A primary school teacher in southwest China's Guizhou Province has recently garnered people's attention, as he helps his students form rock bands. Many educators in China are echoing his idea.

For these children, who have barely left the mountains where they were born, joining a rock band is quite the experience. It all happened because of a teacher, Gu Ya, who came four years ago to teach at the primary school located some 2,900 meters above sea level. "The biggest change in my students is they are more willing to communicate with me, more confident and happier. Working in such an atmosphere makes me feel fulfilled," said Gu.

Gu Ya is a Chinese teacher at the school. He was a member of a rock band before he started teaching his students how to play an instrument when the school was first provided with some in 2017. "I just taught a few of them first, and I didn't expect them to learn so fast. Then I decided to have more kids join in. I posted their performances online and received some donations to buy more instruments."

When everyone had the chance to practice, Gu noticed some of the students got bored. So the idea of establishing a band popped up. But why a rock band?

"It just happened naturally because I like rock music and had the experience. I chose some easy and happy songs for them to play," Noon break has become the most joyful time for Gu's students. Music has made a big difference in their lives.

Establishing a band might not be common at schools in remote mountainous areas where the economic growth is relatively slow compared to big cities. Music, or art, has played an important role at different levels of school education in vast areas of China. For example, in Beijing, art is developed in various forms by educators to inspire kids' creativity at kindergartens.

Clever Monkeys is a privately owned kindergarten. It enjoys reputation in its neighborhood for its creative arts education. Kids are encouraged to make full use of the painting room, the concert hall, and the theater in the kindergarten. Tiny as they are, these areas have been children's wonderlands. "Artistic creations might be encouraged immediately under various circumstances, like when the teacher hears children's discussion even on a hairpin," said Lv Yanfei, co-founder of the Clever Monkeys.

"What we do is to provide them with rich materials. Teachers are their friends and supporters. Many children will gradually show special interest or talent in some particular fields," Lv added.

Having been operating Clever Monkeys for eight years, Lv has never stoped trying to explore the artistic impact on children's development. She echoes Gu Ya, saying it's more important to encourage creativity than to teach.

(Cover: Gu Ya and his students. /CGTN)