Beijing. Around sixty users of education app Xuexiqiangguo, mostly from grass-roots government organizations and schools, were invited by the app developer to Beijing to attend National Day celebrations this week.

Xuexiqiangguo, an app developed by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, had invited users who scored high on quizzes on the app to watch an art performance at the Great Hall of the People and attend symposiums during their two-day visit to Beijing, according to a report posted on the app on Monday.

The selected users include primary and middle school teachers from rural areas and ethnic minority regions, as well as civil servants from grass-roots government organizations, according to the report.

Users reached by the Global Times said they were excited to get the opportunity to visit the capital before the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Zhang Yingfu, deputy principal of a rural school at Sangzhi county in Zhangjiajie, Central China’s Hunan Province, and one of the invited representatives, thanked the app platform for fulfilling his dream to visit the Chinese capital.

Zhang was recommended by his local government after he answered more than 1,000 questions correctly from the app in less than an hour.

The quizzes were multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions on various topics, including Chinese history, geography, poetry, science, math and politics.

Zhang said the app has enriched his knowledge of literature and science, and he will strengthen Party affairs learning.

His enthusiasm has motivated other faculty members at the school, as 22 teachers have registered on the platform and would update their scores and discuss answers on a chat group on WeChat, according to Zhang.

The Xuexiqiangguo app was made available online on January 1. It can be used for browsing news, watching videos, studying various courses and listening to radio programs.

The app’s Android version had been downloaded nearly 500 million times as of Tuesday, according to application data analysis website qimai.cn.

Ding Li, principal of a special school in Oroqen Autonomous Banner of Hulun Buir, North China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, told the Global Times that as a representative from the ethnic minority region, she would strive to promote what she learned from the app to more local people to make learning from the app regular, and encourage ethnic minority groups to play a special role in the construction of a prosperous and strong motherland.

Ding’s special school has around 80 students who suffer from Down Syndrome, autism and brain paralysis. The school offers occupational training, such as Traditional Chinese Medicine massage, cooking and flower arrangement and rehabilitation training.

Chen Rongqian, an employee at the Changshan county social security bureau in East China’s Zhejiang Province, who also attended the event, told the Global Times that she and her family members used the app, including her three-year-old son, every day. Her son would use it to learn Chinese ancient poetry.

(In association with Global Times)