"Morning sun carries the remnants of clouds, the dark sky transforms into a clear path."
——The School of Statistics and Management conducts summer "Three Going to the Countryside" practical activities in Duyun City, Guizhou Province.
From July 29 to August 2, 2017, a summer "Three Going to the Countryside" social practice team composed of ten students from the School of Statistics and Management, including Sha Mai, Li Yihang, Gu Weiliang, Fu Han, Xia Chengjie, Yao Hang, Hou Xinrui, Xiong Jie, Zhang Xinyi, and Li Qingqing, led by instructor Wang Yuqin, went to Duyun City, Guizhou Province. They conducted a five-day research practice activity focusing on the employment and entrepreneurship issues of people with disabilities. Duyun City is located in the southeastern part of Guizhou Province and is the capital of the Qiannan Bouyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture. Due to their own physical conditions and various constraints of the real economic and social environment, many people with disabilities face the predicament of relying on government benefits to sustain their lives. To address this, the practice team used methods such as distributing questionnaires and interviewing government officials to gain a deep understanding of the employment and entrepreneurship situation of people with disabilities in Duyun City, as well as the supply of job positions, utilizing their knowledge and skills to explore suitable innovative employment paths for people with disabilities in Duyun.
From July 26 to July 28, the team members eagerly departed from various locations and arrived successively in Guizhou Province, located in the southwest region of our country, after a long journey. In the early morning of July 29, all team members gathered in Guiyang City and took the earliest bus to Duyun City that morning. After some brief adjustments, they began the work of distributing questionnaires. The team was divided into three groups, walking through the streets and alleys of Duyun City. The process of distributing questionnaires was arduous; the team members faced repeated refusals and doubts. However, during this time, they also encountered many citizens who were very concerned about the employment issues of people with disabilities, gaining preliminary insights into the current situation of employment for people with disabilities in Duyun City as well as the implementation of relevant preferential policies, and collected many valuable opinions.
On July 30th, the team members were divided into two groups: one group continued to conduct surveys with residents exercising in the park; the other group conducted Field interviews with disabled individuals working in three blind massage shops in Duyun City. The interview team members visited the three massage shops in succession and engaged in face-to-face communication with the staff. Through the interviews, the team learned that this type of work ensures a basic livelihood for some blind individuals, but due to the numerous and scattered blind massage parlors, some chaotic situations are inevitable. These skilled blind individuals hope that with government assistance, they can gather the blind massage therapists in Duyun to form a scale, thereby making the blind massage industry in Duyun more standardized. In the evening, all team members visited a street famous for Bingfen, a government-supported employment and entrepreneurship project for people with disabilities. On this snack street, a dozen deaf-mute individuals cooperated to make a living by selling Bingfen. This work enables them to be self-sufficient. The team members took detailed notes and organized the difficulties faced by people with disabilities in the process of employment and entrepreneurship, as well as their demands, and provided feedback to the relevant departments.
On the morning of July 31, the team members arrived at the Disabled Persons' Federation in Duyun City. After explaining their purpose, the person in charge of the federation introduced the basic situation of disability entrepreneurship and employment in Duyun City, with a focus on two projects: blind massage and Sunshine Taxi Company. Following this, through the connection of the federation staff, the team members visited Sunshine Taxi Co., Ltd. During the meeting, the team members communicated with the company's manager, deputy manager, and other relevant personnel, learning about their exploration of a new employment path for disabled people to achieve self-reliance and self-development while serving the community. They also deeply felt the hardships of disabled entrepreneurship and the current issues still present. In the afternoon, all team members returned to the Duyun City Disabled Persons' Federation for a discussion with staff regarding the research findings. At the meeting, four leaders from the Duyun City Disabled Persons' Federation introduced the training and some preferential policies aimed at helping disabled people find employment. At the same time, the staff provided valuable suggestions for the team's research.
On August 1, team members went to conduct an on-site investigation with staff from the Disabled Persons' Federation and beekeeping experts, focusing on nine households of people with disabilities supported by the government. The beekeeping expert demonstrated new beekeeping techniques to the beekeepers with disabilities and provided patient guidance. The team members also experienced beekeeping with the disabled individuals, learned about beekeeping tools, and went up the mountain to inspect the beehives. During the learning process, the team members engaged in in-depth communication with the beekeepers with disabilities and completed interviews and research.
On August 2, it was already the last day of the practical journey. Although there was a hint of reluctance, the team members continued to work seriously and efficiently, summarizing over two hundred interview questionnaires, organizing dozens of interview recordings, integrating and analyzing data, writing related reports, and summarizing everyone’s understanding and insights on the entrepreneurship and employment of people with disabilities. Despite the challenges that still exist in the entrepreneurship and employment of people with disabilities, it is undoubtedly a new path that they should explore in the era of innovation and entrepreneurship: “self-reliance, self-development, and serving the people.”
The returning members of the practical team are looking forward to and believe that people with disabilities, as part of the community, are also the main contributors to social and economic activities, have the ability to choose the lives they want, and will play a greater role in society.
Contributors: Sha Mai (Xue) Yao Liming; Provided images: Sha Mai
