Zhang Lanping has been teaching for 33 years now, but what makes her special is her pair of crutches.
张兰萍现在已经教书33年了，但是让她显得特殊的是她那对拐杖。
The courageous teacher from Gansu province was afflicted by poliomyelitis, an infectious disease caused by poliovirus, when she was only one-year-old.
这名勇敢的老师来自甘肃省，在仅一岁的时候，她就受到了小儿麻痹症的折磨，这是一种由脊髓灰质炎病毒造成的传染病。
Zhang was not able to fully recover and therefore has to use crutches for the rest of her life.
张老师没能痊愈，因此，她不得不在余生拄着拐杖。
This condition, however, has not diminished Zhang's spirit. As a student, Zhang devoted herself to acquiring knowledge, which she believes would make her a successful teacher.
但是，这并未削弱张老师的精神。在还是学生的时候，张老师就全身心地学习知识，她相信这能使她成为一名成功的教师。

After graduation, Zhang applied as a college teacher but she was turned down because of her physical disability.
毕业后，张老师申请成为一名大学老师，但是由于身体残疾，她被拒绝了。
Zhang did not give up and was finally accepted as a primary school teacher in her hometown in Gansu province, which then experienced a shortage of teachers.
不过张老师并未放弃，最后她被甘肃省自己的家乡--当时教师资源短缺，录用为小学老师。
For able-bodied people, it takes only six minutes to reach school, but Zhang has to spend one hour from home to her work place using crutches.
对于体格健全的人而言，去学校只需六分钟，但是张老师拄着拐杖从家里到上班地点要花上一个小时。
In 1997, Zhang spent 1,000 RMB ($148) from her savings to put up a reading corner she named "Enlightenment." Zhang's efforts have not been in vain as the academic performance of her students is among the best in the district.
1997年，张老师从自己的存款中取出了1000元（148美元），搭建了一个她命名为“启迪”的阅读角。而张老师的努力也没有白费，她的学生的学习成绩是该地区最优秀的。