Chapter 15 fourth quarter

Mei Yiqi's sword manual is "professor governing the school". "Professors run the school" should be regarded as a bright pearl in the history of Chinese education in the last century. The recognized founder of "Professor Governance" is Cai Yuanpei. On October 24, 1912, Cai Yuanpei, who was the Minister of Education, promulgated 22 articles of the "University Order", which clearly stipulates that the university shall set up a council and professors' associations of various subjects to review the teaching of various subjects and other important events in the university.Cai's contribution lies in highlighting the main role of professors in the form of laws and policies, making it closer to the law of teaching.Later, when Cai Yuanpei became the president of Peking University, he had the opportunity to implement this idea in practice. In 1920, Peking University established organizations such as the Council, the Administrative Council, and the Professor Council.The council is in charge of legislation, the executive council is in charge of administration, and the professors' council is in charge of academics, all adopting democratic deliberations.Most of the members of the three associations are composed of the heads of sciences (departments) and professors of various subjects. They participate in major school affairs activities in the school, review the courses and academic evaluations of various departments, and so on.However, Peking University's "professor-run school" was stranded because of Cai Yuanpei's departure. Its contribution was to lay a great beginning and an epoch-making pioneering work for the history of Chinese education.

However, the real master of "professors governing the school" is Tsinghua University. "Looking back at the bleak place, there is neither wind nor rain." Using a calm and objective mind to trace the historical trajectory of the development of Tsinghua University's "professors governing the school", we will be surprised to find that the person who introduced this kind of fire into Tsinghua It's Cao Yunxiang. Cao Yunxiang came to Tsinghua in April 1922.Compared with previous principals, he initially appeared as a reformer.In sharp contrast to the conservatism of his predecessor, Jin Bangzheng, when he first entered the school, he accepted the suggestions of teachers and students, set up an "investigation committee", conducted a fairly extensive and in-depth investigation in Tsinghua University, and gradually The implementation of the project has won the praise of teachers and students.He first organized a "collaboration committee" to discuss the affairs of the whole school. The members of the committee include representatives of Chinese teachers, staff representatives, representatives of American teachers, representatives of the Chinese department and representatives of the student union. The share occupies a large proportion, so the enthusiasm for "professors running the school" was once ignited.

After Peking University, "professors governing the school" was the first to be responded to at Nankai University, and Zhang Boling also organized a review council, citing the spirit of "professors governing the school".Then there is Tsinghua University, Cao Yunxiang's "collaboration committee" is the spark of the spirit of "professors governing the school", and this spark is full and full of energy. Once it is ignited, it cannot be extinguished. In fact, this Mars is a little hot.At some point, it also turned into a hot potato. Perhaps it was the principal's sensitivity. When Zhang Boling realized that the council was too big to lose, he cleverly reduced the number of professors and increased the number of other staff, so that the spark would only be slightly warm and not hot.But Cao Yunxiang ignored this point.The power of professors in Tsinghua Garden gradually grew, and finally a mountain with independent will and thought rose up. When it really stood in Tsinghua Garden, when Cao Yunxiang wanted to implement his will and exercise his power, he felt that it was really a little It's an eyesore.

Cao Yunxiang studied in the United States for 7 years and worked as a diplomat in Europe. He knows that the mother of "professors governing schools" comes from Germany.In China, however, the sudden scene of "professors governing the school" is difficult to harmonize with the surrounding background. Therefore, in the later period, Cao Yunxiang seldom mentioned the cooperation committee. He only held the school committee meeting, and decided the important affairs of the school through the school committee. However, that spark ignited again, especially after going to Zhang, the teachers and students in the Tsinghua Campus jointly set off a campaign to reform Tsinghua University, clearly proposing a series of reform requirements such as "professors governing the school" and so on. Cao Yunxiang knew in his heart that this In the end, Mars still burned his hand.

If you carefully read the modern history of China, you will find a strange phenomenon. The so-called democracy and freedom have existed in history, but their scope is limited to China's higher education circles, and the time of existence is like a fleeting moment, just an instant. On March 12, 1925, when the news of Sun Yat-sen's death reached Beijing Women's Normal University, some students spontaneously went to Zhongshan Park to attend the memorial meeting, but were obstructed by the school for no reason. There was public outrage among teachers and students, and student riots erupted for a while.Lu Xun, Qian Xuantong, Ma Heng, Shen Yinmo and others issued declarations in support of the students, and later launched campaigns to expel Yang Yinyu and Minister of Education Zhang Shizhao, all of which worked.At that time, the trend of expelling, dismissing and boycotting the principal rose repeatedly, and it worked again and again. Therefore, it can be seen that the trend of democracy and freedom was flourishing for a while.

Under such a background, Cao Yunxiang did not dare to be perfunctory. When he faced the professors directly, he really saw that there were so many supporters behind Mei Yiqi, and the backbone of them was the Tsinghua Youth School headed by Ye Qisun. If we say that in Cao Yunxiang's secret campaign against Zhang, the professors who participated in the war were divided into three classes, and Ye Qisun and Wu Mi were the class without personal desires, which seemed to be coerced into joining.However, when the curtain fell and the people behind the scenes showed their true colors, Ye Qisun and Wu Mi also felt that they were being used.Especially Ye Qisun, through this incident, he has obviously matured a lot.After Mei Yiqi published his views on Tsinghua Weekly, Ye Qisun understood why Mei was uncharacteristically.Because it concerns the future of Tsinghua University.For a scholar, this is the biggest politics, just like a farmer's politics is his annual harvest.And so is a school.Ye Qisun's original idea of ​​being indifferent to politics and alienating politics has been corrected. Therefore, on the dinner table of his "No. 7 Rice Ball", the reform and design of Tsinghua University will be chewed on the food.It is often that discrimination is connected with muscles, and anger is connected with swallowing. When it is intense, it is even more that saliva and vegetable crumbs fly together, and the face and ears are the same color.Sometimes when we got tired of arguing, someone would beat the bowls and dishes, and sing the eating song in Tsinghua Academy:

With the shovel and the bell jingling, all the students came to the cafeteria. A plate of stewed chicken, duck and fish was fried, and everyone raised their chopsticks to eat up the dishes. Awow the rice bucket comes from afar, Aoooo rice bucket comes from afar. There is still no food left, because you must grab it if you want to be full. You grab it, I grab it, because you have to grab it if you want to be full... Later, this song was changed to "No. 7 Rice Ball Song", and the song was sung in a new way. Sometimes one person leads the singing, and everyone responds, or in a different way, everyone sings together. When the high note is reached, Zhao Yuanren sings solo, giving him a chance Chance.When the music is over, that is the end of the debate, the food is in the stomach, and the meaning remains in the heart.

It was at the dinner table of the "No. 7 Fantuan" that everyone clearly saw the future of Tsinghua University. If we want to build a clean and academic Tsinghua University, we must blow in the air of democracy and freedom.No bureaucrats, no academics, no partisans, and truly professors running the school, this is what they advocate in their hearts.During such a time of constant chewing and digesting, intellectuals develop a hard value judgment deep in their hearts.After making wise inspections of the Tsinghua campus, they finally set their sights on Mei Yiqi... In March 1926, the Tsinghua Campus formulated the "Tsinghua School Organizational Outline", set up a "review council" and a "professors' association", and truly implemented "professors governing the school".

The first result of "professors governing the school" is that the dean is no longer appointed by the president, but elected by the professors' association. On April 19, 1926, the reformed Professors Association held its first plenary meeting to publicly elect the provost and reviewers. Among the 47 valid votes, Mei Yiqi won 33 and was elected provost.This is the first case in the history of Chinese education that the provost is elected by a professor exercising his power. In this way, Mei Yiqi stepped out of the formation of nothing, and came in front of Cao Yunxiang. And this result is naturally the last thing Cao Yunxiang wants to see.

But, it came anyway. In the days after Mei Yiqi became the provost, the sense of failure in Cao Yunxiang's heart has been deeply present, just like the stones in the human body, which cannot be seen normally, but will suddenly break out.The pain was sharp and persistent.This is a chronic illness that cannot be cured. Until Cao Yunxiang left Tsinghua University, his relationship with Mei Yiqi was not easy. After Mei Yiqi became the provost, he focused his work on curriculum and teaching reform. At the council and professor meeting, everyone agreed to abolish Zhang Pengchun's plan of not dividing departments, and the university department established a department system, with Chinese and Western The 11 departments of literature, history, politics, economics, educational psychology, physics, chemistry, biology, agronomy and engineering adopt the popular junior university method in the United States. In the first year, students from all departments will be given generalist education, Enter the professional field from the second year.

When Mei Yiqi explained the course arrangement, she said: The course of Tsinghua University lasts for four years, and the first year is dedicated to the preparation of writing tools, general training in natural sciences and social sciences. Things are originally comprehensive and coherent. Although we insist on dividing them, those who have received university education must know that they are connected and assisted in ideals.After the second year, students can choose a specialization department to engage in specialized research. However, the courses prescribed by each department do not impose strict restrictions. In addition to the required courses of each department, students are given more time to discuss with the professor. , because of the proximity of the nature and the involvement of the industry, it is necessary to learn subjects from other departments, because learning is more expensive than specialization, but the disadvantages of narrowness are the same as broadness, so it must be guarded against. ("Tsinghua Weekly", No. 426, December 23, 1927, pp. 667-670) After Mei Yiqi became the provost, the burden of establishing the Department of Physics naturally fell on Ye Qisun. At this time, the Department of Physics offers a total of 21 courses, including high school physics (no credits) and undergraduate general physics, mechanics, electromagnetism, optics, theoretical physics outline, thermodynamics, material theory of micron motion, mechanics, acoustics, and thermals Molecular physics experiments, electric vibration and radio waves, history of physics, middle school physics textbooks, electrodynamics, electron theory, relativity, modern physics, modern physics experiments, physical instrument manufacturing, discussion of physical problems, special experimental problems, theoretical physics self-study, Special theoretical questions.Ye Qisun was generally overwhelmed by these courses. For quite a period of time, he had to work more than ten hours a day in classrooms and laboratories to complete the day's workload. At the beginning of its establishment, the Department of Physics had only two professors, one lecturer and two teaching assistants.After Mei Yiqi became the provost, Ye Qisun was the only professor in the department.However, some lecturers and teaching assistants were a bit reluctant to teach, so a large number of courses were placed on Ye Qisun.Recalling this initial period, Mr. Shi Shiyuan, the first graduate, said: The Department of Physics of Tsinghua University in old China embodies the hard work of Mr. Ye, who founded this department by himself. In the autumn of 1925, when I entered the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University, the Department of Physics had just been established.At that time, the Department of Physics was located in the Science Museum tens of meters southwest of the auditorium in Tsinghua University.The creeper on the wall of the Science Museum has green leaves, and red bricks and blue tiles are exposed in several places.There are several offices on the second floor. Mr. Ye's department head's office is on the east side. When I first met Mr. Ye, he happened to be sitting on a swivel chair.His appearance is serene, and it is obvious at a glance that he is a loyal elder.I was originally in the chemistry department and wanted to transfer to the physics department.He looked at me and knew that I had already finished the first-grade physics exercises.He nodded with a smile. In this way, I entered the physics department.At that time, the department had one professor, three teaching assistants, one lecturer, one worker, and exactly ten faculty members and students.The teaching assistants are Zhao Zhongyao, Shi Ruwei, He Zenglu, and the lecturer is Zheng Yanfen. Mr. Ye personally attends the class.The class he takes is upgraded synchronously with the students.I was in first grade and he taught first grade general physics.I moved up to 2nd grade and he taught 2nd grade Electromagnetics.I moved up to 3rd grade and he taught 3rd grade optics.I was promoted to fourth grade and he took my senior thesis.The topic of his graduation thesis for me was an experiment to prove the quantization of space.The textbooks used at that time were common textbooks in American universities.Mr. Ye is very serious in teaching.When encountering difficult places, he will give key explanations, and sometimes ask questions to inspire students to think.He has a bit of a stutter, but that doesn't affect his teaching effectiveness.He emphasized doing more exercises. When the exercises in the book have answers, students can check them by themselves.We usually do exercises independently without teacher guidance. Even if we encounter difficult problems and think hard for a long time, we can't solve them, but when we find the solution, we suddenly understand and understand more deeply... (Shi Shiyuan, "Mr. Ye Qisun Two Three ", see "A Generation of Teacher Ye Qisun", pp. 57-58) Years have passed, and the sea has changed.Mr. Shi Shiyuan, who has entered his twilight years, is still very excited when recalling the past scenes of being taught by Master Ye.How many years have passed, the science museum with occasional details among the green indigo daisy, those classrooms and laboratories resounding with Ye Shi's Shanghai accent, those university life under Ye Shi's quiet eyes, and the young Master Ye's youthful love stories, etc., are all treasured by him in a special way.After graduating from Tsinghua University, under the guidance of Master Ye, Shi Shiyuan went to France to enter Marie Curie's laboratory and obtained a doctorate.During his study abroad, Shi Shiyuan also did a major event: entrusted by Master Ye, he purchased the first gram of radium for Tsinghua University and also for China.After returning to China, Shi Shiyuan was employed by the Physics Department of Nanjing Central University, where he taught Wu Jianxiong, who was later known as "China's Madame Curie".Wu Jianxiong is undoubtedly the person who knows the most about Ye Qisun's story.Shi Shiyuan's method of collection is to pass on Master Ye's stories to future generations in the form of oral dissemination, and Wu Jianxiong is his most loyal listener. Ye Qisun attaches great importance to students' hands-on ability and laboratory work.At the beginning of the establishment of the department, he hired a German skilled worker with a high salary to cooperate with the work of the laboratory.Later, when there was still a shortage of teachers, he found a worker in the hospital to put in the laboratory, and promoted him to a school staff member.When Ye Qisun is in class, he is often the one who speaks on the podium, while the staff do experiments and demonstrations for everyone, and they cooperate with each other tacitly and complement each other.This employee was named Yan Yuchang. Later, he was sent by Ye Qisun to the anti-Japanese front line. He was the first martyr among the teaching staff in Tsinghua University who died directly under the enemy's bayonet. Wang Daheng, the third student of the Department of Physics, Tsinghua University.The so-called "Heng" is a big tool, a kind of jade pendant that resembles an ancient musical instrument chime; another explanation is "Hone", a precise processing method.No matter what kind of explanation, it will make people have the association of "Jade is not polished, it is not a weapon".Since it is a large jade, it must be related to the unique polishing.Perhaps because of his name, Wang Daheng became a teacher of Ye Qisun, and he was naturally impressed by Mr. Ye's polishing method: "When I was studying in Tsinghua, Mr. Ye Qisun often said this: I just can't give you good things. Forced you to learn to do it yourself. At first we didn’t understand it, and we were forced to use both hands and feet. What happened in the end? After all, I have practiced it! It was not until after graduation that I became more and more aware of hands-on ability. For a person who studies physics How important it is to me. Now, even if you give me a pile of scrap metal, I can find a way to make it into a decent thing!" Wang Daheng was later called China's "Father of Optics" by the scientific and technological circles, and he was called the founder of China's precision machinery industry, instrumentation industry, and modern metrology industry, but he never forgot to polish his mentor Mr. Ye Qisun—— Wang Daheng had heard about Mr. Ye Qisun from his father very early on, and because his father respected Mr. Ye Qisun very much, Wang Daheng had always admired Mr. Ye Qisun in his heart.On the day when he reported to Tsinghua University, Wang Daheng saw a gentleman seriously interviewing and checking the students who were going to enter the physics department one by one. Many students who wanted to enter the physics department were discouraged by him.He always checks the score first, and those with high scores can go through the formalities with a few simple questions.Seeing that the scores were inappropriate, he kindly told the students in front of him that studying physics would face many difficulties. Not only was it difficult to complete all the courses, but it was also difficult to find a suitable job after graduation.Many people gave up automatically after hearing what he said. A few students who were unwilling to give up suspected that the problem was their own scores, and asked their husband to tell the truth about their test scores, but the gentleman never gave up. Telling the score is just persuading again and again. It is obvious that the gentleman is unwilling to hurt the self-esteem of any student.When someone quietly told Wang Daheng that the gentleman was Ye Qisun, Wang Daheng silently observed Mr. Ye from the side.Mr. Ye looks like a polite scholar, he stutters a bit when he speaks, but there is obviously a kind of clever agility in his eyes that keeps flickering.When it was Wang Daheng's turn, Wang Daheng was extremely nervous. He was afraid that Mr. Ye would reject him and not allow him to enter the physics department.When he cautiously walked in front of Mr. Ye, he was so nervous that he could barely speak.Unexpectedly, after Mr. Ye checked the score, he only took a deep look at Wang Daheng, and asked Wang Daheng to go through the formalities without asking anything... ("Light Soul", Ma Xiaoli, PLA Press, 1998 edition, page 54) In Wang Daheng's biography "Light Soul", there is also a question and answer section.A reporter asked Wang Daheng—— Who has had the greatest influence on you in your life? Wang Daheng: Ye Qisun, Mr. Ye. Was his influence on you mainly academically? Wang Daheng: No!It is not only about learning, but more importantly, being a person. man? Wang Daheng: Yes, be a man!Mr. Ye is sincere and upright, neither hot nor angry.No matter what the circumstances, he never grandstanding, nor follow others. What do you most admire about Mr. Ye? Wang Daheng: He has a sincere patriotic heart.As long as it is beneficial to the country and the nation, he must do his best to do it, and he will have no complaints or regrets... History cannot restore the pictures of the initial period of the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University, but we will use the words of Mr. Wang Daheng to fix our pursuit on a dignified and focused face.This is Ye Qisun's usual expression.It is the simple and heavy national responsibility and a kind of pure patriotism that constitute the totem for the intellectuals of that era to become butterflies and send their lives.At that time, Ye Qisun was only 27 or 28 years old, but he had deep eyes.Under the inspection of these eyes, the Department of Physics built laboratories one by one, bought precision instruments one by one, improved various teaching facilities, and brought the teaching work into a regular stage. Jia Lianheng worked as an experimenter in the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University in April 1927. In February 1931, he was recommended by Mr. Ye Qisun and Mr. Wu Youxun to the Beiping Jiufengshan Seismic Station, and became the sole assistant of Mr. Li Shanbang, one of the founders of my country's earthquake industry.When recalling his work in the laboratory during the start-up period, he said: At that time, the lecture hall was an amphitheater, which was next to the north wall of the Science Museum. There were 6 stairs, and each row seemed to have 16 seats. The desks in the lecture hall were very long, about 8-9 meters. Demonstration experiment, a lot of demonstration equipment, full of desks, operated and demonstrated by Yan Yuchang, who was originally Mr. Mei's handyman, and was called a "boy" in the old society. He was very hardworking, smart, and willing to study. Mr. Ye He was arranged to train him in the laboratory, and he quickly mastered the technology. Mr. Ye made an exception and promoted him as a laboratory assistant to assist in lectures.When students don't understand something in class, they often ask him around the instrument next to the desk after class. He can help students figure it out, so the students respect him very much. Mr. Ye taught the students to respect him and not to call him "the servant". ", so the students respectfully call him Mr. Yan.When I first arrived in the department, Mr. Mei asked me to learn from him, so I learned from him, and quickly became familiar with the auxiliary work of demonstration teaching... page 72) Mr. Wang Ganchang felt deeply that Master Ye paid special attention to hands-on ability. He said: "Master Ye attaches great importance to the construction of the laboratory. The experimental instruments and equipment for our third and fourth grades were gradually produced and purchased after we entered the school. He attaches great importance to it. The cultivation of students' hands-on practical ability encourages students to use both their hands and their brains to form an atmosphere. He set up factories in the department and required students to take carpentry, metalworking and mechanical drawing courses. When he taught us thermodynamics, he asked our students to Each person makes a thermometer. He not only talks about the principle of temperature measurement, but also the key technology of making temperature instruments. There is a shortage of instruments and equipment in the department, and teachers lead students to make them by themselves. This kind of theory is combined with practical teaching, learning theory and hands-on The school-running style of closely combining practice has had a very important impact on our young students. We will continue to use this style of work when we serve as teaching work and department heads in the future. Today, decades later, looking back on the effect of personnel training, I feel that This style of work is worth advocating.” Probably to commemorate the unusual days when the Department of Physics was founded, in the early summer of 1926, at the suggestion of Ye Qisun, all the faculty and staff of the Department of Physics took a photo at the entrance of the Science Museum.Ye Qisun was wearing a white suit and a red tie, looking at the camera with a smile on his face.There are 10 people in the photo, 5 people in the front row and 5 people in the back row. He is in the middle of the front row, surrounded by all robes in the middle. He looks a little different, and for the first time there is a look of complacency on his usual modest face.Mei Yiqi stood beside him, also smiling and staring ahead.He had already left the physics department at this time, and he was already a leader, with a satisfied look on his face. Mei Yiqi and Ye Qisun stood side by side in the spring of 1926, facing the Tsinghua Garden in front of them, with a common smile on their faces.Together, they have created a history of Tsinghua that is crucial to China.Mr. Wu Youxun wrote an article on April 13, 1940, reviewing the more than 40 years of higher education in old China and pointed out that the development of science education can be divided into three periods, the first period can be called the period of false reading , all domestic schools are in the early stages; the second period can be called the period of empty talk, and various courses are offered, "China's university level seems to be higher than any university in the world... Such high-profile courses are of great importance to the discussion. Traditional Chinese people are very suitable for their tastes. As a result, students have little training in experimental knowledge. They only talk about free research and don’t know what research is. They think that scientific work is done with empty talk.” During this period, which included the ten to fifteen years before the Anti-Japanese War, there was really scientific work in China... Important experiments can be held, and the scientific significance of the experiments can be understood by students. There are many physics instruments used in it, and the department Set up a factory in China...Since the domestic research work...The University of Cambridge in England has been able to recognize the credits given by the research department of domestic universities, and the University of Paris in France has recognized that a Chinese bachelor's degree can directly carry out the dissertation work of the French national doctorate degree." . The "third period" mentioned by Mr. Wu Youxun does not seem to have attracted enough attention in the history of Tsinghua University.In the history of modern science in China, it may be just a piece of high-altitude floating cloud, passing by without a trace.Only people like Wu Youxun can understand its deep meaning, and describe its general shape, present state, implied weight and quality with the attitude of a wise man, as well as its extraordinary significance of actually affecting China.And Mr. Ye Qisun's contribution is here.With all his energy and enthusiasm, he created a fruitful "third period" of Tsinghua's physics department, although this extraordinary period was hardly mentioned in China.But it did exist, and actually influenced the operation of the history of science in China.Only in the following narratives can we gradually realize its profound existence.