A dangerous trek to school.

• Position: THE BIG PICTURE - Brief article

Talk about a stressful commute. In the village of Atuleer, in the mountainous Sichuan province in southwestern China, 15 children descend more than 2,600 feet on unsteady ladders in an act worthy of mountain-climbing daredevils. Their purpose: simply to go to school. The students, who range in age from 6 to 15, climb down the sheer face of a bluff and attend classes for two weeks at a time. Twice a month, carrying backpacks and accompanied by two adults, they scale almost a half-mile up the cliff back to their homes. The trip takes about two hours going up and 90...