Educating children from minority ethnic communities in Yunnan, China

Hongjiao, 12, lives in Shuangjiang County in Yunnan, one of China's poorest provinces. Her family is Lahu - one of the 25 minority groups in Yunnan.

Hongjiao is a pupil at Dahuangtian Primary School, which is supported by the Yunnan Minority Basic Education Project. They have a fish farm to raise income for the school.

"I live with my grandmother and grandfather, my uncle and auntie, my father and mother, and my older brother and sister. My brother is in middle school, but my sister is 19 and works at home and in the fields.

"At home we speak Lahu. When I started school I couldn't speak Han Chinese. But the teacher was patient and I listened very carefully. There are two or three Lahu teachers, but usually they don't speak Lahu in school. When Lahu people speak, other people can't understand us and sometimes they argue with us. Our customs are different. I'm proud to be Lahu.

"The project pays 80 yuan a year so that I can come to primary school. It's a friendly school. The teachers are very kind. They especially look after the four of us who come from Shibanpo because it's the poorest village. They buy exercise books for us when we can't afford them.

"It takes me about two hours to walk to school, but it takes that long because sometimes I play on the way with my three classmates. We all walk to school together, and we help each other with our homework. I like all the subjects - Chinese, mathematics and science. I'd like to go on to middle school because I don't want to have a hard life.

"When I grow up I'd like to get a good job but I don't think I'll be able to because we're very poor. My parents have to pay more than 2000 yuan a year for my brother to go to middle school. My grandfather is the village leader, and he gives them the money to pay for my brother, but they won't be able to afford to pay for me to too. They'd like both of us to go, but they can't afford it. They can only afford to pay for one.

"I'd like the profit from the fish farm to be spent on building up our school to become the biggest primary school. Then more children could come to study. I know some children in our village who would like to come to school, but they can't afford to because they are too poor."

Yunnan Minority Basic Education Project

The Yunnan Minority Basic Education Project (YMBEP) aims to improve the quality of and access to basic education of poor children, many of whom belong to one of the province's 25 minority ethnic groups. The project is run jointly with the Yunnan Provincial Education Commission.

Yunnan is in the far south west of China (bordering Myanmar (Burma), Laos and Vietnam), and is one of China's poorest provinces. Although primary school education is compulsory and officially free, many children do not complete primary school and schools charge about 160 yuan (£12.50) a year towards books and other equipment. Because many children live in remote areas, they have to board and are charged about four yuan (30p) a week for food.

Most parents are poor farmers. Most find it difficult, if not impossible, to pay school fees. Even when they can afford to pay for primary school, many children are forced to drop out when they get to middle school.

The project is being piloted in schools in three counties in Yunnan - Shuanjiang, Weishan and Pu'er. There are five main components to the programme:

• teacher training - courses in children's rights and child-centred teaching methods (such as discussion, group work and problem-solving), using cheap, locally-sourced teaching materials. Teachers are encouraged to involve children in decision-making, including about what income generation and nutrition projects they should have in their school
• school-based income generation schemes - training school managers and income generation staff in business planning, financial management and technical skills. Profits from the income generation schemes are used to reduce school fees. Those schemes that involve food production (pig rearing, fish farms, fruit and vegetable growing) also help improve the quality of  food provided for boarders
• nutrition and hygiene - small-scale projects to improve the health of children from minority ethnic groups, especially those who board at school
• inclusive education - pilot classes using China Sign (a bilingual education programme for children with hearing difficulties) and support for children with special needs
• community participation - involving parents and the local community in the running of schools.