culture

Just one pupil is studying at the Sokkaeul Branch School of Yonam Primary School in Paegam County, Ryanggang Province, the northern tip of the country.

The branch school was rebuilt splendidly several months ago. 

It was one day in March last year.

Several officials came to the remote branch school.

The school’s teacher looked perplexed, and one of the officials told her that the county set the goal to renovate about 20 branch schools in it in order to provide the students with better educational conditions and environment, and that the branch school was no exception though it was for merely one pupil. 

Looking back upon the days, the teacher said, “Whenever receiving through newspapers and TV broadcasts the news of schools across the country being changed for the better and provided with excellent educational conditions and environment, I envied them. But I never thought that a small branch school for merely one pupil would also be rebuilt.” 

Soon afterwards, the construction of a new school building started in earnest at the original site of the school where only chirpings of birds and the sound of water could be heard. 

While pushing ahead with the construction project, the county paid special attention to the work to provide the school with a complete set of school equipment and fixtures.

The smartly rearranged small playground of the school and its sports apparatuses are all associated with the sincere desire of the officials to help it with its education work with parental affection.

On the day of the first lesson at the newly-built branch school, the teacher and the inhabitants of the village said in unison that they felt as if they were dreaming and that the most wonderful building in the village is the branch school building.

The school now keeps resounding with the voice of a pupil reading a textbook.