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'Barefoot Teachers' Left Behind in China
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Sun's principal denied that any of his teachers had bought a professional position.
"No, of course not. . . . You have to go through a lot of procedures," said Zhao Dianping, principal of the 700-student Antun Town Compulsory Education School.
Asked if there were any exceptions, Zhao said yes, "red position workers," but would not elaborate. "I've already told you too much," he said.
Thousands of barefoot teachers have been pushed out of their jobs in at least three provinces besides Liaoning.
Though government officials consider the issue of barefoot teachers resolved, many rural schools still have a shortage of instructors. Zhao has been forced to hire substitute teachers. Some are former barefoot teachers; some have even less training.
Sun and Wang are among the barefoot teachers who have been hired as substitutes, but they say it is a small consolation.
Sun's principal invited her back three months after she failed the test. "The money is not much, but I know you cannot leave your students," he told her. She could barely bring herself to make eye contact with the other teachers in the school.
"When I saw my colleagues, I couldn't hold my tears," Sun said. "All my colleagues dropped their heads and looked at the floor."
Wang's barefoot colleagues include a 43-year-old teacher who now operates a rickshaw and a 46-year-old woman who has become a migrant worker. Both are now paid more than they were as teachers, but the money is not the point, Wang said. It is a matter of pride.
"We loved this position. Though we earned little, all we want to do is work hard and contribute to this country. This is about my reputation, our dignity," she said.
"I've been working as a teacher all of my life, and they say I'm unqualified at this age? It is the barefoot teachers who helped China to survive all those years by supporting rural education," said Wang, who has been given an administrative job at a police station. "Though we got a small amount of money, we never complained in all those years."
Researcher Jin Ling contributed to this report.
