COVID-19 poses extra test for gaokao students

"Whether I get good results in the gaokao or not, I am more determined and confident to fulfill my dreams," he added.

As Zhang Yuheng started taking online courses at home in February, the experience was so unpleasant that he almost gave up preparing for the gaokao.

The app for the online courses used by his school often had bugs. Moreover, it only had voice recordings, not images of the teacher.

"As such, I often lost interest in the courses and started drifting off during class as there was no teacher there to supervise me," he said.

He knew that if he did not make a change, his chances of getting into a good university would be very small because his home province of Henan has the largest number of participants in the gaokao due to its large population.

During a mock exam in February, he scored less than 300 points out of a possible 750. If that performance were repeated in the gaokao, he would be unlikely to gain admittance to any university.

After consulting his parents, Zhang Yuheng started one-on-one tutoring courses with an online education provider.

The online classes started at 8 am and ended at 9 pm every day, and with teachers there to answer his questions, his grades gradually improved.

After his school reopened in early April, he worked even harder, getting up at 5:30 am and going to bed after 11 pm.

He continues to use the online courses, and he takes a one-hour class when he returns home at 10 pm to review what he has learned at school.

"Some of my classmates stay up studying till 1 or 2 am, and although I can't stay up that late, I am giving it my best shot," he said.

"It would be very disappointing if I did not get good results in the gaokao, but at least I would have tried my best."