(1) The training goal of "real talent and real morality": Yan Yuan advocated that schools should cultivate "people with real talent and real morality". The so-called "people of real talent and practical virtue" are talents with high moral character and true talents and practical learning. There are two kinds of "practical talents and practical people", one is a generalist who "strives to be perfect from top to bottom", and the other is a professional talent who "stops refining and refining for life".
(2) Educational content of "true learning" and "practical learning": In order to cultivate "practical talents and practical people", in terms of educational content, Yan Yuan put forward the proposition of "true learning" and "practical learning". He vigorously advocated the "six houses", "three things" and "three things" at that time. Its core lies in the emphasis on the "six arts" education.
(3) "Xi Xing" Teaching Method: Emphasizing the "Xi Xing" teaching method is one of the most basic and important propositions of Yan Yuan on teaching methods after the transformation of academic thinking. He repeatedly emphasized that "practice" is the most important way to read and learn. The new teaching method mentioned by Yan Yuan emphasizes that in the teaching process, it is necessary to link with reality, and it is necessary to adhere to practice and practice, believing that only in this way can the knowledge learned be truly useful.
It should be pointed out that Yan Yuan's emphasis on "xixing" is not a rejection of learning book knowledge through reading and speaking. He advocated that reading and preaching must be combined with "practice and practice," and that more effort and greater energy should be devoted to "practice."
(1) The educational policy of "five educations" at the same time
At the beginning of 1912, Cai Yuanpei published an article entitled "Opinions on the Educational Policy", which put forward the educational idea of "five educations at the same time" for military and national education, practical education, civic morality education, world outlook education and aesthetic education, which became the theoretical basis for formulating the education policy for the first year of the Republic of China. (1) Military and national education: He advocated introducing military education into schools and social education, so that students and the public received certain military education and training. In school education, he emphasized the militarization of student life, especially the militarization of sports. (2) Pragmatic education: that is, "taking the people's livelihood as the backbone of general education", close the relationship between education and national economic life, strengthen the training of vocational skills, so that education can play a role in improving the national economic capacity and improving the people's living standards; (3) Civic moral education: "Teaching is based on civic morality". (4) Worldview education: Worldview education is original to Cai Yuanpei and regards it as the highest realm of education. That is, it is necessary to cultivate people's concepts and spiritual realms that are based on the phenomenal world but are detached from the phenomenal world and close to the physical world. (5) Aesthetic education: that is, through aesthetic education, the use of aesthetic education, which transcends the boundaries between interests and the boundaries of people and self, to break the consciousness of the phenomenal world, cultivate and purify people's hearts. Therefore, aesthetic education is the main way of worldview education. Vigorously advocating aesthetic education is an important feature of Cai Yuanpei's educational thinking and practice.
(2) Reform Peking University
In December 1916, Cai Yuanpei was appointed president of Peking University and carried out a comprehensive reform of Peking University. First, hold the purpose and change the school spirit: (1) change the concept of students; (2) rectify the teaching team, and recruit teachers who are enthusiastic about learning; (3) develop research institutes, accumulate books, and guide teachers and students' research interests. (4) Cultivate virtue and cultivate legitimate interests. Second, implement the principle of "freedom of thought, inclusiveness"; third, professors govern the school and manage democratically: (1) establish an executive council; (2) establish a academic council and a academic affairs office; (3) establish a general affairs office. Fourth, the reform of the discipline and teaching system: (1) Expand the liberal arts and change the idea of "light learning and heavy skills". (2) Communication and liberal arts, abolition of departments. (3) Change the grade system to a subject selection system (credit system).
The enlightenment of Cai Yuanpei's higher education thought on contemporary higher education reform: (1) Universities must have their own correct positioning - institutions that study advanced learning. (2) Universities should pay attention to the all-round development of students. (3) Universities should practice democratic management and delegate power to professors. (4) Parallel system of major and minor; (5) Pay attention to teachers, but also adopt an inclusive approach, and cannot only pay attention to academic qualifications.
(3) Educate independent thought
As a trend of thought, "educational independence" germinated before the "May Fourth" and flourished in the 1920s. Around the time of "May Fourth", due to the arrears of education funds and the arrears of salaries to teachers and staff, the wave of petitions, strikes, and school strikes arose one after another. In order to maintain the normal progress of education, the education circles launched a struggle for the independence of education funds from the Beiyang government, thus forming a broad trend of educational independence, and established the "National Education Independence Games".
The basic requirements for educational independence: (1) Independence of education funds: The government designates a fixed amount of money, which is dedicated to education funds and may not be diverted for other purposes. (2) Educational administrative independence: the establishment of institutions dedicated to educational administration, not attached to government departments, presided over by professionals who understand education. (3) Educational academic and content independence: can freely edit, publish, select textbooks, etc.
![Born around 1990, Yan Yuan, who was suspected of being separated from his father on a train to Nanning City in 1995, was looking for relatives[fig]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=)