Students learn to write Chinese characters inscribed on bones. [Photo by Wu Kaixiang/China Daily]

ETU is also innovating in Chinese and math learning. In most schools, students must learn to read Chinese characters by writing them many times to remember them. At ETU, teachers discuss with students why they need to learn the characters and how they can enjoy it.

"We love to learn characters through studying inscriptions on bones or tortoise shells and knowing how a character came into use," says student Yu Jiayi.

Chen Chu, the math teacher and a Harvard graduate, invented a bank. Students can cash 10 grams of waste paper for one ETU yuan and buy the services or products from others at a school fair. The process of selling and buying is one application of math in life. Inspired, one kid kept a journal to record every experience involving math, like buying a subway ticket.

Math class is not about solving a problem and getting the correct answer, but using math to tackle life issues, says Chen.

Most Chinese had a different experience－suffering under the exam-oriented teaching and feeling education was removed from real life.

The modern gaokao began in 1977 and has been widely credited with selecting the best talents for China's booming economy. However, many graduates regret being hostage to exams and ending up as a standardized commodity, struggling to find who they are and what they really want to do in life and work.