Speech when he was President of Peking University (Cai Yuanpei)
(19 17 years 1 month 9)
Five years ago, when Mr. Yan was the principal of our school, Yu Fang served the Ministry of Education and made some contributions to the school on the first day of school. Most of you graduated from preparatory school, so you must have heard of it. I haven't seen you for three days, and you have made great progress than before. Please tell you three things about this long school:
One day, with a purpose. There must be a certain purpose in coming here to study. To be fair, we must predict the nature of universities. Today's college students' academic success is inevitable. However, this is not the case in universities, and so are scholars and people who study advanced knowledge. Every time outsiders accuse our school of corruption and study here, they have the idea of being an official and making a fortune. Therefore, most of those who graduated from preparatory courses entered the law department, few entered the liberal arts, and especially few entered the science department. Taking Fako as the main road is also a shortcut to the south. Because of the enthusiasm of being an official, the teacher asked not knowledge, but rank. Those with high rank are especially welcome because they will be promoted in the future. At present, there are many people who are good at politics and law in our country, and there are few full-time professors. Therefore, to hire teachers, we have to hire part-time people, which is a last resort. Outsiders criticize me. I have no theory. Defaming me is nothing more than self-study. People laughed at me for being corrupt and having a clear conscience. What am I afraid of? If you want to be an official and make a fortune, many specialized schools in Beijing can graduate from law school, and those who enter business school can also apply for business school. Why did you come to this university? So you must have studied with a purpose, and you didn't enter the law department to be an official; Those who go into business do not want to get rich. Once your purpose is established, you are on the right track. You have studied here for three or four years, which is not much time. If you can cherish the yin and study hard, you will seek success and have a bottom. If your goal is to be an official and get rich, your purpose is good and you tend to be different. Usually bohemian, idle, familiar with the lecture notes during the exam, regardless of knowledge, just ask for scores; At the end of the experiment, books are shelved, no questions are asked, and after three or four years of perfunctory work, you can take this opportunity to participate in society with your diploma. Isn't it against the original intention of learning? Time is wasted, learning is useless, and it is also a mistake. Moreover, in the Battle of 1911, our revolution was due to the corruption of officials in the Qing court. Even today, we are not satisfied with important officials, and our morality is ruined. If you don't plant a good foundation at this time today and study hard, you will have to go out to be an official because of your livelihood in the future, but when you become a lecturer, you will delay your students. Politics is bound to delay the country. This is a mistake. Mistakes mislead people, but what do you want So the purpose can't be unfair. I hope you all have one.
Second, sharpen virtue. Today, customs have been stolen and morality has declined. Beijing society is particularly bad. Things that corrupt morality and behavior abound, are not deeply rooted, and are rarely contaminated by customs. When you drop out of college, you should be able to restrain yourself and love yourself. However, the rise and fall of a country depends on the thickness of customs. What is the prospect of such a popular custom? Therefore, there must be excellent people who set an example and try their best to correct vulgarity. As a college student, you have a high position and shoulder this heavy responsibility, so you should not only think for yourself, but also inspire others. Goude doesn't practice, he doesn't study, which is the same as vulgarity, is in line with the world, looks down on others, and is even more touching. However, in front of the first case all day without entertainment, you will feel physical pain. Nothing is better for you than proper entertainment and inappropriate entertainment, which is good for your health. When you entered the branch, you filled out a petition and obeyed the regulations of our school. Didn't it go against the original intention? Therefore, conduct should not be sloppy. What I want is the second you.
Third, love teachers and friends. The task of teachers, professors and staff is to facilitate your study. Can you be indifferent? We should treat each other sincerely and pay tribute to each other. As for students who live in the same room, they should be particularly close so that they can learn from each other. It is not only open and frank, but also moral, covering the same school and sharing a good name. Students who are morally bankrupt and misbehave are criticized by society. Although there is discipline, it is unclear and we must encourage each other. In Germany, every time I go to the store to buy something, the shopkeeper will warmly entertain me, pay the money and thank each other. Although this is a trivial matter, it is also necessary for communication. Ordinary people are like this. How about college students? For the sake of teachers and friends, what I want is the three of you.
I've only been at school for a few days, and I don't know much about school affairs. I plan two things: first, improve the handout. Since you are studying profound knowledge, you are different from middle school and higher education, not only by teachers, but also by someone who has studied secretly. In the future, the printed handout will only list the outline, details, essence and significance, either dictated by the lecturer or referred by himself, so as to learn something and buy more practical books. Although there are many books in our library, there are few new ones. If it is not widely purchased, it will not be enough for students' reference. I plan to raise money to buy more new books. In the future, books and records will be full, and I can learn from them. That's all I'll tell you today. See you later. Feel free to discuss it.
Translation:
Five years ago, when Mr. Yan was the principal of our school, I just worked in the Ministry of Education. I did something for Peking University on the first day of school. You all studied in the preparatory school, so you must have heard of me. Three days in never say goodbye, I am impressed. Besides, after several years, you must have made great progress. I will be in charge of Peking University today, so I have three things to inform you:
The first is to hold the purpose. There must be a certain purpose in coming to Peking University to study. If you want to know whether your purpose is fair, you must first know the nature of the university. Now it is natural for people to study in junior colleges and find jobs after studying. However, this is not the case in college. University is a place to learn advanced knowledge. Outsiders often accuse us of corruption in Peking University, because people who study in Peking University have the dream of being an official and making a fortune, so most of them enter the law department after graduating from preparatory school, rarely enter the liberal arts, and even fewer enter the science department. Probably because the law is a shortcut to being an official. Because I want to be an official, I don't ask the teacher the depth of knowledge, but only the size of the official position. People with high rankings are particularly popular, probably for the convenience of graduates to get support. At present, most of the political and legal workers in our country enter politics, and there are few full-time professors, so it is a last resort to hire teachers and have to hire part-time people. It goes without saying that the best way to eliminate criticism is to improve your own level. We have a clear conscience when others say that we are corrupt. What is there to be afraid of? If you really want to be an official and make a fortune, there are many junior colleges in Beijing. If you enter the law department, you can go to law school to study. If you enter the economics department, you can apply at the business school. Why did you come to Peking University? Therefore, you should have a firm purpose to seek knowledge, not to be an official; Entering the economics department is not for making a fortune. Once the purpose is set, everything will be on the right track. You don't have much time to study here, either for three years or four years. If you can cherish time and study hard, you will achieve great results. If the purpose is not just to get rich and be an official, there is a problem. Don't study hard at ordinary times, and then read the handouts carefully before the exam, regardless of whether you gain knowledge or not, you only earn grades; As soon as the exam was over, I threw all my books aside and spent three or four years in a daze. With a diploma, I can swim in the society. Isn't this against the original intention of entering the university? Idle time, no study, is delaying yourself. Besides, in the war of 1911, we were revolutionary because of the corruption of the Qing court. Even now, many people are dissatisfied with the government because of the moral decay of society. If you don't lay a good foundation and study hard at this time, you will be forced to be a lecturer by your livelihood in the future, which will definitely delay students. Entering the officialdom will delay the country and others. Who wants to do this when you mistake others for yourself? So the purpose can't be unfair. This is my first hope for all of you.
Second, we should try our best to temper our virtue. Nowadays, the atmosphere is more and more perfunctory, and only cares about the present, especially Beijing society. There are many things that corrode virtue. Those who are not firmly rooted in virtue are at least not polluted by this ethos. When studying in a university, you should be self-disciplined and cherish yourself. The rise and fall of a country depends on the social atmosphere. If we all follow this trend, the future will be unimaginable. Therefore, there must be excellent people to set an example and try to correct the decadent social atmosphere. As a college student, your position is very high, and you should bear this responsibility, so you should not only think about how to improve yourself, but also set an example for others. Suppose you don't cultivate yourself, don't preach, and go along with the decadent social atmosphere, which is an insult to yourself, let alone become an example to others. However, if you study hard at your desk all day without entertainment, you will definitely feel tired and miserable. I plan for you, it is better to replace inappropriate entertainment interaction with appropriate entertainment activities, which will not damage your virtue, but also be good for your health. When you entered your major, you had filled out the application form and followed the rules and regulations of our school. If you violate it halfway, doesn't it mean something different from the beginning? Therefore, it is impossible to treat and cultivate without strict conduct. This is my second hope for you.
The third is to love teachers and friends. Teachers teach knowledge, and staff serve everyone and facilitate learning. Can't everyone be indifferent? So we should treat each other sincerely, with respect and courtesy. As for students who live together, they should especially care about each other, so as to communicate with each other and learn from each other. We should not only be honest, but also encourage each other. If they are all in Peking University, we should share weal and woe. If a classmate has moral problems, misbehavior and is criticized in society, even if your morality is appropriate, it is difficult to explain, so everyone should encourage each other. When I was in Germany, whenever I went to the store to buy something, the shopkeeper would warmly treat me, pay me money and say thank you to each other. Although this is only a detail, it is necessary for communication. Besides, ordinary people, let alone open college students? For the sake of teachers and friends, this is my third hope for you.
I have only been in charge of Peking University for a few days, and I still don't know much about many school affairs. There are two plans: one is to improve the handout. It depends not only on what you teach, but also on your own study. In the future, only the outline, details and essentials will be dictated by the lecturer or the students will find their own reference, so that they can learn something and really play a role in everyone's study. The second is to buy more books. Although there are many books in our library, there are few new ones. If books are not widely bought, students' reference will be insufficient. Now we are raising money to buy more new books. In the future, books will be filled with shelves, and we can refer to them in many ways without lack of knowledge. That's what I want to tell you today. You can discuss these with me at any time when you have plenty of time.
About the author:
Cai Yuanpei (1868? 1940), a native of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, was born in Zhuji, Zhejiang, a democratic revolutionary and educator. Cai Yuanpei went to Germany and France for many times to study philosophy, literature, aesthetics, psychology and cultural history, which laid an ideological and theoretical foundation for his commitment to reforming feudal education. Former Chief Education Officer, President Peking University, President of Renmin University and President of Academia Sinica. He made great contributions to the development of new culture education in China and the establishment of bourgeois democracy in China. A first-class scholar and a model of the world? . During his tenure at Peking University from 19 17 to 1928, he was determined to reform and make Peking University look brand-new.
He proposed? Five educations? (military and national education, materialism education, civic moral education, world outlook education, aesthetic education) and? Or nature? 、? Show personality? The idea of children education. He tried to replace family education with preschool children's public education gradually through the experiment and promotion of poor children's homes, and finally realized preschool children's public education ideal. He is an advocate of modern aesthetic education in China. He advocates aesthetic education from three aspects: family education, school education and social education. He envisions aesthetic education for preschool children through three institutions: prenatal education as the starting point of aesthetic education; Let babies and their mothers live in an environment composed of natural beauty and artistic beauty; Do you think aesthetic education in kindergartens can be realized by dancing, singing and handcraft? Aesthetic education topic? On the other hand, we should make full use of aesthetic education factors in other courses, such as? Calculations and speeches should also cater to their aesthetic feeling from the arrangement and tone, and should not be boring algorithms and grammar. ? Educational works include Selected Works of Cai Yuanpei's Education and Selected Works of Cai Yuanpei's Education.