This picture was taken by Mengqi Li, a postgraduate student from the Department of Sociology. It was taken in Zhejiang, China in March, 2010.
I was a volunteer teacher, waiting outside the classroom to give them an art class. A boy discovered me and gave me an inquisitive and cheerful smile. These students were all from migrant-worker families. Under China’s household registration system, they are not allowed to enter local schools alongside their urban peers. Therefore, volunteer teachers become their sole means of learning about urban culture and lifestyle, and their window onto a wider world. The smile of that boy represents the attitude many migrant children have towards volunteer teachers as well as to their new life in the city.
The next image is 09 The Knights of New Constantinople|.