Top pupils bring home the bacon as Chinese primary school hands out unusual academic prizes
Principal uses money from donor to give 50 students 600g of pork for their outstanding performance at rural school where many are ‘left-behind children’
Top pupils at a rural primary school in southern China went home not just with certificates last week but something more meaty to share with their families – a cut of pork.
Fifty children were given 1 catty (600g) of pork for their outstanding performance on the last day of school on Friday in the village of Dudongxiang, in Guangxi, Liuzhou Wenbao reported on Saturday.
The practical reward earned a tick of approval from internet users after photos of the beaming children with their certificates and pork dangling from red string were shared on social media platform Weibo.
The school principal, identified only by his surname Zhang, said a donor from Beijing, Yang Qian, had given the school in Sanjiang county 1,425 yuan (US$215) to spend on awards for academic excellence. So he decided to use it to buy the pork from local farmers who were struggling financially.
“In the past, we have given students cash prizes to recognise outstanding performance, and some pupils have used the money themselves and not told their parents about it,” Zhang told local news website Lzgd.com.