Four Tibetan Students from the Chengdu Industrial Vocational Technology College join in the "9+3" educational program in Sichuan province. Photo by Lai Li / China Daily

Tibetan students practicing a dance at the college. Photo by Lai Li / China Daily

The Sichuan province is one of the main inhabited areas for Tibetans outside of Tibet. In order to promote the regional development and stability, especially in the Tibetan autonomous region, the Sichuan municipal government has recently issued programs and allocated funds under the Go-West Strategy.

The "9+3" program is a representative program in terms of vocational education support. The program was launched in 2009 to provide three years of free vocational education for Tibetan students in Sichuan after they finished nine years of compulsory education.

Students who have participated in the program in their first year will finish their three-year education by the end of this year. Thanks to the program, many Tibetan students live better lives.

"We have witnessed the growth since our college started the program," said Wang Jian, director of the "9+3" office in the Chengdu Industrial Vocational Technology College (CIVTC). "Our College allocated the best teachers to the program. They took good care of students in both their daily life and studies."

"I never left the prairies before and I felt strange about the world. I also could not understand mandarin when I came here three years ago," said Zerang Dongzhou, a Tibetan intern in a company in Chengdu who joined the 9+3 program in CIVTC. After three years of study, Dongzhou learnt many knowledge and skills.

"Thanks to the help of my teachers and classmates, I feel my personal abilities have improved greatly. Last year, some of my classmates won prizes in a writing contest," he spoke with fluent mandarin.

"Tibetan students face many difficulties when they arrived here. We always try our best to help them," said Zeng Xianqing, a teacher from the "9+3" program in CIVTC. Mr. Zeng is loved by many students in the college and is given the nickname "Daddy Zeng".

"Daddy Zeng treats students like his own children. I remember I lost my ID card and purse on the first day when I arrived. He helped me handle the problem immediately. Besides, he often buys us snacks and fruit, sometime he even buys meals for some students." said Lang Se, a Tibetan student in CIVTC.

"I hadn't seen a computer before in my village, but now I can use it to do a lot of things. Last year, I made a flash as birthday gift for Daddy Zeng," said another Tibetan student, Lei Wang, who was deprived of education due to poverty.

"Tibetan students who get help from the government, are willing to help others," said Kuang Shaoying, another teacher of "9+3" program in the college. "They are brave, honest and kind." Ma Jun, Dong Zhou's classmate, from the Aba Tibet autonomous prefecture of Sichuan province, saved two drowning girls in a raging river.

"As Tibetan students are honest and warm hearted, they are welcomed by Han students," said Tao Shasha, a teacher in the college.

According to statistics, there are 413 minority students joining in the "9+3" program at CIVTC, including students of the Tibetan and Qiang ethnic groups as well as other minorities in Sichuan province.

To date, over 20,000 Tibetan students have benefited from the program. More than 90 secondary vocational colleges and five higher vocational colleges have joined the program.

Li Yu and Lai Li (China Daily Sichuan Bureau)

Peng Chao and Gao Shuli contribute to the story.