Schooling Hope
Xinjiang headmaster promotes standard Chinese to give future generations more opportunities
Nineteen years ago, Kuerban Niyaz, a Uygur local, built a primary school for the instruction of standard spoken and written Chinese in Wushi County, Aksu Prefecture. It’s the first institute of its kind in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
Today, the school has nurtured numerous students who have gone on to explore bigger and better opportunities—some stayed in their hometown to contribute to local development, whereas others left the area in pursuit of further studies across China and the world.
China is a multiethnic country and Xinjiang is home to almost all of the nation’s 56 ethnic groups. More than 10 spoken and written languages are used among the region’s minorities.
Niyaz believes that promoting standard Chinese is necessary for the growth of Xinjiang and locals alike. “Popularizing standard Chinese, or putonghua, can help villagers in Xinjiang gain access to more advanced development concepts; by overcoming language barriers, people can venture beyond the borders of their hometown,” he told Beijing Review.
Back to the roots
Born in 1964, Niyaz was his hometown’s first university graduate. His native Wushi was a relatively backward place listed as a national-level poor county in the 1990s mainly due to its scarce arable land; natural disasters like sandstorms did not help matters.
In 1986, after graduating from university with a major in Chinese language, Niyaz became a lecturer at a vocational school in Aksu. Twenty years later, he became a businessman working all over the country. He got to explore the more developed regions in east China and realized just how big the gap between Xinjiang and these more advanced areas actually was.
During a Beijing-based internship, Niyaz witnessed the remarkable growth of the capital and soon understood there was much more to be done to lift his hometown to a similar level of development.
In the rural areas of south Xinjiang, Uygurs account for over 90 percent; most of them back then would spend their lifetime in one place and could only speak their local language.
“The place where I come from, many children would live their lives surrounded by no more than an acre of farmland and several sheep. They had no idea of the colorful world awaiting them out there. Allowing our children to walk out of the villages, able to realize their dreams in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai and basically giving them a choice of how they want to live life, became my top priority,” he said.
When running his business, his linguistic edge proved profitable—he was able to earn more than people unable to speak putonghua. Over the course of two years, he made 1 million yuan ($157,100) from the wholesale of small articles.
Upon returning to his hometown, Niyaz opened two drug stores and a convenience store. Through frequent encounters and chats with locals, he realized the many obstacles they faced stem from their not being able to speak or read standard Chinese. He further believed that by learning putonghua, local farmers could get easier access to advanced agricultural technologies. A seed was planted in his mind and slowly the idea of establishing a school teaching standard written and spoken Chinese started to take shape.
At first, many villagers couldn’t quite understand his motivation and were concerned Niyaz might be profiteering from the school; some even accused him of not loving his native culture. Upset, he may have felt, but persistence prevailed.
“Only through language can we communicate from the heart,” he added. He believes carrying forward standard Chinese education in Xinjiang by no means interferes with the promotion of eth
nic languages and cultures; rather, they can complement one another.
“When more ethnic students learn standard Chinese, they can tell the stories of their own culture to more people on the outside as well as learn about the advanced concepts of cultural heritage protection,” he said. “We need to strike a balance between the schoolings of different cultures, and grant students more opportunities to broaden their horizons.”
In 2003, Niyaz invested more than 600,000 yuan ($94,260), most of his savings, and established the school. He also received funds and policy support from various levels of government.
Despite much local reluctance and hesitation, there fortunately were still those parents who chose to send their children to his new school. In total, 87 students were enrolled.
As the first class of the first semester commenced, students were highly animated; but when the teacher said “Good morning, everyone” in standard Chinese, none of them could understand a word. This particular reaction made Niyaz even more determined to see his quest for the promotion of putonghua come full circle.
“But the students never gave up. Their eager pursuit of knowledge and hunger for more in turn inspired me to never give up,” Niyaz said.
Since its humble beginnings, the school has waved goodbye to over 800 graduates, over 600 of whom have been admitted to universities. Musha Tuergong was among the first graduates. In 2016, he was admitted to Tsinghua University, one of China’s top universities, with the highest scores of all science students from Aksu Prefecture.
“Seeing students change the course of destiny through study makes me very happy,” Niyaz said.
Gaining support
In recent years, Niyaz has received strong support from the government. In 2016, the Xinjiang regional government allocated over 17 million yuan ($2.67 million) to subsidize the further development of Niyaz’s school. Also since that year, the Wushi county government has donated hundreds of thousands of yuan to the school every year.
Parents, too, have had a change in attitude. Walking down the street, he once met a local who had been one of the naysayers years earlier. He told Niyaz that he regretted not sending his children to the school and asked if one of his grandsons could enroll. More and more parents like him, seeing the growth in local children, realized that learning standard written and spoken Chinese expands their vision and enables them to land better jobs and live better lives.
And Niyaz has only just begun. He is currently working on introducing more teaching materials and resources to Xinjiang. He believes the key is finding more teachers from all corners of China who can inject the most advanced and modern educational philosophy into the school’s curriculum. “Xinjiang welcomes with open arms all capable and passionate teachers to contribute to the region’s development,” Niyaz concluded. BR