How to understand Mencius' educational thought

Mencius' educational thought is the summary of his lifelong education and more than forty years' educational practice, which contains Mencius' extraordinary wisdom. Among the essays of pre-Qin philosophers, Mencius occupies a place in the six books with its majestic momentum and profound ideological connotation. In Mencius, in addition to the core ideas of good nature and benevolent government, Mencius' educational thought is also reflected in many aspects. In the traditional culture of China, Confucianism has always attached great importance to education, especially to shaping a person with ideals and character through education, and regards moral cultivation and spiritual realm promotion as the purpose of education. As a classic work of Confucianism, Mencius also embodies the core of Confucian educational thought, that is, personality education. There are a lot of expositions about educational purposes, methods and ideas in the text of Mencius. In teaching methods, Mencius not only inherited Confucian sages, but also developed and innovated. Mencius inherited Confucius' teaching method of teaching students in accordance with their aptitude: he treated all those who were willing to learn equally, regardless of their status; For people with different qualifications, he teaches him in a way suitable for students and does not stick to a fixed form. But Mencius' teaching students in accordance with their aptitude is not a simple repetition, but developed in his own teaching practice. He emphasized the importance of educational environment, first put forward the influence of teacher-student relationship on learning, and insisted that students should have certain standards and clear their own goals, and should not lower their requirements at will. Mencius advocated that anyone who is willing to learn can be admitted to home: "Almost none. Masters set up branches, and those who go don't chase them, but those who come don't refuse. If you are sincere, you will only suffer from it. " 3 (Dedication) Mencius believes that the methods and means of education are diversified. According to the different qualifications of students, there are different ways of education: "Teaching is also versatile, and those who despise teaching are just teaching." There are many methods of education. Not teaching him is actually an educational method. "The reason why a gentleman teaches is five: like a person who has changed with time, a person who has achieved virtue, a person who has made money, a person who has answered questions, and a person who has an affair. These five things are taught by gentlemen. " There are five ways to educate a gentleman, some are as moist as timely rain, some are to improve his moral character, some are to help him become a useful person, some are to answer questions, and some are to help him become a gentleman with his knowledge and demeanor. Mencius believes that the fundamental purpose of education is not to master knowledge, but to cultivate self-cultivation. Mencius hoped that through education, his students could be ambitious and acquire good moral cultivation. When studying, you should concentrate, don't be moved by foreign things, and then find your own heart. A true Confucian can't give up his principles because of fame and fortune. The contemporary value of Mencius' educational thought has been circulated for a long time. The text of Mencius has not been submerged in the dust of history with the passage of time, but has stood the test of time and demonstrated its time value. Mencius was an educator with strong political consciousness. His educational thought runs through the political proposition of governing the country and protecting the people, showing a mature politician and educator style. At the same time, Mencius' educational thought is also reflected in his profound understanding of educational laws and correct educational thoughts. Although some educational ideas in Mencius are no longer suitable for the needs of the times, there are still many ideas that play an active role in today's society and have an important guiding role in promoting the development of today's education and solving current educational problems. First, learning cannot lower the standard. Mencius pays attention to teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, and different students have different educational methods. However, Mencius did not easily change his academic standards. Teachers set learning standards, and people with ability will become Xi Zhi, while the inherent rules will not be abolished because of unqualified people. Mencius said: "a person who gives up on himself should not talk to others;" People who give up on themselves can't make a difference. " Mencius believes that people who give up on themselves can't talk to them about reason or do something with them. On the other hand, the arguments of "teachers should serve students" and "all for students" mentioned in current education overemphasize the main role of students in education without forming learning standards. "Teachers, so those who receive the Tao are also confused." The role teachers should play in education is to set learning standards, impart knowledge and dispel doubts about the status of instructors, rather than lowering standards to accommodate students to meet their status as service providers. The advanced educational idea contained in Mencius' educational thought, that is, students refuse to lower their learning standards and give up on themselves, is omnipotent, so it should be absorbed by the contemporary era and realize the contemporary transformation of Chinese classics. Second, we should pay attention to the creation of learning environment. "Yanzi Chunqiu" said: "Orange was born in Huainan, but it is orange. Born in Huaibei, it is bitter orange. So, if it is, the water and soil are different. Today, people's livelihood is better than Qi's, so don't steal. If they enter the state of Chu, they steal. The soil and water without Chu makes the people good and thieves. " Although it is Yan Ying's fierce debate about the insults of people, it also shows the great influence of the environment. The cultivation of crops and humanity is like this, as is learning and education. In Mencius' educational thought, the role of learning environment on people's learning effect is emphasized. Mencius Teng Wengong used a simple example to illustrate the influence of learning environment on teaching quality. Good learning environment can have a positive impact on learners, thus achieving twice the result with half the effort. Such educational thoughts are also reflected in today's education, which shows that classics have eternal value and significance. Third, it is very important to learn from the minds of middle school students. As an interactive process of life, education embodies the dialectical unity of teachers' "teaching" and children's "learning"; It not only emphasizes the importance of teachers, but also emphasizes that children, as educatees, play a very important role in their own success and even growth. A gentleman's pursuit of further study is based on Tao and should be complacent. If you are complacent, you will feel at ease. If you live in peace, you will have deep resources. If you are senior, take the left and right to meet its source. Therefore, a gentleman should be complacent. Only by consciously acquiring knowledge can a gentleman firmly grasp it; Only after mastering knowledge firmly can we accumulate profound knowledge and acquire knowledge from all aspects. However, the popular slogan "There are no students who can't teach well, only teachers who can't teach well" exaggerates the role of teachers in education and deviates from the objective law of education. "Education" is a process of teaching and learning. Learners know their own shortcomings through learning, and teachers improve themselves by teaching others to know their own difficulties and then further learning. Teaching people and learning people promote each other, and promotion is high-quality education. The current education overemphasizes the role of teachers in the educational process and deviates from the objective reality. Source: Yalu River, the second half of the month