Smaller classrooms, safer students

For the past few days, pictures of school emergency drills have been everywhere on TV. As the alarm bell rings, children stand up and file out of their classrooms into the corridor, down the stairs, out of the building, and onto the sports ground.

No one needs to be reminded that these scenes are part of the national commemoration of the first anniversary of May 12 earthquake, which killed more than 69,000 people and left 18,000 missing.

In those awful moments a year ago, as the earth shifted and shook violently, many students were unable to keep their feet and escape before their school buildings collapsed. According to government figures, 5,335 students were lost in the rubble.