Editor's note: The results of the college entrance examination across the country have been released one after another. Then it's time to volunteer, not only about the prediction of the score line, but also about the choice of schools and majors, which in turn will be directly related to future employment.
Times are changing rapidly. In the past few years, the Internet has boomed, and the dividend has gradually faded in recent years; in the early years, the financial industry has become hot, and today's economic situation has made many practitioners laugh at themselves as "financial migrant workers". If the trend of AI replacing labor is taken into account, then how to choose a profession and occupation is even more confusing.
Although the problems are endless, the solution ideas are the same. In the 20th century, when modern Chinese universities were just emerging, people encountered similar problems. So, what advice did the most famous educators and thinkers of the time give?
Hu Shi on the choice of departments:
Don't take myopic glasses to see your future and future
Principal, Chairman, and Students:
I just heard the Chairman say that today everyone is very happy and excited, I think you will definitely protest, in this hot weather, I want everyone to huddle together and suffer, my heart is really uneasy, I want to apologize to you one hundred percent.
What exactly was I going to talk about two days ago? I asked Principal Qian and several friends, and they were very polite and did not give me questions, even the chairman did not give me questions. Today is an invitation from the National Taiwan University Congress, so I would like to talk about the lives of college students, contribute my personal or several friends' experiences to everyone, and perhaps as a mirror for all students, to give you a little hint.
I have heard many friends say that at present, when many students choose a subject department, from the perspective of the teacher, they are inevitably short-sighted and tend to be utilitarian. The more talented people go to the medical and engineering departments, and only go into the practical aspects, but do not choose the basic disciplines. For example, medical students, internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics, gynecology, there are many candidates, and basic disciplines such as biochemistry, pathology, very few young people to choose to read, which makes me feel that today's young people are short-sighted, with myopic glasses to see their future and future. The first thing I want to talk about today is to contribute to you based on the experience of our older generation in the selection department. I'll tell you a story.
I remember forty-eight years ago, I was admitted to the government fee to go abroad, my brother specially rushed from the three eastern provinces to Shanghai to send me off, when I was leaving, I said to me, our home has long been destroyed, you go abroad to learn some useful learning, help revive the family business, revitalize the lintel, he wants me to learn to open mines or build railways, because this is relatively easy to find a job, do not learn some useless literature, philosophy and other things that have no food to eat. I said okay, the boat is about to sail. At that time, there were seventy international students who went to the United States with me, and they entered various universities. On the ship, I thought that there was no interest in mining, and I was not interested in building railroads, so I had to take a conciliatory and eclectic approach, to learn useful learning, at that time Cornell University had the best agricultural college in the United States, so I decided to go in to study scientific agronomy, perhaps to contribute to the national society! At that time, there were two reasons for entering Kangda: First, Kangda had the best agricultural college at that time, and there was no tuition fee, and you could get a monthly allowance of eighty yuan; as I said just now, my family was bankrupt, my mother was to be raised, at that time I was not married, everything was frugal, so I could get part of the money back to support my family. The other is that eighty percent of the people in our country are farmers, and in the future they will learn scientific agriculture, which may benefit the country.
In the first week of school, I suddenly received a letter from the farm practice department asking me to report. Then the professor asked me, "What farm experience do you have?" I replied, "No." "Isn't there nothing at all?" "Well, my grandfather and grandmother are authentic farmers." The professor said, "It has nothing to do with you. I said, "It's because I didn't have it, I want to learn!" Later he asked, "Have you washed the horse?" I said, "No." "I told him Chinese farming without horses. So the teacher first taught me to wash the horse, he washed one side, I washed the other side. He asked me if I would take a ride, and I said no. So he taught me to set the car, the teacher set one side, I set the side, jumped up, and went around in a circle. Then I went to the farm to do the internship work of selecting seeds, and my hands blistered, but I continued to endure. Mr. Shen Zonghan of the Peasant Restoration Association wrote a book "The Study of Hardships and Hardships", and asked me to write a preface for him, and I also made a long preface for him. At that time, there were many people who studied farming, but only Mr. Shen Zonghan crossed the field barefoot and was the only one who really had farm experience. After a year of study, the grades are still good, and the homework is above eighty-five points. The next year I could choose two more credits, so I chose the science of fruit, that is, the science of apples.
It is divided into morning lectures and afternoon internships. There was nothing in class, and I was very interested; in the afternoon internship, the walking practice room, there were thirty apples of various colors on the table, red, yellow, and green... Shapes are round, long, elliptical, square... How long is the length of each apple to determine the scientific name of each apple according to the standards in a manual? What color are flowers? Is the meat sweet or sour? Is it soft or hard? It took two hours. I couldn't get any of it for half an hour, and I was sweating profusely, which was really sweating in winter. Look up, ah! No, those American classmates ran out of work and took the apples back to eat. They don't need to be cut open, because they are more familiar, and they can be used to the common nouns at the back of the book to determine the scientific name, which is very simple in them. I only got half of it, and half of it was wrong. Go back and ask yourself what's the use of learning this? If you rely on the vitality and memory of the time, use the last night to remember, more than 400 names can be written down to prepare for the exam. But what's the use of thinking about it? Those apples are not in Yantai in China, nor in Qingdao, nor in Anhui... I thought that scientific agronomy was useless, so I decided to change my profession, which was the first year of the Republic of China, and the country was undergoing a revolution, and perhaps it would be more beneficial to learn something else.
So, what is the standard for transferring the system? What about your own interests? Or do you look at the needs of society? When I was young, there was a poem in the "Study Abroad Diary", and now I can't memorize it. What criteria do I use for course selection? Listen to your brother? See the needs of the country? Or on your own? There are only two criteria: one is "me"; one is "society", see what society needs? What does the country need? What does modern China need? But this standard - three hundred and sixty lines in society, all lines are needed, and now it can be said that three thousand six hundred lines, from Nobel laureates to repairing toilets, society needs it, so the standards of society are not important. Therefore, when making up one's mind, one must follow one's own interests—that is, what is near sex, what one can do. Where is my interest? What is similar in nature to me? Ask me what can I do? What are you interested in? I transferred to the Faculty of Letters according to this standard. But there is another difficulty, the liberal arts have to pay fees, and quit the middle of the University of Kang, to pay the tuition fees for the previous two years, I can't take care of these.
After the help of four friends, it was reduced from eighty yuan to thirty-five yuan, and finally achieved the wish. In the Faculty of Letters, philosophy is the mainstay, with English literature, economics and political science as the three majors. Later, he mainly focused on philosophy, with economic theory and English literature as sub-subjects. After arriving at Columbia University, he still focused on philosophy, with political theory and English literature as the sub-majors. I'm sixty-eight years old now, and people ask me what I'm studying, and I don't know what to learn. I'm also interested in literature, and I've made a little contribution to the vernacular. At Peking University, I have served as the head of the Department of Philosophy, the head of the Department of Foreign Literature, the head of the Department of English Literature, the head of the Department of Chinese Literature for four years, and the heads of all five departments of the six departments of the Faculty of Letters of Peking University. Now I don't know what to learn myself. As I said just now, today's young people are too inclined to reality, and they do not rely on sexual ability to approach and choose courses as much as they can. For example, if a person with a genius for poetry does not enter the Chinese department to learn to write poetry, but wants to go to medical school to study surgery, then the College of Literature loses a first-class poet, and the country adds a third-rate, fourth-rate or even fifth-rate rice bucket surgeon, which is a loss to the country and your own loss.
Today, NTU can be said to be the only most perfect university in China, you should not have prejudices, with myopia glasses to see their future, to see their future. I heard that there are seventy-two volunteers to fill in during the entrance examination, so that the seventy-two changes, to the end, do not know what has become, the original volunteer, do not be regarded as the final decision, only as a temporary direction. When I was in college for a year or two, I was going to touch the blind touch of the east and the west. Don't be short-sighted, eighteen or nineteen-year-olds are still not able to decide their own future, career. In the first year after entering the university, I went everywhere to touch, see, and explore, and I didn't know that I wanted to learn. For example, the math in middle school was not good, and now I want to learn, and I am not interested in middle school, maybe the teacher is not good. Listen to lectures from the best professors now and may pique your interest. Mr. Good will guide you in a good direction, the first two years or even the third year is still too late, as long as you follow your own "sexual proximity, do what you can", this is the words of the Qing Dynasty Confucian Zhang Xuecheng.
Now I will tell another story, not of my own, but of Galileo, the founding master of modern science. He was Italian, his father was a famous mathematician, and his father told him not to learn his profession, which was not enough to eat, and to study medicine. He was ordered to go. At that time, Italy was the time of the Renaissance, and he was praised by professors and classmates as a "genius painter" after he went to university, and he was also very proud. His father asked him to study medicine, but he discovered a genius in fine arts. The area of Florence where he studied was an industrial area, and the local industrial leaders wanted to cultivate more scientific talents in this university and encourage students to study geometry, so in this university, he opened a geometry course for the officials and hired a professor named Ricci. One day he had been from that place, and by chance he was listening to the lectures, and some of the officials were dozing off, but the young Galileo was very interested. So I kept going on, and I was very interesting, so I changed to math. Because of his strong interest and genius, he decided to go to the east and touch the west, to find a path of interest, to create new astronomy, new physics, and finally to become a pioneering master of modern science.
When a college student chooses a discipline, he or she chooses a career. I'm sixty-eight now, and I don't know what I'm studying? I hope you don't learn from people like me who are old and unformed. Don't make a lifelong wish with one wish filled in the seventy-two volunteers, but it has not yet been decided, even if it is two or three years of college. In this complete university, there are so many good professors to guide you, and take advantage of this opportunity. What is needed in society, don't care about him, the father, mother, brother, friend, etc. at home, want you to be a lawyer, be a doctor, you don't care about them, don't listen to them, just follow your own interests. I remembered that my brother asked me to learn to mine and build railways, and I didn't listen to him. I have changed myself to become an old man. My brother didn't say anything afterwards. Just myself, no one else should care about him. If we continue to learn according to the "proximity of sex and the ability of our strength", its future contribution to the country may be much greater than that of the disciplines blindly selected or passively selected now, and the future prospects are unlimited. Class is over! Class is over! Thank you.
(This article is Hu Shi's speech at the Law School of National Taiwan University in June 1958, originally published in Taipei University News on June 19, 1958, with deletions from this article)
Mei Yiqi on the significance of the university:
Today's lectures on learning cannot be completely divorced from the problems of people's society
This year, we welcome the new students to the school, which feels more meaningful, because this year's new class is more numerous than in previous years; and because in this difficult period of the country, and in a very dangerous region, there are so many young people who come to study with us, so we welcome the kings this time more than when we welcome the new students in previous years.
We believe that a university does not have to test its grades or evaluate its efficiency by the number of students, but when the number of students is not too large, we are willing to try to admit it, so that we can give more young people the opportunity to study. Therefore, not only in this sense, but also because several schools in Beiping do not recruit students this summer, the number of people we have admitted this time is not only large, but also more than enough. At that time, in view of the admission of new students in previous years, there were always dozens of people who did not go to school, so according to the existing capacity of the dormitory, an additional 20%, as a new student quota, in case the number of kings arriving at the school exceeded the number of people we calculated, of course, we could not refuse, but everything in the dormitory, everyone should squeeze more, temporarily from power.
Most of the princes graduated from secondary school, and a small number of them were transferred from other universities. The methods of universities and secondary schools are different; that is, they are the same universities, and there are many differences in the policies and atmospheres of each school. The history of the university and the policy plan of the university will soon be able to have the opportunity to talk to the kings, and now when the kings first enter this campus, I would like to say a few words to you first:
1. The ambition of the princes to come out of middle school and then enter a university wants to study some advanced scholarship, which is valuable. When the kings entered the university, they still had to be provided by their fathers and brothers for four years, which is not easy for most of them today; moreover, this year, when every monarch has passed the examination, six or seven have not been taken, and this opportunity is also a rare opportunity. Then after the kings arrive at the school, they must hold this ambition, work hard, and do not let this good opportunity be missed lightly. Tsinghua can be regarded as a good university in China, although it is incomplete, there are still many, the kings come here, we hope not to pay too much attention to the good scenery, the comfort of food and housing. Gentlemen should pay more attention to the equipment in which we study for you, and be able to make full use of this opportunity.
2, Tsinghua's atmosphere has always been pure and studious, which can also be said to be because the terrain is in the countryside, less affected by the city, in fact, the big reason is that the teachers and students in this school have always paid attention to learning, taking into account the overall situation, so although there have been several storms, everyone's studies have not been interrupted, which is a rare phenomenon in China today. But it is very difficult to cultivate the atmosphere of a school, but it is very easy to destroy it; the princes are now a member of Tsinghua, and in the next four years, the actions of the princes will affect the transfer of the atmosphere of Tsinghua, and we hope that the princes will love it, maintain it, and improve it, and I say "reform", because we know that there are still many places that are not neat, or that everyone has not paid much attention to. Although it is a very small thing in a large group (when a person lives alone, it is very unnecessary to pay attention), if you get up casually, it may have a very bad effect. Therefore, just like the quietness of the dormitory, the cleanliness of the canteen, and the order of the library, although they are all extracurricular problems, they are also very related to everyone's spirit, and for the sake of the public interest, everyone should pay special attention.
3. If we are preaching today, if we are completely divorced from the question of people's society, it is too empty, and in the present situation where the country is in a state of urgent internal and external troubles, especially the enthusiastic young people, how can they not be concerned? How can you not be in a hurry? But zealousness alone cannot be truly subsidized by the state. The kings came to the school precisely to study the methods of saving the country from learning, and at the same time to train individuals in a special service, so that during this period they must take the spirit of supplication and study it in earnest. We must be independent in our thinking, be humble in our attitude, do not blindly follow, do not rush in, and where we have suffered losses before, most of them are due to the fact that we have not recognized the facts clearly, and we should experiment with the half-ripe doctrine, as if eating half-ripe fruit is not only of no benefit to the body, but also has a stomachache. The ancients had a saying: "Seven years of sickness, three years of love, not an animal, not for life." We can quote this meaning. Even if we want to solve China's big problems, it is not a matter of one or two months or one or two years, although it is urgent and difficult at present, our young people still have to be patient and patient, and discuss it step by step in a down-to-earth manner. If after four years, each of you can get a kind of knowledge or skill, become a useful talent in society, and help the country solve some of its difficulties, then the kings can be worthy of themselves and worthy of society, which is what we hope most from the kings.
Liang Shuming talks about choosing a career:
Subjective choice or objective randomness are very good, and the worst thing is that the heart is not simple
On the issue of career choice, I think the best attitude is two:
(1) Decide from your own subjective side. Look at yourself at the point where you are most gracious and forceful; or at what you are most interested in. For example, if you are very touched by social problems and the problem of national peril, or you have a deep idea of filial piety to your parents, or you are unwilling to shirk the burden of family and friends,...... These places are real requirements. Interest is what you like, there are many aspects, where your interest lies, that is, where your own wisdom lies. Both of these aspects are subjective conditions. From here, decide what you want to learn or do: learn this or that, do this or that. However, although your subjective requirements and interests are the same, the surrounding environment does not necessarily have the opportunity to give you; the opportunity given to you may not be in line with your requirements and interests. At this time, if the positive subjective force is strong, it is probably possible to open up this situation sooner or later. That is, the so-called "those who have the will, the things will be done".
(2) It is naturally determined by objective chance. It's also a good attitude. Put your heart very wide, as if you can do everything, and express yourself with the opportunity of the outer edge to do your best. At this time, although I have no choice, I naturally have a choice. This attitude is not persistent at all, and it is also very generous.
The worst thing is that there are no strong requirements subjectively, the interest is not clear, it is not real, and I still have some opinion choices that I can't give up, so there are many differences between agreeable and undesirable in the surrounding environment. These distinctions cannot be solved—on the one hand, they cannot overcome him subjectively, from an undesirable environment to a satisfactory environment; on the other hand, they cannot be as generous and unattended as the second attitude is—and they are prone to feeling bitter. The source of bitterness lies in the fact that the mind is not simple, the meaning is complex. Here I can talk about myself and give you a reference.
Personally, in retrospect, I feel that my personality requirements or personal will were very strong in the past. The most obvious thing is that after graduating from secondary school, he refused to go to school, and after the revolution, he wanted to become a monk. It can be seen that their own requirements and interests are very strong, and they are not careful outside. From here we turn to the study of philosophy, from philosophy to the study of social problems and to social movements; this seems to proceed much from the subjective side. But for many years I actually felt that I had a very lenient attitude, not very stubborn, and the meaning of fate occupied a great place in my heart. As far as my interests are concerned, the thing I would like to do now is to give me a chance to calmly write down the truths I have seen, such as my sociological views and philosophical views, which I really think is the only happy thing in life. But there are still many administrative matters to deal with, and I know that people are not good at doing things, so sometimes I feel bitter. But I'm not stubborn, I almost put me there, and as the flow of nature goes, I feel a little more lenient. "Not stubborn", "follow fate", somewhat Confucian meaning of "Destiny of Heaven". Whenever I myself have some difficulties and have some feelings, I will go with the flow.
That's probably the case with me. Students should judge personal problems from all aspects of subjectivity and objectivity, or partial to learning, or partial to things, what kind of learning to govern, what kind of things to do, to make a decision, and to work hard.
Source: Phoenix Readings