Chen Heqin, an educational book, is the first in China to study children's psychology by diary method. Through the follow-up study of his eldest son, Chen Yiming, he explored the psychological development and educational laws of children in China, and wrote the first textbook of children's psychology in China-A Study of Children's Psychology. His Family Education is the first book written in China under the guidance of modern children's learning principles and combined with personal parenting experience, which established Chen Heqin's historical position as a pioneer of modern family education.
Educational practice: The first experimental kindergarten in China, Nanjing Gulou Kindergarten, founded by 1923 was studied in an all-round way, and the practice of Chinese-style and scientific kindergarten education was explored, and a systematic and national preschool education thought was summarized. 1940, he founded Jiangxi Experimental Kindergarten, the first public experimental preschool normal school in China, formally put forward the theory of life education, and started a systematic experiment of "life education".
Emphasize that the basic principle of teaching is "doing". The so-called "doing" is not limited to doing it with both hands. What you hear and see (observation, investigation and research) are included, which is what we usually call "practice". If children want to acquire real knowledge, they should "learn by doing", and teachers should "learn by doing" and "make progress by doing" together.
(1) Oppose semi-colonial and semi-feudal preschool education, and advocate Chinese preschool education suitable for national conditions;
He criticized kindergartens at that time for copying Japanese or European and American textbooks and teaching methods, completely ignoring the national conditions of China. At the same time, he actively promoted pre-school education to serve ordinary people in China and cultivate a new generation of the nation.
(2) Oppose death education and advocate life education;
Mr. Chen Heqin opposes the death education of burying human nature and reading dead books. During the Anti-Japanese War, he established "life education" with the mission of experimenting with new education.