Unforgettable three teachers and principals
Xie Fengcai's manuscript was sorted out by Xiang Hong
My three mentors and principals are the three noble people in my life and the guides of my life path, whose intellectual talents and personality charm have influenced my life. They are Xie Tingxuan, principal of Gongxiang Central National Primary School in Neijiang County, Deng Xuecheng, principal of Neijiang County Girls' Middle School, and Zou Zuosheng, principal of Neijiang Normal School in southern Sichuan. These three gentlemen are not only my mentors and principals, but also made important contributions to the anti-Japanese war culture education of Neijiang township primary schools during the Republic of China, the education of Neijiang girls' middle school and the teacher education in their hometown in the early days of the founding of New China, which are worthy of being remembered by history and remembered by future generations.
1. Xie Tingxuan, the principal of the primary school, is my uncle and a township principal who actively promotes the culture of the Anti-Japanese War in his hometown
I was born in December 1935 in the "Xie Family Sugar Factory" in Gong's hometown, Neijiang County. At that time, the "Xie Family Compound" where we lived together was built on the edge of Gong's hometown, and the Gongxiang Central National Primary School I attended was located in the most lively center of the township, and the principal was Xie Tingxuan (genealogy and genealogy name Xie Mingyang), who was also my uncle. Uncle studied private school since he was a child, and he had a solid foundation in Chinese studies, first studied in Sichuan Law and Politics School, and then graduated from the Yunnan Army Martial Arts School, served in Cai Yijun, returned to his hometown during the Anti-Japanese War, and served as the principal of Gong's hometown Central National Primary School and the head of Gong's hometown, and also served as a Chinese teacher in the upper grades.
The uncle and principal were very knowledgeable and well-informed, wrote ancient poems, wrote couplets, made people feel that they were in good practice, and the calligraphy was particularly beautiful. He is also a master of abacus, he taught me to plan the plate, left and right bows, both hands at the same time, ninety-nine to one, fast and accurate. When I was a child, in my uncle's room, I also saw the photo of him in military uniform (with feathers on his hat) when he served in Cai Yi's army, majestic, young and handsome, and so aura.
My uncle was an anti-Japanese principal who was respected by the villagers. He often propagated the idea of the Anti-Japanese War in Gong's hometown. "The country is broken, and China will not die! The soldiers are fighting in the front, and we are in the rear!" These anti-Japanese ideas gradually took root in our young hearts. He wrote the anti-Japanese nursery rhyme "One, Two, Three Sun Yat-sen" for the children of Gong's hometown Central Primary School, wrote and directed the anti-Japanese street drama "Today I Sell Anti-Japanese Sugar", and organized students to perform on the school and village stage. When he was the principal, the school also accepted two young teachers who had lost their homes and fled from outside the Guan, and they were a husband and wife who had been living in the school. The children received the vouchers and took them to the teahouse in the countryside to go to the charity sale on the "Fengchang Day" (market day), and the money received was handed over to the school, and then handed over to the county government by the school to support the anti-Japanese soldiers of the Sichuan Army in front to buy warm cotton clothes. The primary school students in Gong's hometown received the baptism of anti-Japanese thoughts, and also contributed a meager strength to the anti-Japanese culture in the towns and villages of Sichuan, the rear of the Anti-Japanese War. More than half a century has passed, and I still remember the anti-Japanese nursery rhyme "One, Two, Three Sun Yat-sen" written by my uncle and principal for our children, and everyone in Gong's hometown middle and primary school could sing it at that time.
One two three
Sun Yat-sen;
Five-six-seven,
Chairman Lin; ("Chairman Lin" refers to Lin Sen, then Chairman of the National Government)
Eight nine ten
Chairman Chiang took a plane;
Flying, dropping bombs,
Thousands of Japanese soldiers were killed.
……
The street drama "Today I Sell Anti-Japanese Sugar" features Jin Zhi, a primary school student, played by my classmate cousin Xie Fenglan. Although I was young, I was not idle, and I helped sing behind the scenes. The lines in the play, I still remember a few sentences:
The Japan devils are hegemons, seize China's northeast, kill our compatriots, and implement the three-light policy. Although I am young, I am here to sell anti-Japanese candy today.
Chairman Chiang ate the anti-Japanese candy I sold, commanded the battle to have strength, bought guns and sent them to the front; Chairman Lin ate the anti-Japanese candy I sold and organized young men and women to go to the front; The principal ate the anti-Japanese candy I sold and educated the students to publicize the anti-Japanese strength.
……
Since my uncle and aunt had no children, they accepted me and my younger brother as righteous daughters and sons (goddaughters and godsons), especially after my father died in the line of duty in 1942 to raise funds for the Anti-Japanese War and suffered a car accident, my uncle and aunt regarded our sisters and brothers as their own and cared for them. My uncle and principal often taught me to write, practice calligraphy, and urged me to practice abacus. My aunt, He Xiangyun, is knowledgeable and reasonable, and has taught me to memorize the "Three Character Classic" and "Zengguang Xianwen" since I was a child. She also fried good dishes, and when there were guests at home, she was the chef. My aunt's family is in Yinshan Town, Neijiang County, and every time I go back to my parents' house, I always take me to enjoy the warmth of family affection. To this day, when I think of the care of my uncle and aunt in my childhood, a warm current flows in my heart.
2. Deng Xuecheng, the principal of the girls' middle school, - the most memorable debate competition she organized was undoubtedly a "enlightening" baptism for the students of our girls' middle school
After graduating from primary school in Gong's hometown, I was admitted to the middle school in the county and walked from the countryside to Neijiang County. First, she studied at the private Tuojiang Girls' High School in Neijiang County for one semester. From September 1947 to the end of 1949, I transferred to Neijiang County Girls' High School to study in junior high school. Due to the distance from home in the county seat and the inconvenient transportation, I have always lived and studied at the school. In the girls' middle school, I met the second teacher, the principal, Deng Xuecheng. The study of the girls' middle school and the teaching of Principal Deng were the first light source of enlightenment in my life, which opened a new sky for me, like opening the door to a new world, not only learning modern cultural knowledge, but also gradually cultivating my ability to think independently.
Principal Deng is a returnee headmistress with a fragrant soul, majoring in oil painting at the University of Berlin in Germany. Her words and deeds are very elegant, very personable, like to wear traditional Chinese clothes cheongsam, walk a word, gestures from the inside to the outside exude a calm, elegant and confident, showing the beauty of oriental women, at that time we girls all feel that their principal is the most beautiful goddess. In this graduation photo of female middle school students in June 1944, you can still get a glimpse of Principal Deng's temperament deeply rooted in her bones, and even today you can feel the unique charm of this returnee female principal who studied art.
Under the leadership of Principal Tang, the educational philosophy of the girls' high school is modern and forward-looking. She has a broad mind, always cares about her students, and often admonishes and inspires girls in her group lectures to all students every Monday, "Look at things higher and farther". The living room, study and bedroom of her apartment are all open to female middle school students, and dozens of photo albums from studying in Europe and studying at the University of Berlin are placed in the living room and study room for students to watch and enjoy, which is an eye-opener for us teenage girls. She wants to use her own personal experience and the path she has taken to guide and inspire girls to go further and fly higher, planting the seeds for us to open our eyes to the world. She instructed the students of the girls' middle and high school to choreograph and stage Cao Yu's drama "Thunderstorm" by themselves, which has a positive significance for the girls' ideological enlightenment. What is especially memorable and meaningful is that when I was in my third year of junior high school, she instructed all the girls in the school (including junior high school and high school) to hold a debate competition entitled "Should Women Go to the Kitchen".
This debate competition, which had no conclusion and no standard answer, even affected my life and led me to strive to be a strong, independent, and intelligent woman. At that time, I thought it was so strange and fun that there was such a form of competition without answers. (Author's note: Similar to the "Asia-Pacific College Chinese Debate Open", which is gradually known to Chinese talents after the reform and opening up, there is only a debate topic and a positive and negative side, and there is no conclusion form)
Looking back now, I think that the debate competition I experienced in the women's middle school was indeed a debate meeting that emancipated the mind, enlightened the mind, and used the brain. The class number is an odd number of classes, such as 1 class, 3 classes, 5 classes, 7 classes, 9 classes...... It belongs to the positive side, and the debate topic is "women should go into the kitchen". Class numbers are even-numbered classes, such as Class 2, Class 4, Class 6, Class 8, Class 10...... is the opposite, the debate is "women should not break into the kitchen". I remember that the debate went on for a whole week, debating for four hours every afternoon, and all the students in the girls' high school were required to participate, either the debaters or the audience.
There is an end to the debate competition, and there is no end to independent thinking. At that time, most of my sisters of the same age were illiterate and illiterate, and even if a few of them read like a female middle school student, most of them had early children and entered the family. After this "Enlightenment", after a week of debate, I felt that all the girls around me were thinking independently: "Do I want to be a professional woman?" Should I go into the kitchen?" At that time, although I was just a spectator, and I didn't have the opportunity to express my opinions openly like a debater, I also began to secretly have an idea in my heart, "It is best for girls to have knowledge and ability, to stand firm in society, to be self-reliant, and not to rely on anyone." Independent professional women are the most attractive, and I don't want to, and I won't be punched into the kitchen. (Editor's note: It seems that this debate tournament did have a great impact on the mother.) I remember that most of my mother's energy was focused on her career and teaching, and she rarely went into the kitchen. Household chores such as cooking and stir-frying are generally done by my father and grandmother.)
3. Zou Zuosheng, the principal of the Normal School, whose perseverance and integrity guided and opened my career path as a qualified mathematics teacher
In 1950, I was admitted to the middle school teacher class of Neijiang Normal School. After three years of teaching and four principals, the most impressive is Principal Zou Zuosheng, who is my mentor. In a person's life, in fact, the most important thing is those few steps, and if you take the right way, it will affect your life. Principal Zou was the mentor who helped guide me when I walked at a critical fork in the road.
In the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Neijiang Normal School was located on the hill of Tongziba in the suburbs of Neijiang (author's note: that is, the old campus of Neijiang Normal University). We held classes in the "three classrooms" of blue bricks and black tiles halfway up the mountain, and the girls' dormitory was in the "nunnery" on the top of the mountain. At that time, most of my classmates were very poor and only had one pair of shoes. I was afraid that my shoes would get wet when it rained, so I took off my shoes and lifted them to my hands when I returned to the dormitory after the evening self-study, and walked back to the "nunnery" dormitory on the mountain with bare feet and shallow feet. It's okay in summer, but if it's cold in winter, I will return to the dormitory with my feet red from the cold, and I will lose consciousness for a while. I still remember that near the "nunnery" is a mass grave in the wilderness, when it encounters thunder, rain, lightning and thunder, the surrounding grave is phosphorescent and shining, and the timid girls are frightened into a ball. However, although the conditions for running the school were difficult at that time, the students lived a serious, tense and cheerful campus life. Our current class of students enrolled in 1950 and were the first Neijiang normal students trained by the People's Republic of China. It was an era full of passion and dreams, everyone cherished learning opportunities, and the school was full of vigorous spirit.
President Zou is a member of the Democratic League who is erudite, has a noble personality and persistent pursuit of faith. He is open-minded, honest and kind, fair, and principled, and is very respected by teachers and students. I remember that in 1951, as a representative of Neijiang teachers, he attended the "National Conference on Primary Education" held in Beijing. At that time, it was not easy for Neijiang people to go to Beijing to hold a conference. At that time, the teachers and classmates of our normal school were overjoyed and rushed to tell each other, and everyone was envious.
Since President Zou is a member of the Democratic League, he also taught our class the course "Common Program". I learned for the first time that the "Common Program of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference" was a program for the founding of the country jointly formulated by various democratic parties, people's organizations, and people's representatives of various nationalities under the leadership of the Communist Party of China.
During his tenure, President Zou attached great importance to the training of student cadres, and according to the needs of his work, he would select and send student cadres to participate in some social work, such as being selected to be the recorder of the "land reform" task force, assisting in the propaganda work of "resisting US aggression and aiding Korea", and so on. It's also a growth exercise for our students.
In addition to my good academic performance, I was active and motivated in all aspects, and served as the secretary of the class Youth League branch. By the time I graduated, I was able to continue my studies and be admitted to a teacher's college based on the comprehensive assessment. However, at that time, the Neijiang Youth League Municipal Committee wanted to select me to go to the middle school to be a full-time League cadre. At this time, I myself was confused and distressed. On the one hand, I would love to go to university and continue to further my math major. On the other hand, my family had no financial resources at that time, and life was very difficult, and my younger brother was about to enter junior high school, so I also wanted to work early to help the family. Besides, at that time, I couldn't make my own decisions about my future. At this critical fork in the road, President Zou resisted the pressure and insisted on recommending me to go to university to continue my training and take the path of professional development. At the recommendation meeting, he decisively stated: New China is in dire need of professionals and is in urgent need of professionals. Xie Fengcai's outstanding academic performance and love for mathematics should be allowed to continue her studies and take the path of professional development. President Zou is far-sighted and is protecting his students, and a person like me, who is high in composition and has a bad background, in that special era, wants to be a full-time League cadre, and the future can be imagined. If it weren't for President Zou's persistence, I wouldn't be where I am today. It was precisely because of the persistence of my teacher and principal that my dream of studying mathematics at a normal college was fulfilled, and I later had a career as a mathematics teacher.
There are always things that you will never forget; There are always some people who make you awe-inspired. The influence of the three mentors and principals has changed the path of my life. These subtle educations have benefited me for a lifetime and influenced my whole life. The best commemoration is inheritance, and the highest tribute is to forge ahead. After graduating from university, I also became a teacher who taught and educated people, sticking to the three-foot podium, loving children like children, and contributing my life to the cause of secondary education in my hometown of Neijiang without regrets.
Looking back on the past, there are teachers who have met along the way, how lucky!
I would like to use this article to commemorate and cherish the memory of three teachers and principals: Xie Tingxuan, Deng Xuecheng, and Zou Zuosheng.
postscript
My mother, Xie Fengcai, has left me. Because of the manuscripts left by my mother, I was fortunate enough to be able to communicate with that distant era. My mother's manuscript is not only a long-sealed record of her personal past, but also a bit of a supplement to the education in Neijiang, her hometown in the early days of the Republic of China and New China. Her life experience and stories are of precious value for understanding the style and cultural education of that era in Neijiang, carrying historical memories and inner feelings.
Obviously, my mother was not only a beloved and respected math teacher, but also a fluent writer thanks to her education, telling her own stories while maintaining a rational eye to examine the memories in her head. History is a mirror, which reflects the past events, and reflects the imprint of the times and the warmth and brilliance of human personality. The experience of life has taught my mother that these things are worth embracing and writing.
The people have passed away, and the bonfire has been burning for a long time. As a mother's daughter, the author hopes that these people and these things can be known by more people, fill in the records of ordinary and extraordinary people and events that have contributed to the education of Neijiang in his hometown at that time, and feel the common emotions and memories that belong to both the mother and the hometown; It is hoped that these people and these things, in the practice of accelerating the construction of a strong country in education and a strong province in education, will encourage educators in their hometowns to build a better home with a more energetic and promising mental state, and bloom a new style of self-confidence and self-improvement era.
The content of this article is original
Please indicate: "Source: Fang Zhi Sichuan"
Source: Sichuan Provincial Office of Local Chronicles
Author: Xie Fengcai (female, born in December 1935, graduated from Guiyang Normal University majoring in mathematics. Before his retirement, he was a high school mathematics teacher in Neijiang No. 1 Middle School in Sichuan Province, and served as the head of mathematics teaching and research for 28 years. Passed away in June 2022)