What Lies Ahead

What Lies Ahead is the second collection of educational essays by Wu Fei (real name Wang Dongsheng), a special-grade Chinese teacher and essayist, following Don't Teach on Your Knees. It was first published in 2006 by East China Normal University Press; this is the 2017 reissue by Renmin University of China Press (planned by Yuanchuang Books). The book gathers nearly a hundred short commentaries, each brief and devoted to one matter, covering classroom teaching, student management, teacher quality, educational equity, professional ethics, the ills of exam-oriented education, enrollment and school choice, and other topics. From the perspective of a veteran frontline teacher, it analyzes the difficulties of basic education, criticizes the erosion of education's essence by utilitarianism, and argues that teachers should maintain independent, critical thinking and not abandon their educational ideals. Most pieces start from concrete observations and campus details; the language is sharp and the reasoning thorough, offering both blunt criticism of real problems and a defense of the true purpose of education. Apart from correcting wording, the reissue largely preserves the original content; the author hopes readers can observe the state of education ten years earlier and compare changes in the educational ecosystem over the decade. The book is arranged in sections such as "The Lonely Are Still Lonely," "What Rank Were You in Childhood?" and "Frog, Remember When You Were a Tadpole," with a preface to the reissue and an author's preface.