Nanyao Elementary School in Yulong County, Lijiang

Nanyao Primary School in Lashi Town, Yulong County (玉龙县拉市镇南尧完小) is located in Nanyao Village (南尧村), Lashi Town (拉市镇), Yulong Naxi Autonomous County (玉龙纳西族自治县), Lijiang City (丽江市), Yunnan Province (云南省). Its predecessor was a rural ethnic primary school established in 1965. In the course of educational development, in September 2004, four teaching points on the Shangnanyao Hill were merged into Nanyao Primary School, and the school began to implement a semi-boarding system. On March 1, 2006, the school was renamed “Lijin School” (丽金学校), and later reverted to the name Nanyao Primary School. The school is situated 150 meters southwest of the intersection extended from Haibei Section and 001 Township Road, surrounded by typical plateau pastoral scenery. In the distance, the mountains stretch and the vegetation is lush; nearby, the farmlands are scattered in an orderly fashion, with each season having its own unique scenery. The rich natural resources and unique cultural atmosphere of Lashi Town (拉市镇) create an excellent educational environment for the school and provide a broad space for students’ extracurricular learning. Nanyao Primary School (南尧完小) shoulders the important mission of providing high-quality primary education for children from surrounding villages and is committed to cultivating well-rounded students in moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and labor aspects, helping them embark on the journey of knowledge and laying a solid foundation for their future growth.

Nanyao Primary School was mainly funded by the Provincial Discipline Inspection Commission with a donation of 1.5 million yuan for its construction. During the construction process, villagers and He Caiwu (和彩武), a national outstanding private entrepreneur, also generously donated hundreds of thousands of yuan. The school covers an area of about 20 acres, with a building area of 2,500 square meters. The campus is well-equipped with facilities. The main teaching building is dignified and elegant, providing students with a good learning space; the teachers’ dormitories are cozy and comfortable, ensuring the living needs of teachers; the lawn is lush and green, adding vitality to the campus. At present, the school has relatively complete teaching facilities. The classrooms are spacious and bright, equipped with basic teaching tools and multimedia equipment, providing strong support for the efficient conduct of teaching activities. The campus greening area is planted with various flowers, plants, and trees, and the environment is clean and beautiful, creating a comfortable and pleasant learning environment for students.

Nanyao Village (南尧村) is 13 kilometers away from the Lashi Town government and 23 kilometers from the county town of Yulong (玉龙县城). There are bus routes from Lijiang city center to Nanyao Village, which greatly facilitates the travel of teachers, students, and residents. Surrounding the school are several villages. Taking Shangnanyao Dong Village (上南尧东村) as an example, it is located in the northern part of Lashi Township, about 6 kilometers from Nanyao Village Committee and about 13 kilometers from Lashi Town. This area is in the mountainous region, with an altitude of 3,100 meters, an average annual temperature of 7.5℃, and an annual precipitation of about 850 millimeters. The total land area is 35,060 acres, including 1,560 acres of arable land, 24,000 acres of forest land, and other uses. It has five village groups, with 94 rural households and a population of 312 people. Villagers mainly engage in farming, with a per capita net income of 680 yuan in 2006, and it is an absolute poor village. The main agricultural products are potatoes and Sichuan peppercorns. Most children from these villages receive their primary education at Nanyao Primary School. While the school improves students’ knowledge levels, it also closely monitors the impact of local family economic conditions on children’s education and actively explores suitable educational support models.

Nanyao Primary School (南尧完小) is dedicated to enhancing educational quality and promoting balanced compulsory education. The school regularly organizes training and seminars for teachers to boost their teaching skills and actively engages in educational research, encouraging innovation in teaching methods and curriculum reform. In addition to the national curriculum, the school integrates local culture and natural science into its courses, offering agricultural science courses to help students understand crop growth and enhance their love for their hometown. Teachers focus on individualized teaching to support each student’s growth.

Campus activities are diverse, including sports meets, arts performances, and handicraft competitions, which enrich students’ extracurricular lives and develop their talents. The school also collaborates with external organizations to bring in公益resources, providing more learning opportunities for students.

Despite progress, Nanyao Primary School faces challenges due to its mountainous location. Moving forward, the school will seek more educational resources, improve facilities, and strengthen community cooperation to enhance education quality and cultivate outstanding talents for Lashi Town.