The principal, seeing her surprise, explained.
“Originally, there was a teacher for the sixth grade, but she became pregnant and had to give birth. She didn’t come back after the summer break.”
“For the first few days of school, Teacher Tang has been working hard to teach the sixth grade. But as you know, our salaries are just this much, and she’s here as a volunteer teacher from far away. If she continues to work this hard, I’m afraid we won’t be able to keep her.”
“The sixth-grade students are older, with many thoughts and rebellious tendencies, so you should just teach one class.”
“But you’ll need to put in just as much effort as if you were teaching two. I understand all of this, and I’ll have to trouble you more in the future.”
Since other teachers could handle two classes, what reason did she have to be so particular?
Tián Tián readily agreed.
“I’ll go and hand over the teaching materials to Teacher Tang later.”
The three of them went to the dormitory.
The lower bunks were already occupied, so Tián Tián had to sleep on the upper bunk.
This was the first time in her life she had seen this kind of bed, and it was made of iron.
The floor was a bit uneven, and the bed creaked when it moved.
To be honest, lying on it to sleep made her feel a bit uneasy.
Chén Dōngyáng, having anticipated this for her on his first visit, had already prepared some small pieces of scrap iron from his pocket.
He asked Tián Tián which one she wanted to sleep in. Tián Tián chose the one by the window. Chén Dōngyáng went to shake it left and right, and then wedged the pieces under the bed frame.
“There, it doesn’t wobble anymore. Sleeping on the upper bunk is a little inconvenient, but you’ll get used to it after a few days. Just make do for now.”
Actually, he wanted to say: If you really can’t get used to it, you can come to my place, and I’ll decorate a beautiful room for you.
But with the principal present, he was afraid Tián Tián would be shy, so he held back.
Tián Tián nodded. Chén Dōngyáng went to unpack her luggage for her, taking on the responsibility of cleaning the bed and making it.
“This isn’t good enough. It’s too thin. I’m afraid it’ll be uncomfortable to sleep on at night. Also, there’s no air conditioning in the dorm, and it’ll be too hot without a cooling mat. After you go to class, I’ll buy you a thicker quilt and a cooling mat to put on top.”
He had also been a pampered young master since childhood. It was only after the incident that he experienced a few days of hardship with Zēng Huì, but he didn’t expect to be so adept at this.
Tián Tián originally didn’t want to trouble him further, but time was running out, and she had to go to class. So, she took out 300 yuan in cash for him.
“This is all the cash I have. Buy things within this budget. You don’t need to get the best quality.”
Were they both so polite that they needed to pay each other for buying things?
Chén Dōngyáng didn’t want to accept it, but the principal was watching them expectantly, so he had no choice but to take it.
“Alright, then give me the change as a delivery fee.”
Tián Tián secretly rolled her eyes at him.
The three of them went out. The principal then led Tián Tián towards the office, and Chén Dōngyáng really should have left.
“I’ll leave first then. You go to your class, and I’ll come directly to make the bed for you later.”
“Okay,” Tián Tián, already at the office door, couldn’t help but look back.
“I’ve got everything ready. You should head back to Nancheng too. Don’t delay your work.”
Chén Dōngyáng didn’t like hearing that. He ignored her, waved his hand, and drove off, skillfully turning the car around.
Several teachers had already finished their meals and returned to the office. Each had their own desk. The principal directed Tián Tián to the empty one.
Tián Tián quickly handed over the teaching content to Teacher Tang. As the eight o’clock bell rang precisely, she took her textbooks and went to the classroom.
The villages surrounding Qingshui Town were quite backward and remote.
Originally, each village had a primary school. As young people went out to work, the population loss was too severe. Gradually, each village had only three to five students, or one or two. The schools could no longer operate.
Later, when the Project Hope came to the countryside, the town took the initiative to establish this school, gathering students from all the villages within a ten-mile radius and providing boarding.
The more than thirty students in the classroom now represented the hope of the entire sixth grade in Qingshui Town.
Tián Tián’s younger brother, Zhàn Jǐngchén, was already one meter seventy-five when he was in the sixth grade.
After graduating from junior high school, he had grown to one meter eighty-six.
It is said online that with the continuous improvement of living standards and scientific levels, the height of young people is also increasing year by year.
However, in this remote place, the sixth-grade students were all little sprouts.
As Tián Tián walked in, she saw them all either lying down or sitting, staring at her with their big, watery eyes. They were so small that she even doubted if she had entered the wrong place.
“Is this the sixth grade?”
Out of the 34 students, 28 were boys. After staring at her pretty face for a few seconds, they burst into laughter.
A slightly taller boy in the back row, who looked a bit mischievous, said in the rustic accent of Qingshui Town.
“What else could this be if not the sixth grade? Teacher, you can’t read, can you?”
The class erupted in another round of laughter.
Perhaps it was their typical northern complexion and accent that evoked a sense of affection, or perhaps their appearance was too childish, and their laughter lacked malice. Tián Tián didn’t take their laughter seriously and smiled along.
“It’s my first day teaching, and I was too excited, worried I’d gone to the wrong place. It’s good that I’m in the right place. Shall we start the lesson?”
“My name is Jiāng Jǐng Tián.”
She picked up a piece of chalk and, imitating her former teachers, wrote her name neatly on the blackboard.
The first class went relatively smoothly. There was none of the unique mischievousness of city children.
Those children who were willing to listen sat up straight and listened attentively.
Those who were unwilling to listen would simply rest their heads on their desks, pick at their desks, pick at their fingers, or stare out the window distractedly.
No one made sarcastic remarks to mock the teacher, nor did anyone deliberately do anything out of line to attract the teacher’s attention.
However, the number of students willing to listen was very small; the majority were daydreaming.
Tián Tián felt a bit frustrated, fearing that the students were not interested in her teaching methods. She finally allocated ten minutes for the students to give their feedback.
“This is my first time as a teacher, and I know I have many shortcomings. Are you willing to help me improve?”
“What kind of teaching methods do you expect from a teacher? I will try my best to meet your requirements. Let’s cooperate well and work hard together, okay?”
The students were not proactive in speaking, only staring at her with their big eyes.
Tián Tián had to call on them by name.
On the dusty lectern, a handwritten roster was pasted.
She randomly picked a few names, but everyone was very shy. They would stand up, purse their lips and smile, and refuse to say a word more.
In the past, to help their children study better and even better, many parents had suggested that schools cut music and art classes.
They felt, why waste so much time on entertainment? Since they wouldn’t learn music or art in the future, students’ sole duty was to study hard.
In fact, Tián Tián herself hadn’t fully understood why the school arranged these subjects when she was a student.
She couldn’t master them, and most of them were snatched by other teachers, creating false expectations.
At this moment, she understood.
One-sided, rigid teaching would only stifle children’s childlike innocence and widen the distance between teachers and students.
Organizing more humane courses and livening up the classroom atmosphere would bring teachers and students closer, which would facilitate better communication.