For decades state-funded feeder schools in poorer areas played a vital role in offering good students from the countryside a chance to get into university.But many have closed as a result of migration into cities.Meanwhile, competition has grown for places in good senior secondary schools.Ma Hang attended primary school in his home village. But the best junior high school in the county would not accept village students unless they paid extra fees or had powerful connections.His parents managed to use such a connection to get him into the school.He says that set him on a path that led him to a feeder high school and then to university.Rural children in China face obstacles at every stage of development.Babies are more likely to be undernourished and lack parental attention.By the time they enter primary school, many have ailments such as anaemia, poor vision and worms.Around 60% of students from the poorest counties suffer from at least one of these afflictions, says Mr Rozelle.Those who, despite the odds, make it to elite universities often feel socially isolated.In 2020 a student from the countryside took to social media to describe being “lost and confused” at university after leaving the “straightforward environment” of school, where passing tests was the focus.
