Gaokao candidates in Shexian of East China's Anhui Province walk into the county's examination site for a make-up test on Thursday morning. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

Student candidates in the flood-hit Shexian county of East China's Anhui Province started their make-up national college entrance examination, or gaokao exams on Thursday as two tests (Chinese language and math) scheduled on Tuesday were cancelled due to the region's unprecedented floods.

The student candidates arrived at the two examination sites by bus, with traffic police and local soldiers at the scene to keep order. The local government mentioned that a total of more than 2,100 students attended this year's tests, and no one has so far missed or given up on the tests even with the region's harsh weather and floods.

One student, surnamed Tang, told the Global Times that she was happy with her own performance, after she finished the first make-up test, despite some psychological impacts due to the delay. The difficulty of the backup paper was similar to that she practiced when preparing, she said.

"The whole country is watching us, I felt a little bit more pressure," she joked.

Many parents arrived early at Shexian No. 2 Middle School, one of the examination sites in the county, to show support for their children. Some parents said they felt worried the rare delay of the tests could affect their children's performance.

For many Chinese students, the gaokao exams are a life-changing opportunity, of which many Chinese families pin their hopes on. 42-year-old Bao Jinmei, a single mother, told the Global Times the rescheduled tests could be disastrous for both student candidates and parents.

The mother and daughter waited around two hours in the heavy rain on Tuesday morning, but only received information that the first test was cancelled. "My daughter was stunned and felt so frustrated when we were informed that the second test was cancelled as well," Bao said. "She has devoted so much time and effort into the tests."

Bao hopes that the education authority could implement measures to help the candidates and ensure fairness in the make-up tests.

Zhou Qi, a mother of a 20-year-old candidate, dressed in a green qipao to wish her son good luck and a good performance in the exam. This is the second time that Zhou's son has attended the gaokao exams, but they remain in high spirits and a relaxed mood despite the delay.

"When I saw my son walking out of the exam site with smile on his face, I felt really happy," Zhou told the Global Times. "I hope he can be admitted to his preferred school."

Shexian, located at the confluence of four rivers, has seen heavy rainfall since Monday that has caused unprecedented flooding. A father, surnamed Lei, whose twin sons attended this year's tests, told the Global Times that the flooding reached hip height at around 6 am on the morning when they were ready to head to the exam site and the flood level at some roads was even higher later in the day.

"We were panicking as the exam time came closer," he said. Lei added the education authority tried to transport students to sites with boats, but later stopped due to the serious situation.

The make-up tests used the backup gaokao's test papers. Many parents were also worried that the backup test papers would be harder than the original ones. The education authority announced on Wednesday that the standard of the backup exam papers would be the same as that of the original exams.

This is not the first time that gaokao exams were delayed due to natural disasters. In 2006, the gaokao exams in Jian'ou, a northern city in South China's Fujian Province, were postponed for six days due to the region's flooding and waterlogging. More than 4,500 student candidates in the city sat their exams using backup test papers.