Fool's Mountain: Blogging for China

“Voices of Change:  Educational reform I’d expect”

While Chinese education has experienced rapid development in the past decade, there are numerous challenges, which caused people to call education to be one of the “three mountains (healthcare, housing, and education)” that lie before ordinary Chinese. The media, however, are filled with voices of cynicism and pessimism, or groundless praises from vested interest groups who are anxious to maintain the status quo. Key stakeholders, especially students, are tragically underrepresented or even voiceless as China stands at the crossroads of her educational reform.

Foolsmountain, a group blog by overseas Chinese and international friends, hope to give voice to these underrepresented students in the ongoing dialogue about Chinese education. We hope to use an essay contest to let students express their expectations of education. We would also like to share with our readers authentic stories about Chinese education.

This contest, broadly titled “Voices of Change:  Educational reform I’d expect”, is aimed chiefly at high school students in rural areas in China. Participants have unlimited choices in the ways they tell their stories or share their perspectives, as long as they can keep the essay within 1,500 words. We do not welcome entries that serve only to vent dissatisfaction, or praises that do not contribute to the improvement of the system. Rather, we look for original thoughts and constructive suggestions, or perceptions of what education “should be”, as compared to what “it is” . Participants can submit their articles in either English or Chinese, and prizes will be given for both categories.

How to Participate:
If you are a high school student in or from rural China, we look forward to hearing your underrepresented voices through these articles. Please submit your entry by email to essay@foolsmountain.org. The deadline is February 14, 2010，Chinese New Year.  Prizes will be announced on February 28, 2010, the Chinese Lantern Festival.

Please include your real name and contact information. Photos of yourself and your school are also welcome but not required.  We will not disclose your contact information, but we may publish your article, your photo(s) and/or your school’s photo(s). By participating in this competition, you agree to grant Foolsmountain and our sponsoring media the right to use or quote from your contributed articles and photos.

If you are a reader who may know of schools or students that could benefit from this competition, please pass on our announcement. Your help is greatly appreciated.

Prizes:
In either of the two categories, three prizes will be given:

1st prize:  RMB1500.00
2nd prize: RMB1000.00
3rd prize: RMB500.00

Finalists’ articles will be published in the Foolsmountain blog as well as our partners’ web sites (if applicable).

About Foolsmountain:
Foolsmountain is a group blog not affiliated with any organizations. It was set up by overseas Chinese who share a passion to improve China by learning from best practices around the world, and a desire to tell the Chinese story to the rest of the world. Our unique voices and even-handed approach to Chinese issues have brought us to the attention of numerous readers around the world, as well as major international media such as the Guardian of UK. Though we are still searching for better ways to improve the blog and increase our impact, our current posts have already played a small role in reducing stereotypical profiling of China in western media, and have contributed to a more in-depth understanding of China and its issues from readers who use us as an alternative source of information. This contest is part of our effort to increase the exposure of ordinary Chinese to the rest of the world.

This contest is generously supported by donations from patrons of this web site. Each cent you donate to this contest will be used towards giving voice and practical assistance to under-represented and underprivileged students in rural China. We still welcome your donations to this effort. You may send your contribution to donate@foolsmountain.org if using paypal or click on the Amazon link on the sidebar so we can receive a referral fee if you make a purchase. Please visit our store/donation page for more options and details.

“变革的声音：我心目中的教育改革”：愚公移山双语作文比赛

中国教育近年来取得了一些进步，但也面临重重问题，甚至被称为民众面前的新“三座大山”之一。但对这些问题，社会舆论多倾向愤世嫉俗式批评，而一些既得利益者则希望无原则地粉饰太平，以期维护现状。在这两个极端之中，一些本可发挥作用的意见、建言被吞没，尤其是那些被老师、家长所代言的学生，不能发出自己的声音。

海外华人和国际友人共同组建的博客“愚公移山”，希望发挥民间力量，让能够改进教育系统的声音发出来，让与教育改革最利益攸关的学生也能献计献策，一点一滴发挥舆论影响，逐步改变现状。我们同时也希望借此机会，向世界公正客观地传扬中国学生的形象和声音。

参与办法：

“变革的声音：我心目中的教育改革”愚公移山双语作文比赛面向全国农村高中学生，征集作文。作文形式不拘，自由发挥，但篇幅要求在1500字以内。在作文主题上，不欢迎纯粹发牢骚，或是无原则的赞美，而希望参赛者针对具体问题，提出独到见解或具体建议；或是针对现有的优势，好的做法，提出进一步改进或推广的建议; 也可写自己心目中理想的教育。‘

如果您是来自农村的高中学生，我们希望通过这些文章，听到您的声音。您的文章可用电子邮件方式提交给essay@foolsmountain.org. 也可用传统邮件方式，交给合作媒体。截止日期为2010年2月14日，农历新年。 我们将在2010年2月28日元宵节公布获奖名单。

来稿请提供真实姓名和通信方式。我们也欢迎您提供本人及学校照片，但这并非要求。参与本比赛，即视作同意愚公移山网站和合作媒体使用或引用这些文章和照片。不经本人同意，我们不会透露您的联系方法。

奖项：

作文分英文、中文两个类别，分别设立奖项。中英文获奖者分别为三名，一等奖奖金各1500元人民币，二等奖奖金各1000元，三等奖奖金各500元。入围文章将陆续刊载在愚公移山和合作媒体网站。

关于愚公移山：
“愚公移山”（http://blog.foolsmountain.org）是一群关心国内发展的海外华人和国际友人组建的英文博客，作者分布于世界各地，博客旨在向国际读者传达更多中国的独特声音，以其消除偏见，促进中文相互学习和交流。该博客独特的声音，曾引起包括英国《卫报》在内诸多国际媒体的关注，也在一定程度上减少了国际舆论中关于中国的刻板认识。“愚公移山”的作者们向来关注中国教育，希望借此活动，传达民间的声音。

本竞赛所需资金全部来自“愚公移山”读者的捐款。此捐款的每一分钱，都将用来帮助农村地区学生，让他们的声音能被传达，让他们能够得到一些切实帮助。如您愿意支持此事业，也欢迎向此博客继续提供捐款支持。