Beijing News (reporter Ma Jinqian) Cai Yuanpei, who has the concept of education to save the country, returned from France and accepted the letter of appointment of the president of Peking University under the Beiyang government. Under its "inclusive" concept of running a school, the old Peking University has rapidly innovated, rejuvenated the trend of research and learning, attracted a group of fighters who shouldered the banner of cultural revolution, and created a precedent for coeducation in modern universities in China.
The "Bureaucratic Cultivation Institute" began to study advanced learning
"I don't go to hell who goes to hell." After receiving a letter of appointment from Li Yuanhong, Cai Yuanpei became the president of Peking University, but his heart was not easy.
Cai Yuanpei's letter of appointment as president of Peking University. Beijing News reporter Pu Feng photographed
At that time, Peking University was full of abuses, most of the students were candidates for Beijing officials and foreign officials, and they only wanted to mix diplomas as a stepping stone to promote and get rich, and most of the extracurricular activities were improper pastimes such as eating, drinking, gambling, and so on. It was no easy task to transform this warlord-encrusted yamen-style old school into a truly modern university, and the president became a "high-risk profession" instead.
However, Cai Yuanpei believes that the fundamental way out of rejuvenating China lies in "popularizing the ideas of the new and new from day to day" and "although Peking University is notorious, the strategy of reform is not indispensable." ”
On January 9, 1917, in his inaugural speech, Cai Yuanpei criticized the campus for being an official and making a fortune, and declared his reform goal: to transform this "bureaucratic cultivation center" into an institution that "studies advanced learning."
Start with yourself. Cai Yuanpei has always wanted to transform Peking University into a big family where teachers, students, employees are equal, united and fraternal, and harmonious and mutually helpful.
Changing the style of the former principals who are high and high, treating teachers, students and employees equally, getting off the bus at the school gate and bowing to the school staff; initiating the establishment of the "Jinde Society", he joined the association as an ordinary member; Abolish the bad rules of students' "submissions" to the president, send students' various suggestions to the Peking University Journal, and select them to supervise and urge staff to implement them. At the same time, school rules and discipline are strictly enforced, and many students who are absent-minded and misbehaving are dismissed. However, the retreat was not ignored, and Cai Yuanpei was repeatedly persuaded by the retired scholar to go to the office. In the end, this student, who was regarded as unruly, also became a young man who strived to be self-motivated.
Secondly, the teaching staff should be renewed, regardless of age, seniority, and political stance, and they should show their strengths and treat them equally and never discriminate.
Under the three Gu Maolu, chen Duxiu, the "youth mentor", came to Beijing with the magazine "New Youth" and served as the dean of liberal arts at Peking University. Subsequently, Cai Yuanpei hired Hu Shi, Liu Bannong, Zhou Zuoren, and others as professors, and worked with Qian Xuantong and Shen Yinmo, who were originally at Peking University, to reform the liberal arts. Most of them are around 30 years old, of which Hu Shi and Liu Bannong are only 26 years old.
In February 1917, Chen Duxiu was inaugurated as the dean of liberal arts at Peking University, and New Youth was edited in Beijing since Vol. 3, No. 1. Beijing News reporter Pu Feng photographed
In addition, although he continued to wear long braids and was loyal to the Qing Dynasty, Gu Hongming, who was proficient in English, French, German and Greek, still hired him to teach "English Poetry"; Liu Shipei served Yuan Shikai as emperor, but his achievements in traditional Chinese studies were extremely profound, so he still hired him to teach "History of Medieval Chinese Literature"; the 24-year-old Liang Shuming only graduated from middle school, but he wrote an article on "The Doubts of Poor Yuan" in his own philosophy, which was considered to be a family word, that is, he was hired as a lecturer at Peking University.
Reform of the school system followed. Adjustment of disciplines: "Expansion" of arts and sciences II, "cut-off" engineering, "independent" law, "merged" business. Promote the management of the school by professors, and the professors decide on teaching methods, textbook selection, abolition of disciplines, and purchase of books and equipment.
Since then, the earliest university research institute has been established in China, and at the same stage, it is proposed to abolish the grade system and adopt the subject selection system.
In just two or three years, Peking University under a series of reforms has been reborn, masters have gathered, and various new theories and new trends of thought have been spewed out. Not only books, not only superiors, not superstitious authority, dare to question and criticize; spiritual independence, freedom of thought, the courage to seek differences and innovation. It can be said that spiritually and ideologically we have made full preparations for the origin of the May Fourth Movement.
There must be a war between the old and the new culture
At this time, the most fundamental contradiction in Peking University was the contradiction between the old school and the new school.
The old school is like Gu Hongming, Liu Shipei, Huang Kan and other figures who adhere to the position of traditional Chinese culture; the new school mainly refers to the new school of people with a study background centered on Chen Duxiu and Hu Shi.
Borrowing the treasure land of Peking University, Chen Duxiu and Hu Shizhi also quickly merged because of a letter of appointment from Cai Yuanpei, and the "troika" of the new cultural movement finally took shape: Chen Duxiu who stayed in Japan, Cai Yuanpei who stayed in Europe, and Hu Shizhi who stayed in the United States launched a vigorous "enlightenment movement" in the core field of Chinese culture.
Language is the core issue. Hu Shi's "Discussion on literary reform" pushes the contradiction to the extreme, demanding that the vernacular completely replace the vernacular, and use literature as the main carrier and field of vernacular literature, "completely replace the old literature from the ideological content and art form, and create a new vernacular literature in China, that is, to launch a thorough revolution against the old literature." In January 1917, as soon as "New Youth" was released, this young man who was only 26 years old suddenly became famous all over the world. Subsequently, Chen Duxiu's "Treatise on Literary Revolution" came out of nowhere, believing that only through the way of literary revolution can a complete change in literary form be realized.
The "literary revolution" has attracted the attention of young students, but this revolution is still in the embarrassing situation of "not being approved by it, and no one has yet come to oppose it".
The more radical Qian Xuantong called the conservative literati "the evil of choosing to learn and the fallacy of Tongcheng", but no one paid any attention to it. So Qian Xuantong and Liu Bannong discussed and staged a "double reed letter". With lin shu as targets by the giants of the translation industry and the Tongcheng faction, a large section of the translation of Lin Shu in the letter of "Wang Jingxuan" and Liu Bannong's reply can be counted as an open provocation. Lin Shu, who has a strong personality, could not bear this kind of open ridicule and ridicule, so he fought back, from "Jingsheng" and "Demon Dream" to "To Cai Heqing's Taishi Book", so that the "old and new controversies" were not talking to themselves left and right, but really took shape and attracted the attention of the public.
Lin Shu vigorously opposed the reform of Peking University and the new cultural movement, and publicly published the "To Cai Heqing Taishi Book", accusing Peking University of "covering Kong Meng, shoveling Lunchang" and Cai Yuanpei "based on position and power to carry out strange and strange education".
After Cai Yuanpei saw it, he immediately wrote an article on the same day. Lay out the facts and reason, have a basis for reasoning and restraint, refute them one by one, and solemnly declare: With regard to doctrine, imitate the general practices of universities in the world, follow the principle of freedom of thought, and take inclusiveness... No matter what kind of school, those who are reasonable in their words and hold on to them for a reason, and who have not yet reached the fate of natural elimination, although they are contrary to each other, listen to their free development. In the face of Cai Yuanpei's righteous and stern defense, 6 days later, Lin Shu said in his "Reply to Cai Heqing's Book Again" that the requests for respect for Confucius, not to go against morality, and not to abandon ancient Texts were all answered satisfactorily. ”
Cai Yuanpei "inclusive" manuscript. Beijing News reporter Pu Feng photographed
The Red Chamber of Peking University was the first to open a female ban
Although it is already the Republic of China, the ugly custom of male superiority over female inferiority is still deeply rooted, and "women without talent is morality" is a golden rule. The level of teaching in the girls' schools that have been opened is not very high, far from the education model of modern universities, and the national universities that offer good courses are still the world of male students.
In February 1920, an unprecedented reform measure was implemented in the Red Chamber of Peking University - the university opened a ban on women. Today, you can also see the group photo of Wang Lan, Xi Hun and Zha Xiaoyuan, the three female students first recruited by Peking University.
In his speech at the Beijing Youth Association on "The Relationship between Poor Homes and the Education of Poor Children," Cai Yuanpei advocated emulating co-educational schools in Europe and the United States: "There are no primary schools and universities in foreign countries that are not coeducational, and most middle schools in the United States are also co-educational. We do not have such an organization outside of the national primary school now... Can we still strictly adhere to the boundaries between men and women in the past and go against the trend of the world? ”
In February 1920, Peking University first opened a female ban, recruiting Wang Lan, Xi Hun and Zha Xiaoyuan to enter the school to observe, setting a precedent for coeducational schools in public universities. Beijing News reporter Pu Feng photographed
Encouraged by the content of the speech, young intellectual women in the society have written to request that Peking University open the ban on women. Cai Yuanpei fully agrees with the implementation of coeducation at Peking University, but there is still pressure from society and the government.
Gu Jiegang, a famous historian of modern China and graduated from Peking University in 1920, recalled that when a female student asked to enter Peking University to study, which made it difficult for the clerks in the school, did they agree to it? Mr. Cai said that the charter did not say that only boys and not girls were accepted, and we just took them in.
In February 1920, because his younger brother Wang Kunlun was studying at Peking University, Wang Lan first applied to the school through his younger brother. Cai Yuanpei asked Wang Kunlun, "Does she dare to come?" "She dare." "You can get her to try it." In this way, Wang Lan became the first female student at Peking University, opening a new trend of coeducation. However, due to the passing of the enrollment time, Wang Lan first audited in the first grade. Subsequently, xi hun and Zha Xiaoyuan entered Peking University as auditors, and by mid-March, six more girls had been added. In the autumn recruitment, Cai Yuanpei decided to officially recruit girls, and the above 9 girls were admitted.
Subsequently, Shanghai, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Tianjin and other places have followed suit, and female students have the opportunity to study at universities everywhere.
Beijing News reporter Ma Jinqian photojournalist Pu Feng
Edited by Chen Dong, Zhang Lei, Proofread by Jia Ning