Two Retired Professors, One Mission: 7 Years of Philanthropic Teaching in Hubei’s Remote Mountains

Two Retired Professors, One Mission: 7 Years of Philanthropic Teaching in Hubei’s Remote Mountains

楚天都市报极目新闻记者李晓梦

翻译：万小双 曹园园 陶然（湖北大学）

Reporter: Li Xiaomeng, Jimu News

Translators: Wan Xiaoshuang, Cao Yuanyuan, Tao Ran (Hubei University)

有这样一位老师，退休后依旧对三尺讲台念念不忘。2019年，她和丈夫一起报名参加湖北省“银龄讲学计划”，来到孝感市孝昌县澴西学校支教，她就是武汉市委党校退休教授张葆珺。近日，张葆珺被湖北省委宣传部命名为“第十批湖北省岗位学雷锋标兵个人”。

For Zhang Junbao, long after her retirement, she is still unable to shake off her deep love for the classroom. In 2019, she signed up for Hubei Province's “Silver Age Teaching Program” with her husband and embarked on her mission to teach at Huanxi School in Xiaochang County, Xiaogan City. Zhang Baojun is a retired professor from the Party School of the CPC Wuhan Municipal Committee. Recently, Zhang Baojun was listed among “The Tenth Batch of Hubei Province’s Model Individuals for Learning from Lei Feng in Their Posts” by the Hubei Provincial Committee's Propaganda Department.

张葆珺和学生比赛掰手腕 Zhang Baojun arm wrestles with students.

“今年是我支教的第7个年头。我想，我还会一直干下去。”3月16日，今年70岁的张葆珺对极目新闻记者说，学生们天真的笑脸，一点一滴的进步，是她一直坚持下去的理由。

“This year marks my seventh year of volunteering as a teacher and I have no intentions to stop anytime soon,” 70-year-old Zhang Baojun said to the reporter from Jimu News on March 16. For her, the innocent smiles of her students and their gradual progress are what keep her going.

张老师成了全校最受欢迎的老师

Teacher Zhang has become the school’s most beloved teacher 

2019年，湖北省首次启动银龄讲学计划，招募百余名优秀退休教师到农村任教。得知这一计划，张葆珺和丈夫于晓晨第一时间报名。同年9月，两人一起来到了位于大别山腹地的孝昌县。张葆珺在孝昌县澴西学校支教，于晓晨则在孝昌县实验中学支教。

In 2019, Hubei Province debuted its Silver Age Teaching Program, recruiting over a hundred seasoned retired teachers to teach in rural areas. Upon learning about this program, Zhang Baojun and her husband, Yu Xiaochen, eagerly applied. In September of the same year, the couple arrived in Xiaochang County, located in the heart of the Dabie Mountains. Zhang Baojun taught at Xiaochang County Huanxi School, while Yu Xiaochen was assigned to Xiaochang County Experimental Middle School.

中外少儿电影鉴赏、中国历史、少儿音乐鉴赏、书法……张葆珺来到学校后，开设的一系列课程受到了学生们的喜爱。“毫不夸张地说，学生们看到我都是涌过来。”张葆珺说。

Since joining Huanxi School, Zhang Baojun has captivated students by offering an array of courses spanning from Film Appreciation of Domestic and International Works for Children, Chinese History, Music Appreciation for children and Traditional Calligraphy. “It’s no exaggeration when I say the kids always gather around me like a ‘mob’ whenever they see me,” Zhang said with a smile.  

7年来，张葆珺带领乡村老师走出去，多次组织老师们赴武汉一些学校交流学习，多次听课给老师们指导教案。同时，她还邀请戏曲名家、大学教授到学校讲座，让山里的孩子接触山外的世界，拓展孩子们的视野。“这学期每周六，我从武汉请了老师来教孩子们合唱，这些老师都是义务的。”张葆珺说，孩子们特别开心。

Over the past seven years, Zhang has also mentored local educators. She has organized multiple exchanges for teachers in rural areas to learn from urban schools in Wuhan, and given guidance to the teachers many times after observing their lessons. Meanwhile, she invited renowned opera performers and university professors to give lectures at Huanxi School, allowing children in such remote areas to get in touch with the outside world and broaden their horizons. “This semester, I’ve invited teachers from Wuhan to coach students in choir every Saturday—all pro bono,” she said. “The kids are thrilled.”

“今年是我们一起支教的第7个年头，累并快乐着。”说起7年的支教经历，张葆珺感慨万分。因为工作繁忙，夫妻俩平时很少见面，只有在偶尔的周末，才相约一起回武汉。

“The year 2025 marks our seventh year of volunteering—a demanding yet fulfilling experience,” Zhang said, reflecting on their seven-year journey. Because of their hectic work schedules, the couple rarely see each other. Only on occasional weekends do they reunite to return to Wuhan together.

她为教师和学生进行“心灵按摩”

She provides mental support for teachers and students

孝昌县地处大别山南麓，澴西学校是当地一所九年一贯制学校，学生很多是留守儿童。为此，张葆珺创建了心理咨询室，自掏腰包购入沙盘、宣泄沙包等，打造出一个非常温馨的空间。现在，这里不仅是学生们“树洞”的地方，也是老师们减压的好去处。

Huanxi School, a nine-year integrated school in Xiaochang County at the southern foot of the Dabie Mountains, serves a student population predominantly composed of left-behind children. To support their emotional well-being, Zhang established a counseling room, personally footing the expense of sandplay therapy tools and stress-relief sandbags, in an effort to create a warm and inviting space. Now, it serves as both a “tree hole” (secret-sharing hub) for students to confide in her but also a stress-relief zone for teachers.  

前不久，一名六年级的男孩直接在厕所门口等张葆珺，想“聊一聊”。“我当时看他的样子，感觉都快哭出来了。”张葆珺说，她赶紧给孩子请了一节课的假，把他带到心理咨询室，一边询问一边了解情况，经过一个多小时的开解，孩子的情绪终于得到缓解。

Not long ago, a boy in sixth-grade waited anxiously for Zhang outside the restroom, eager to “have a chat”. “He looked like he was about to cry,” Zhang recalled. She promptly arranged for the boy to be excused from class, brought him to the counseling room, and spent over an hour gently guiding him through his struggles until he found relief. 

张葆珺在课堂上（受访者供图）Zhang Baojun interacts with students mid-lesson. Photo courtesy of the interviewee

不仅仅是学生，老师们在工作上、生活上有什么不舒心的，也都愿意找张葆珺聊一聊。就连县里其他学校的师生家长们都会慕名而来，张葆珺也会受邀去讲课和分享。“和张老师聊完后，我感到特别轻松。”一位年轻老师说。

Zhang’s therapy extends beyond students—she also helps teachers navigating challenges in their work or personal life. Teachers, students and parents from other schools across the county seek her counsel, with many inviting her to give lectures and share her experiences. “I feel relaxed after talking with teacher Zhang,” A young teacher said.

孩子们期盼的眼神，让她又一次留下

Children’s Earnest Eyes Compel Her to Stay

“张老师，您下学期还来吗?”“张老师，我们舍不得您”……在这几年的支教中，张葆珺也有过动摇的时候。“我家里还有个98岁的老母亲，我担心她，先生这几年也做了三次大手术，但是我每每想起孩子们，就不由自主地想要接着干下去。”张葆珺说，每到暑假回到武汉的家里，她经常想念孩子们。

“Will you come back next semester, Mrs. Zhang?”“Mrs. Zhang, we want you to stay.”… Over the years of volunteer teaching, Zhang Baojun has grappled with doubts. “I have a 98-year-old mother at home, and I’m worried about her. My husband has had three major surgeries in recent years. But every time I think of these children, I feel compelled to keep going,” said Zhang Baojun. She admitted, every time she returns home in Wuhan during summer break, she misses the children.

为了方便出行，张葆珺都是和于晓晨一起开车往返。“于晓晨支教的学校比我远一点，正好顺路把我放下。”张葆珺说，有时候周末学校有事他们也不回武汉，有时候周末回武汉看看老母亲，都需要于晓晨开车，“能坚持就想再坚持一下”。

To make their commute easier, Zhang Baojun and her husband, Yu Xiaochen, travel to and from the school together. “The school where he teaches is a bit farther than mine, so he drops me off on his way,” said Zhang Baojun. On occasion, they are unable to travel to Wuhan on weekends when they have obligations at the school. Other times, when they do make their trip back to Wuhan to see their elderly mother, Yu Xiaochen is typically behind the wheel. “As long as it is within my power, I want to hold on a little longer for these children,” she added.

今年新学期开学，除了教一年级的道法课外，张葆珺还开设了一门新课程“少儿智慧哲学”。她说，自己以前是学哲学的，看到外地有针对小学生开设了这门课程，她觉得特别好，于是也想给她的孩子们开设。“很累，但是看到孩子们的笑容，我非常欣慰。”张葆珺说。

At the beginning of this semester, Zhang Baojun expanded her teaching portfolio beyond Morality and the Rule of Law for first-graders by launching a new course called “Wisdom Philosophy for Children”. Drawing on her academic background in philosophy, she was inspired by similar courses offered to elementary students in other regions and decided to adapt the idea to her own students. “It’s tiring, but when I see the kids’ smiles, I feel really fulfilled,” Zhang said.