Nation's teenagers gear up for the gaokao

Starting on Friday, about 10 million students will take China's national college entrance examination. Below, several students and a teacher reflect on the stresses and joys of taking the country's toughest and most influential test. Zhang Yi reports from Beijing, with Liu Kun in Wuhan.

I almost gave up on education

In the West, many college students take a year off before graduation to travel or work and find their future direction.