If we talk about "the most famous Chinese university in the world with the highest success rate in more than 100 years", it is neither Peking University in the 20s nor Wuhan University in the 80s, but the "Southwest Associated University" during the Anti-Japanese War.
In November 1937, Tsinghua University, Peking University, and Nankai University merged to form "Southwest Associated University" in order to escape the war.
During the 8-year Anti-Japanese War, teachers and students were displaced and relied on renting private houses to attend classesThe cafeteria eats brown rice, and the principal relies on a stall to supplement his familyDuring the day, they had to hide from the bombing of the Japanese army, and they could only attend classes in a thatched hut in the morning and ......evening
However, it is in this environment of scarcity and war that this improvised patchwork university has become "the Everest in the history of Chinese education", creating an unparalleled educational miracle: 2 Nobel Prize winners, 5 winners of the country's highest science and technology awards, 14 "two bombs and one star" heroes, 174 academicians, and top talents from all walks of life ......
Top row, from left: Wang Zengqi, Yang Zhenning, Deng Jiaxian;Bottom row, from left: He Zhaowu, Wang Xiji, Xu Yuanchong.
Why can't the miracle of the Southwest Associated University be replicated?Scholars and alumni have concluded that contemporary universities can get one of the three academic attitudes of Southwest Associated University, which is already a good university, but those who can get three are not at all.
Attitudes towards freedom and power
The biggest feature of Southwest Associated University is academic freedom. It's up to the professor to decide what and how he or she will talk in class. The curriculum design is open, the ideological control is also open, and the school never interferes with the political thinking of teachers and students.
Whether it's progressive, conservative, or moderate;No matter which party they support or which political viewpoint they hold, although they have their own insistences, they can tolerate each other. Professors only teach students how to think, but never what to think.
At Southwest Associated University, it is not uncommon for students and teachers to erupt into arguments. Teachers often teach the same class and rob students of their knowledge. The competition is fierce, but it is still possible to work together and complement each other.
Southwest Associated University has always insisted on running a school independently and refuses to be a political vassal. It even blocked the "Three People's Principles" course imposed by Chiang Kai-shek. Even on many campuses today, such a scenario is unthinkable.
Nobel laureate and alumnus of Southwest Associated University Yang Zhenning said"A good system should allow human freedom to the greatest extent. Without the freedom to seek knowledge, without the freedom of thought, without the development of personality, there can be no individual creativity. The Southwest Associated University provided us with all of this. ”
It is this free-thinking, inclusive style of running a school that has attracted many famous teachers, professors and young talents to gather at Southwest Associated University and are willing to make extraordinary efforts for it.
However, there are also some problems with the liberal atmosphere on campus, which many scholars cannot accept, such as the attitude of many scholars in the War of Resistance Against Japan, many scholars believe that China will be defeated, and China should not fight with Japan. Every time the success or failure of the war between the two sides is reported, there will be a teacher who does not open his eyes and stands up and says what is going on, let me tell you the right ......, that kind of triumphant appearance, so that Mr. Wen Yiduo disdainful, so that he was reluctant to participate in the meal together.
Professors Association of Southwest Associated University.
Attitude towards truth and nature
China's traditional knowledge is more practical than speculative, and it is full of contempt for natural science. The backwardness of the scientific spirit and science education has led to China's long-term poverty and weakness.
In the following decades, under the influence of the Soviet Union's planning thinking, only instrumental science "experts" were trained, and the humanities were completely destroyed. This narrow understanding of "science" has caused the Chinese people to suffer so far.
However, the training method of Southwest Associated University is comparable to the best comprehensive universities in the world. The University attaches great importance to the general education of students, and encourages them to become generalists in both science and humanities, rather than "experts" with narrow knowledge.
For example, the school stipulates that students in the Grammar School must take at least one natural science, which can be selected from mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, physiology, and geology. The school is very tolerant of students' transfer of departments and even schools. For example, Lee Tsung-dao was transferred from Zhejiang University;Linguist ** Xi, first studied in the Department of Physics for a year, but sighed that "that year benefited me for life".
This emphasis is reallyThe cultivation method of science and nature satisfies every student's desire for truth and Xi to the greatest extent.
From this point of view, the Southwest UnionGreat success is no accident.
Southwest Associated University Library.
Attitudes towards Western culture and foreign languages
In order to give students an overview of ancient and modern human knowledge, Southwest Associated University also has a hard and fast rule: no matter what major, there are four courses that are compulsory: "General History of China", "Chinese Language of the First Year", "General History of the West", and "First Year English".
As a Chinese student, it is not difficult to understand that the compulsory "General History of China" and "Freshman Mandarin" are compulsory, but it is very worth saying that all students must take "General History of the West" and "Freshman English".
Whether we admit it or not, human scholarship has long been the world of English. All the knowledge of ancient and modern Western civilization has been translated into English. Articles in top journals are mostly written in English.
Therefore, even a scholar who specializes in Chinese literature and history can do no harm if he knows a little bit of English and Western history.
Southwest Associated University's emphasis on Western culture and English education is both a vision and a mind. At a time when the survival of the country and the crisis of the nation are in danger, the Southwest Associated University has not fallen into the narrow mentality of blind xenophobia.
However, in times of peace, there are often calls for "abolishing English education." In contrast, the superiority is immediate.
Xu Yuanchong, an alumnus of Southwest Associated University, is the first person in Asia to receive the "Northern Lights" Outstanding Literary Translation Award. He once described in detail what it was like to take a freshman English class and repeatedly mentioned a textbook:"Over the past eight years, the United Nations General Assembly has cultivated thousands of talents for the country, and there is not a single person who has not read "Freshman English", and there is no one who is completely unaffected by English readers and has not been imperceptibly influenced. ”
The charm of Southwest Associated University's English classThe force and the effect can be seen from this.
Southwest Associated University "Freshman English" course.
The glory of Southwest Associated University is gone, but her school song, her philosophy of running a school, and the infinite possibilities she left behind are still waiting to be sung by the Chinese people.
Today's China has once again come to the crossroads of opening up to the outside world, and everyone's choice is determining the fate of themselves and their families.
Fortunately, we can still inherit the ideological legacy left by Southwest Associated University, but these ideas are difficult to promote by a certain university, and can only belong to every modern person who is willing to learn and Xi and think.
To this end, I sincerely recommend a set of "Southwest Associated University English Course" gift box that is worth repeatedly appreciating. This set of English textbooks for the best universities in China, praised by the older generation of literati, has passed the test of time, and is worthy of collection and Xi by all book lovers who love universal civilization and are eager to improve foreign languages.
The book completely reproduces the "Freshman English" of Southwest Associated University, and has been perfectly upgraded. The gift box contains 8 pocket books, 600 minutes of audio reading of the original text, 50 audio of intensive reading and explanation by professors of famous universities, and 1 limited edition "United Nations University" emblem. Click on the product card below to collect it with one click (exclusive good books).