The summer wind, wrapped in the sounds of cicadas and the smell of grass, swept across all the campuses in Guizhou.

The head teacher of the third grade (1) class at the Second Primary Secondary School in Zhenyuan County, Guizhou province, found that student Hong Zhang Yixuan had "been different" recently. I used to be distracted in class, but now not only do I listen carefully, but I do my notes well. The change stems from that special "classroom" more than a month ago - the fifth school defense education activity week in Guizhou province.

As one of the first juniors to participate in the flag guarding skills display at National Defense Education Week, that competition and pre-match training left him with not only tanned skin, but also a constant resilience and a patriotic enthusiasm. "When I saw the flag rising, I couldn't say why, but I thought it was worth the pain." He said.

What Hong Zhang Yinxuan called "unclear," for Fu Xiong, a student at Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, there was a clear direction. The former college soldier, who won the shooting program twice in a row, is passing on the skills and spirit gained from the military and the field to more classmates.

They are not the only ones, many young people in Guizhou have been transformed by the campaign. It has been five years since the inaugural event in 2022, and tens of thousands of people have participated. Groups of students from Guizhou have learned about national defense here, understood national defense, and planted the seeds of patriotism and martial law in their hearts.

Enlargement: multi-semester coverage

Four years ago, when the first National Defense Education Week was launched, the main participants were college students and high school students. At that time, the province's national defense education had a clear fault line between different classes - higher education institutions were hot, secondary education institutions were tepid, and primary education institutions were almost empty.

The change began in the second year, when the organizing committee tried to open displays of flag guarding skills to vocational schools. This year, the junior high school group was included in core events such as the flag guarding skills display and the national defense military keynote speech.

"National defense education cannot begin until a child reaches high school." "Teenagers are in the golden age of growth," said the head of the Guizhou Provincial Department of Education. "The earlier the seed is sown, the deeper the roots will be."

Such a seed was laid in Hong Zhang Yinxuan's heart. In order to make a perfect appearance on the field, he and the community members used their spare time to train for two weeks, repeatedly perfecting queue movement. As the uniform flag guard marched forward, the teenager from the township of Zhenyuan read the weight of the word "home country" in shock and moved.

After several years of exploration, the province has gradually established a multi-school integrated national defense education pattern of "elementary enlightenment, universalization of middle school, strengthening of high school, and deepening of higher education." This year, more than 30 junior high schools and more than 270 junior high school students stood on the stage of the provincial defense competition for the first time, and their young and uplifted figures became a vivid landscape of this event.

The impact of national defense education is not only written on the field, but also extends to the learning and life of young people.

This year, Wang Anhao, a student at the Zunyi City Vocational and Technical School, participated in a speech competition for the National Defense Education Activities Week. The subject of his speech was the story of the Long March. "It was a surprise that the spirit of the Red Army lit me up." Wang Anhao told reporters that not long ago, while participating in a professional skills competition, he encountered a sudden power outage and equipment failure. In the emergency moment, a few words from the speech came out of his head: "The Red Army was able to break through under such difficult conditions. What is our difficulty?" After stabilizing his mindset, he led the team in responding to emergencies and eventually won the second prize. "The Red Story allowed me to find the courage to rise up in difficult circumstances." Wang Anhao said.

Upgrade: The event pits forces against each other

Fu Xiong, a 2022 undergraduate at Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, is a retired college soldier. He paid close attention when the first National Defense Education Week was held. In his sophomore year, Fuxiong was conscripted into the army, and during his service he honed his skills. After retiring and returning to school, Fu Xiong enrolled in the Fourth National Defense Education Week and won the championship in the 92-style laser pistol shooting event. In this year's fifth edition, he won the title again. "Every year there are new elements." Fuxiong said.

The "new" referred to by Fu Xiong is the epitome of the three tournament upgrades in the past four years of the National Defense Education Week.

According to the relevant officials of the Guizhou Provincial Department of Education, the first National Defense Education Week was dominated by queue displays and keynote speeches, with a relatively single format. The second year introduced the Military Skills Competition. By the fifth session of this year, the competition projects have expanded from three to eight, including simulating the decomposition and integration of firearms, comprehensive obstacle crossing, nuclear, chemical and biological protection disposal, and military topographic mapping recognition and use, and the evaluation content and standards are in line with the troops' actual training.

"In the past, defense education was often focused on looking good, but students really learned and experienced very limited things." "It's different now," said the military expert, who has been a judge for several times in a row. "The field is more able to learn the real thing."

The most visible manifestation of the change in activity is the addition of a multi-axis drone race this year. Huang Xieh, a student from the Guizhou Institute of Technology, was very impressed as a participant. "At first I thought it was just a competition at the level of a club event. The minute I got the rules, I realised I wanted to be simple." When they actually stood at the starting point of the track, the feeling was even stronger: 41 teams and 82 young tech enthusiasts competed on the stage. "A slower half-time would open the gap." Huang Seih said.

At the same time, this year's National Defense Education Week also features exhibitions of national defense education results, featured case exchanges, and military theory discussions.

In the exhibition hall of the outcome exhibition, a "long march route sandboard" delivered by a middle school in Zunyi City was made with extra care. The earth shapes Yamagata, and the red line indicates the route. The front of the sandboard was surrounded by students and teachers who took pictures, and many people lamented, "Such a defense education classroom is very rewarding for people."

Deep farming: reaping national defense benefits

Huang Chenxi, a freshman at Guizhou Minzu University, has a life plan changed by an event.

Huang Chenxi, from Tongzi County, Zunyi City, grew up listening to the red stories. This year, by participating in the National Defense Education Week, he became more interested in the military and military barracks. At the end of the event, Huang Chenxi set himself a goal: to become a soldier when he graduates from college.

Jiang Dongwen, a student at the Guiyang Vocational and Technical College, is one of the soldiers who emerged from the National Defense Education Week. In 2024, he walked into the race for the first time as a spectator and was deeply touched by the images of racers clinging to their teeth while covered in muddy water across the compound barrier. After the game, Jiang Dongwen signed up for the school's defense and military association and continued to train every week. In March this year, with good physical fitness, he enlisted in the army as he had hoped. Before leaving, Jiang Dongwen told her classmates, "Integrating personal dreams into the dream of a strong military and painting charming colors for youth will make life more exciting."

In the Xixiu district of Anshun city, courier Mao Liu's delivery car is always covered with a commemorative sticker for "National Defense Education Activities Week," which his son brought back from the activities.“Often clients ask what this is, and I tell them about the event week. National defense education is linked to thousands of households, and no matter what status or occupation, it should be the mainstay of national defense education.”Mao Liu said.

Under the continued immersion of the Week of National Defense Education Activities, military warriors and warriors are breathing new life into this hot soil. In recent years, the defense atmosphere in the province has continued to be strong, and "good boys to become soldiers" has gradually become a universal value pursuit for teenagers. According to statistics, since 2022, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics alone has sent 559 high-quality youth students to the military, of which more than 70 percent participated in the defense education activities week.

One teacher who led the team for five years in a row said,“Over the years, I have watched successive generations of students move from the field to the wider world of life. Some walk into military barracks, others quietly dedicate themselves to their positions, but wherever they go, these students can no longer grow up in defense.”(Looking ahead to a new era)