During The Republic Of China, The Research On The Group Of Teachers In The Education Department Of Nangao Normal University And Dongda University (1915-1927)

The Education Department of Nanjing Higher Normal School was the first education department established in accordance with Columbia University in the United States,and its successor,the Education Department of National Southeast University,pioneered the establishment of education departments in modern comprehensive universities and became an important source and academic center of the new education movement and the “scientificization” of education in the 1920 s.It is worthwhile to explore in depth the activities of the faculty members of the Department of Education from Nanjing Higher Normal School to National Southeast University as the main body of the leading educational and pedagogical reform of the Department.In the light of the existing studies,most of the studies on the teachers of the Education Division are studies of the establishment of the education discipline or case studies of a particular teacher,and there is a lack of a comprehensive understanding of the teaching,research and service activities of the group as a whole,so as to summarize its characteristics and make a relatively objective evaluation of its historical status.The paper first focuses on the base of the group's activities and the reasons for its gathering,roughly comparing the history of the establishment of the education discipline,and arguing that the main reasons for the group's gathering were the educational atmosphere that valued talent and knowledge at the time,the initiative of President Guo Bing Wen,the convenience of academic and geographical ties,the relaxed qualification requirements for teachers,and the excellent salary.Secondly,the chapter on teaching and learning activities distills the concept of “scientification of pedagogy” advocated by the faculty.In terms of the content of the faculty,courses in psychology,testing and statistics,and natural sciences are made compulsory as basic courses for students;in terms of the system of study of the curriculum,it is changed from a heavy and fixed academic year system to an optional system,taking into account students' specialties and interests;in terms of the teaching methods of the faculty,the "professorial method" is reformed and the "pedagogical method" is implemented,with more emphasis on the initiative of students,and the combination of theory and experience,as well as students' field observation and practice.Thirdly,the academic research activities of this group are discussed in terms of both theoretical and practical research of teachers.It is argued that this group conducts practice-oriented theoretical research on education and psychology guided by Dewey's pragmatic educational philosophy in the face of severe educational realities,and its research includes various fields such as teacher education,educational administration,and educational psychology,as well as pursues the “scientificization” of educational research by conducting pedagogical and curricular experiments and implementing educational and psychological tests with affiliated schools as the base of practice.It also participates in academic exchanges by founding the Educational Research Society and the New Education,and invites famous foreign educators such as J·Dewey and P·Monroe to China for educational visits.Finally,as the first university to establish a social service function,the faculty actively engaged in serving the community by participating in the common people's education movement,teaching literacy to the people;running summer schools to provide teacher training for elementary and middle schools;and founding the Xiao Zhuang Experimental Normal School to train educational personnel for the countryside.The history of the group's activities shows that this group was a follower of Dewey and pragmatism in education in the United States,with a high sense of social responsibility in teaching,research and social service activities oriented to practice.Their important contribution was to promote pedagogy as a science and lead the changes in educational philosophy and practice in the 1920 s.