In the live-streaming channel of Yang Weiyun, no singing or dancing is performed, nor are products sold. Yang teaches Pinyin, reading and writing, something that has been most familiar to her for the past 50 years. The difference is that her students are mostly adults.
The 74-year-old, an experienced and respected educator, had taught Chinese in an elementary school for 50 years. In retirement, Yang also wanted to do something meaningful. The rise of short video platforms gave her the idea of continuing her education attempt through live-streaming online. She opened her live-streaming account in May 2021 and offered free Pinyin courses designed for kindergarten pupils about to attend primary schools. However, she gradually learned among her viewers there were a lot of adults who could not read. Yang said she found many illiterate(不识字的) adults lacked confidence. They were afraid to go to new places, worried that they couldn't teach their children or read their boss's instructions. " Many illiterate adults didn't have the chance to go to school when they were young. They are the ones in urgent need of becoming literate. I want to give them a new starting point," Yang said.
To better meet their needs, Yang added targeted content. Considering the schedule of most adult students, she even held two sessions every day, starting at 8:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Yang's live-streaming channel offers an easy and private way to those who want to overcome adult illiteracy. Now she has nearly 400,000 followers on the short video platform.
Yang said students learning through her live-streaming channel each have their own demand. So she always prepares her classes carefully after concluding a live-streaming session. She has tried her best to figure out in what ways the students can learn and remember better, and her biggest wish now is to see these students graduate from her classes.