It was very tough. The school had a poor atmosphere, and the class monitors were under my leadership, but my age and qualifications were inferior to theirs, so they didn’t respect me. Thinking about it, it was strange for a "young whippersnapper" to command experienced class monitors. So, the class meetings I called were often discussions, and everyone had different opinions about my decisions.
I remember once at a summary meeting, an elderly teacher openly criticized me, saying I was wrong in this and not right in that, and argued with me. After that, he refused to come to meetings anymore. That situation made me realize the importance of systems. To improve the school’s atmosphere, our school was the first in Shanghai to implement "rule of law in education," managing teachers and students through unified rules and regulations. Gradually, the school’s atmosphere improved, class management became more standardized, and the college entrance exam pass rate rose year by year.
I underwent great training at Xinhu High School. My former principal and mentor, Teacher Wu Xianliang, highly valued me, and his influence on me was decisive. Teacher Wu graduated from Shanghai High School and stayed to become the Party Secretary of the Youth League. He didn’t have a high, but his talent surpassed most principals. He was very opinionated and often "defied superiors," the kind who didn’t follow orders, so his luck in the official world was poor. As I said, his talent was recognized, but the system drowned such people out. Character determines fate, after all. I deeply respected him. He was one of the few mentors I held in extra respect in the education field, and I was indeed similar to him in many ways. Because of that resemblance, I felt proud.
Teacher Wu was very tolerant, had a systematic mindset and a big-picture perspective, and never used his position to pressure others. He often saw things far and clearly. For a while, I walked home with him almost every day. Over the ten years at Xinhu High School, I made great progress. On one hand, I read a lot, and on the other, I honed myself in a tough environment. Even if I had no experience in those ten years, even the lessons were enough to teach me something. Because I never complained, I took all the hardships as training, and I truly felt my progress was real.
My personal growth experience also influenced my approach to educating and nurturing cadres. I believe cadres should be sent to tough positions for training, and then their mistakes should be forgiven, giving them a more natural competitive environment.