Why do we need precious ordinary people?

We hear a lot about the straight-A students—but what about the kids who struggle, the so-called “underachievers”? For many children from migrant worker families, this label is all too common. But being called a “poor student” doesn’t mean they lack value or strength. Yanqin Ouyang’s Shíwù School exists to serve precisely these young people—to nurture what she calls “precious ordinary people.” Because in truth, it’s the ordinary people who form the true foundation of any society.

Yanqin knows this firsthand. She was a left-behind child, and a student who once scored just 3 points in both math and chemistry. But in her final month of high school, she pushed herself to the top of her class. After a year of retaking exams, she was admitted to a top university by the narrowest of margins—and it changed her life. Before founding Shíwù School, she worked as an investigative journalist at Caixin, a leading publication in China. In 2015, she started Kedou, which was initially just a small after-school space for migrant children. It later grew into what is now Shíwù School—a full-time, non-degree vocational education project. The school’s focus is to help working-class youth find a meaningful path forward, offering a clear teaching framework and solid curriculum, so that even those outside the mainstream education system can have real opportunities.