It’s a stiflingly hot summer afternoon in Beijing. Waves of heat wash over Tian Meng as he signals city buses at a stop near Beijing University of Chemical Technology. Often known as summer vacation social practice, the tradition of college students doing community work has been going on for years.

　　那是一个闷热的夏日午后，在北京化工大学附近某公交车站，一阵阵热浪向负责指挥车辆的田蒙(音译)袭来。这种工作通常被称为暑期社会实践，而大学生从事社区服务的传统由来已久。

　　Many students routinely help poor families, or visit rural schools with donated books. Others provide company for senior citizens. However, 20-year-old Tian has noticed that many of her peers want to learn more about society.

　　许多大学生通常会选择帮助贫困家庭、或者走访乡村学校捐赠书籍。另一些人则会选择慰问孤寡老人。然而，20岁的田蒙注意到，许多同龄人想要深入接触社会。

　　And summer vacation social practice has become an opportunity for students to get involved and gain a better understanding of how society operates.

　　对于学生而言，暑期社会实践是一次亲身参与并更好地了解社会的机会。

　　With a red flag in hand, Fan Chengpeng, a freshman at Bengbu College in Anhui, is helping traffic police direct traffic.

　　来自安徽蚌埠学院的大一新生范成鹏(音译)手中拿着小红旗，正在协助交警指挥交通。

　　The seemingly easy work of “green go, red stop” actually posed a challenge.

　　“红灯停，绿灯行”看似简单，实则不然。

　　“It is very demanding to monitor all the cars, bicycles and pedestrians,” said Fan. “It’s only when you do it you realize it’s hard.”

　　范成鹏说：“要管理所有的机动车、自行车和行人不是件容易的事，只有亲身体验过才知道有多难。”

　　Yang Zheng is a sophomore from Beijing University of Technology. He recently got a temporary job at the local City Administration and Law Enforcement.

　　北京科技大学大二学生杨峥(音译)前不久在北京市城市管理综合行政执法局得到了一份临时工作。

　　He used to think of city administration staff as harsh in their treatment of hundreds of vendors around campus.

　　他过去认为城管人员对待学校周围的小贩们十分严酷无情。

　　The 21-year-old wanted to find out how they operate. He learned that a city administrator’s workload is heavy. On some occasions, he was on the go, out of doors for eight solid hours.

　　21岁的他想要一探究竟。他了解到城管的工作量很大。有时他要在外面奔波足足八个小时的时间。

　　“City administrators’ work is to keep streets and alleys clear so to prevent potential bottlenecks,” said Yang.

　　杨峥说：“城管的工作是要保持街头巷尾的整洁，避免交通拥堵。”

　　Schools are trying to make summer vacation social practice a gateway for students to find a career path.

　　很多学校都试图把暑期社会实践变成学生通往职业发展之路的一扇大门。

　　Yang Huian, of the student affairs office at Anhui University, has been organizing summer projects for years.

　　来自安徽大学学生事务处的杨惠安(音译)老师多年来一直负责暑期实习项目的组织工作。

　　He sees a new trend in this campus tradition.

　　杨老师亲眼目睹了这项校园惯例的新趋势。