The "left-behind students," whose parents have left home for jobs in cities, show their clay handiwork at Yaoxu Central Elementary School on August 21, 2009. Some of the "left-behind students" come to school during summer vacations to find some of the joy that is absent from their homes. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

---By Zhang Zhang

11-year-old Peng Yutao didn't like to stay at home during summer vacation. Instead, the mute girl would rather go to school, where she can play with classmates and find joy that is absent from her home.

The girl is in grade five at Yaoxu Central Elementary School. Like many teenagers in Yaoxu, a remote township in central Jiangxi province famous for labor force export, Peng lives with her grandparents as her mother and father are working in Shenzhen in southern Guangdong province.

Peng's parents usually came back three times a year and usually, they communicate mainly by telephone. The girl often talks with her grandparents at home about her life in school, but she can't receive help from her elderly grandparents with her study.

"They can't even help examine my homework. My grandma is illiterate and my grandpa can't look clearly at my books for there is something wrong with his eyes."

Peng Yutao is one of the millions of teenagers currently in China's rural areas whose parents leave home for jobs in cities. They are called the "left-behind children" or "empty-nest children."

Statistics from the All-China Women's Federation, suggest there are currently 58 million "left-behind children" around the country as of May, more than 40 million of whom were under 14.

In Peng's school, which has 768 students, 489 were living with their grandparents or a single parent. The vacancy of parents at home has proved to have had heavy side effects on the children's psychology.

Zhang Xiaoyu, a teacher at Peng's school who was also once a "left-behind" child, said these children usually bear a feeling of inferiority. In comparison to those children from normal families, these kids usually get lower scores in tests and some of them usually appear depressed and rarely talk with others.

"The absence of parents at home will leave an ordeal for their children who would feel lonely and lack confidence in everything and even suffer shortcomings in their personal characters."