School Motto Culture

The University Motto as an important part of campus culture of university was paid attention to by leaders of university all the time. It is the embodiment of guiding ideology, educational aim, the characteristic and spiritual condition of university with graceful language and profound cultural meaning; it is the reflection and summary of the spirit of the times and university's idea; it is the spiritual garden that teachers and students yearn for. However, there are many problems of the university motto, compared with ideal function of the university motto. This paper tries to analyze it systematically in theory in order to offer beneficial suggestion for subsequent cultural construction of university.The study of the university motto has been finished by the use of linguistic method, comparative approach, factor analysis method and so on. We can conclude that the university motto is composite, historical, national, constructive, expressive, educational and dominant from the perspective of cultural science, which based on analysis of the university motto both at home and abroad. The first four characteristics are common to all the culture; the last 3 items are special characteristics of the university motto.And then, it can be concluded that characteristics of the motto of famous Chinese university can be summed up as emphasis on virtue, direct statement, social stability and pragmatism. On the contrary, the motto of famous foreign university is characterized by emphasis on truth, metaphor, freedom, thought and differentiation, based on comparative analysis between the motto of Chinese and foreign university.Finally, Problems of the university motto are revealed as follows: obviousness of identical phenomenon, error of functional setting, disorder of logic structure, lack of aesthetic consciousness, confusion over ethics layers, based on above-mention analysis. The reasons for these issues canof logic structure, lack of aesthetic consciousness, confusion over ethics layers, based on above-mention analysis. The reasons for these issues can be summed up as following five aspects: multiple paradox or conflict of the university motto, confusion over classification of virtue, the restriction of institution of higher education, unreasonable university setting and misunderstanding of educational value and idea. The measures can be taken to construct the motto of Chinese university, which include that establishing right idea, practicing education of the university motto, setting university reasonably, valuing the humanistic spirit and pursuing balance in paradox of the university motto.