Evolution And Reflection: Research Of A Centurial Primary And Middle School Literary Education

Primary and middle school literary education being one of the important issues in Chinese education research, sets literay appreciation as its core,emotion cultivation as its purpose and gives prominence to literay beauty, culture and language.Since "Chinese Literature" became an independent discipline in 1904, primary and middle school literary education has already got a history of a century. This dissertation, through literary analysis, historical comparison and case study , gives a panoramic display of this centurial evolution process, provides exhaustive analysis of the realistic difficulties and problems and offers a predicative construction of the future for primary and middle school literary education. This dissertation,taking "aesthetic appreciation"as the key concept, gives prominance to education of literary classics and the noumenal position of "literary language". The outline of this dissertation runs as follows:first, by reviewing history of centurial primary and middle school literary education, it summarizes the characteristics of literary education; then attention is focused upon the arguments, theoretical and practical problems in carrying out literary education. On the basis of this, it explores the prominent problems and provides principles and strategies in our future literary education in primary and middle school.This dissertation begins with an introduction and ends with a conclusion, with Part One,Two,Three in the middle.Part One is a review and reflection of the history. It concludes three parts of recent independence, modern transformation and contemporary development.The issuance of new learning system in late Qing Dynasty is a sign for primary and middle school literary education to gain independence, and since then "literature"is separated from traditional classics. Until the early years of Republic of China, "literay interest cultivation" has become an important part of "Chinese essence". Compared with "extensive literay education"in ancient China, primary and middle school literary education in this period sets stone by its classicality, practicability, instructiveness and puts stress on literary recitation.Modern transformation of primary and middle school literary education can be divided into three periods which are rapid advancement period, reflection period and deepening period. Although after changing "Chinese Literature"into "Chinese Language"in the 20s, great attention is paid to "literature" in Chinese textbooks and Chinese teaching process, and at this period, "spirits" outweighs"techniques"; in the 30s, balance between "the old"and "the new", "conten" and "form", "careful reading" and "general reading"are pursued in primary and middle school literary education. In the 40s, primary and middle school literary education is raised to the height of "learning the traditional culture". It pays attention to literay classics, and tries to find a mergence between "literary appreciation" and "language training".Contemporary development of primary and middle school literary education has experienced three periods: "temporary prosperity with division of Chinese and literature ", "long-term depression with the emergence of tool-centered theory", "renaissance with the uprising humanity-centered theory". In the 50s, primary and middle school literary education as an independent discipline, has its corresponding literary outline and textbook; after the discipline division experiment, "tool-centered theory"has long shown its dominace with literay education a burden to language training; "humanity-centered theory"turns up in the 90s as a way to rectify the tool-training situation. In this modern reflection, primary and middle school literary education has finally found its position and the process of appreciating literary works has become a process of finding beauty, experiencing emotion and constructing meaning.Part Two is an observation and analysis of reality. It concludes the controversy and dilemma as well as problems and causes of primary and middle school literary education.The argument between old Chinese and modern Chinese reflects the dilemma in transformation period; the argument between "literature"and "morality" reflects the indefinite objective; and the argument between language and literature reflects the difficult situation primary and middle school literary education is facing.Review of history helps observe the reality.The extruding problems existing in primary and middle school literary education are as follows: practicalism endangers literay education; scientific thoughts dominate literary class; knowledge-centered theory weakens the influence of literature; literary textbooks are confined to "teaching"and "training"; "tool complex"prevails in literary interpretation; literary instructors restricted by the system generally show a lack of literary quality.Part Three is a prediction and construction of the future. It mainly discusses the principles and strategies to strengthen primary and middle school literary education in the 21^st century.According to this dissertation, to solve the problems in primary and middle school literary education, it is necessary to set literary appreciation as the key principle, to lay cultural foundation for students through literary classics education, to strengthen the noumenal position of "literary language"in primary and middle school literary education and to find balance between careful reading and general reading, reading and activity, dialogue and construction, appreciation and creativity.