The exam that changed a generation's destiny

By Zhao Xinying

Last year was a busy and memorable one for Liu Haifeng, director of the Institute of Education at Xiamen University in the southeastern province of Fujian.

Liu received "the most attention ever" from the media because of his twin identities. First, he is a member of the Class of 1977－the first batch of students admitted to colleges in China after the revival of the gaokao, the national college entrance exam. Second, he is a renowned scholar and expert on the history and reform of the exam.

Four decades ago, Liu was an 18-year-old zhiqing, or "sent－down youth" (young people who were sent to the countryside to learn from the farmers). He was one of 5.7 million candidates who walked into the nation's exam halls to take the first gaokao after the crucial test was reintroduced following the "cultural revolution" (1966-76).

Following the exam, Liu was one of the 5 percent of hopefuls who gained admittance to college－possibly the lowest admission rate in the exam's history.

His success set him on the path of study and research at Xiamen, one of the most prestigious educational establishments in the country.

If the exam had not been revived, Liu's life would have been radically different.

This also applies to many other members of the Class of'77, many of whom have become well-known figures.

As one of the beneficiaries of the exam's revival, Liu decided to commemorate the life-changing event.

I interviewed him early last year, but Liu also spoke to many other media outlets, sharing bitter and sweet memories of preparing for and taking the exam 40 years ago.

He even organized a seminar about the exam at his college in Xiamen.

"Almost all of China's well-known experts and scholars on gaokao studies were present," he recalled, with excitement.

"We exchanged ideas on the history of the exam, its suspension and revival, and its current reform and future development, which I think will be of great value in academic circles."

However, his proudest achievement is the publication of a series of books he has compiled about gaokao studies.

The series, which runs to almost 8 million words, sheds light on exam systems in other countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Australia, Japan and Russia. The books may provide China with insights and guidance for the development of the national education system.

"As far as I'm concerned, the series is the first in China to give readers a fully rounded insight into the exam," Liu said.

"It took my colleagues and I many years of effort to complete, and is my gift on the 40th anniversary of one of the most important events in my life."

Waving goodbye to the past, Liu is now looking to the future.

In October, the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China drew up a blueprint for development in all fields in China, including education, for the next few years.

Liu said the gaokao, a test with Chinese characteristics, was once a live-changing event for young people.

However, in recent years it has been criticized for limitations in the assessment of students' abilities and its selection of top talent, so it must change.

"Reform of the gaokao has been piloted in Zhejiang province and Shanghai, and I'm confident that it will keep evolving and talent selection will become more scientific in the future," Liu said.