Today is the 30^th of June and it is time for me to write our 2^nd Quarter Report for LSSC Changjiao.  As usual, this report is about life at LSSC since March and our preparation for this year’s Summer English Reading Programme which is scheduled to begin on 20^th July.  I begin with words of thanks to all of you who have journeyed with me since 2001 when, commissioned to undertake Project Mission China and led by a combination of people and events, I ended up in my ancestral village of Changjiao, and the seed of LSSC Changjiao was planted.  Thank God, with your material and financial, moral and spiritual support, LSSC has gained local, state, provincial and national recognition in China and in 2013 was awarded as one of only ten “寻找最美乡村教师” on the occasion of China’s National Teachers’ Day in September.  Right now, we are trying our best to stay as low-keyed as possible, declining further mass media exposure for the time being.

That said, it does not mean that we are resting on our laurels and basking in the achievements of the past.  We are still marching forward and hope to blaze new trails. We are happy to report that immediately after the Spring Festival, LSSC continued its involvement teaching and financially supporting our village primary school and kindergarten, resumed our weekend English tuition activities and running an adult stay-in English programme. 

This year, our adult stay-in 100 days programme has been an interesting experience at LSSC.  Altogether we had 7 students from April to June.  Our students are one from Xian, two from Henan, three from Hunan and one from Guangzhou. We had the usual ups and downs of a live-in community of different personalities from different parts of China, with the inevitable little misunderstandings now and then, though in the main, we had great memories of fun and laughter as we strove to learn, work and live together.  The most difficult assignment for me is to adjust my lessons to the very different standard of English of the students … some are beginners, others have some background and others with university degrees but with very poor reading, listening or conversation skills. 

I have to admit that we had two drop-outs floored not because of community living or learning problems but by water and food.  Both students are from the north, one from Xian in Shanxi and the other from Nanyang in Henan, whose main staple diet are noodles and dumplings eaten with a variety of pickles while here in the south we eat rice with a variety of fried meats and vegetables.  I do not like to say it but the fact is that they had the “runs” and had to run home before they could complete the course.  I comment them on their desire to learn English and I certainly hope they will take home with them pleasant memories of LSSC and the basics of our Pinphonic English Reading System to enable them to embark on self-learning. 

A typical day at LSSC begins with an informal lesson at breakfast at 7 a.m. where English is spoken throughout and the cooks for the day have the opportunity to talk about the food on the table, what they are, how they are cooked and what they taste like.  If breakfast ends at 8 our formal lessons for the day begins half an hour later at 8.30 a.m. and goes on till 11.30.  Lunch is served at around 12 noon depending on the skills of the cooks for the day.  Like breakfast, lunch is a long drawn affair as informal lessons goes on relentlessly where English and Chinlish is spoken throughout. All are encouraged to participate in the conversation … it is alright to speak in Chinese with a few English words thrown in or to speak in English with a few Chinese words thrown in.  LSSC goes into siesta mode from about 2 to 3.30 p.m.  Afternoon self study and peer-teaching and learning are organized by the students themselves and we gather for dinner at about 7 in the evening.  Again, dinner is informal lesson time and the evening is generally free and self-structured although at times, we gather to sit around to talk and sing.  Work around the house is arranged at after 5 p.m. when it is not so hot.

On Sunday 21^st June, we held the last of our weekend lessons for the 2014-2015 academic year and preparations for our Summer English Reading Programme began in earnest.  LSSC in Changjiao ran its first Summer Programme at this present venue in 2006.  Now, 9 years down the line, it is time to repaint and refurbish.  Those following our story regularly will remember that last year we completely re-roof LSSC.  It was an expensive job but thanks to the RMB200,000 from the “寻找最美乡村教师”award, we could undertake the re-roofing project.  Thank God, we were able to complete the project with some money left over and so this year we decided to put in new ceilings and “retire” our ageing beds and mattresses … after 9 years of faithful service.  We have a formidable work crew of students and volunteers and so we also undertook to repaint LSSC.  Much to the surprise of the villagers who advised us to hire professional painters, we manage to repaint LSSC at almost no cost as the paint was donated by a parent. 

This report will not be complete if we do not introduce our youngest student, whom we named Michael, and he understands and performs the actions of “up-down-jump” much to the delight of everyone at LSSC.  Oh, by the way Michael is only 6 months old!  His mother is a stay-in student and so Michael is very much everyone’s baby … it is so much fun … “we have a baby in the house!” 

Till we meet again at Lasallechina after the summer, we say thank you and ask you to remember us in your prayers. 

As always with love in the service of youth and nation through DLS,