Historical Tradition of Civilian Schools in Peking University

1920, President Cai Yuanpei delivered an enthusiastic speech entitled "Sacred Labor" at the May 1st Memorial Conference in Peking University. He put forward that "any career that benefits others with one's own labor, whether it is physical or mental, is labor", and stressed that "workers should respect themselves and should not envy other parasites who get something for nothing". This kind of thought and slogan embodies the love for the working people, which means that the May 4th literati have re-recognized and positioned the folk forces. Teacher Cai did not stop the thought of "sacred labor" on abstract dogma, but vividly explained this thought with practice and behavior. 19 18, under the strong advocacy of Mr. Cai, Peking University established the "School Night Shift" to provide workers working in Peking University with opportunities for further study. Subsequently, with his inspiration and support, the Peking University student group with Deng Zhongxia and Liao as the core set up a "civilian school" and a "civilian education lecture group", with the aim of "enhancing the knowledge of civilians and arousing their conscious heart", actively promoting Peking University to serve the civilians, fully embodying the academic spirit of openness and tolerance.

More than 80 years later, Peking University inherited the true meaning and spirit of Cai's "sacred labor" and re-established "Peking University Civilian School", so as to make university education cross barriers, benefit more people through knowledge dissemination, feel the humanistic atmosphere of universities, and promote the construction and development of a harmonious society in the new era. The re-establishment of Peking University Civilian School originated from the research project of "Continuing Education and Training for Migrant Workers" of Peking University Institute of Education. This project was completed by the research team of Peking University (project leader: Ding Xiaohao and Yue Changjun) and the School of Education Management of East China Normal University (project leader: Li Minghua). The purpose is to explore a practical, friendly and fair education model, and provide opportunities for migrant workers to continue their education and training through experiments.