Ghost schools in rural China(2)

Even rural schools with good facilities and highly qualified teachers encounter the same problem.

"Everything is ready except we are short of students," said Chen Wenmou, principal of Xiyuan Primary & Middle School in Xianyou County in Fujian Province. The school has 100 students, less than ten per class.

NO ONE CAN BE LEFT BEHIND

In the early 2000s, some rural schools were urged to close or merge in order to better use resources and to improve study conditions. Most rural students were sent to overcrowded schools in towns or cities, or simply dropped out as the journey to school became longer and more expensive.

An average of 63 rural primary schools and three junior high schools disappeared each day between 2000 and 2010, according to a report issued by 21st Century Education Research Institute.

In 2011, the dropout rate of rural pupils was 8.8 in 1,000, almost the same level as in 1997.

Although fewer students attend schools in villages or townships, these schools are still important, so the biggest concern is who will succeed teachers like Wang Ruqiang.

For rural schools that have poor facilities, a special fund is needed to attract teachers, Han Qinglin, director of rural education branch with the Chinese Society of Education, said.

Wang Ruqiang worries he may be among the last group of guardians for those remotely located and small schools.

"Although there is only one student left, I will help him integrate into society like my other students. No one can be left behind," Wang wrote in his diary.