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Date: 2023-04-18 17:36 丨 Source: 丨Author:

All things are new in the spring, and we are moving forward to gather momentum and plan for the future. The Liberal Arts College of Chongqing University (CQU) has been operating for ten years. To further summarize experiences and promote the high-quality development of Liberal Arts education in the new era, a symposium on the high-quality development of Liberal Arts education was held on the morning of April 14, 2023, in the small lecture hall of the college. The symposium was attended by Gan Yang, Director of the General Education Committee of Tsinghua University; Li Meng, Dean of Yuanpei College at Peking University; Mei Ciqi, Dean of Xinya College at Tsinghua University; Wang Chengjiao, Vice Dean of the Liberal Arts College at Sun Yat-sen University; Li Zhengliang, Dean of the Undergraduate School at Chongqing University; Wu Xiaozhi, Vice Dean of the Undergraduate School at Chongqing University; Zeng Zuoling, Secretary of the Party Committee of the College; Yao Fei, Tang Jie, Li Guangyi, Vice Deans; and representatives from the faculty. The symposium was presided over by Tang Jie, Vice Dean of the Liberal Arts College.

Tang Jie began by introducing the development and construction of the Liberal Arts College, CQU. He reviewed the ten-year development history of the college, explained the cultivation system of Liberal Arts education, and discussed the matrix of humanities and liberal arts courses. Tang Jie also provided an overview of recent developments, including structural adjustments, disciplinary development, faculty development, talent cultivation, and the Liberal Arts Academy. Mei Ciqi delivered a presentation titled “Liberal Studies and the Academy of Xinya College,” in which he introduced Tsinghua University’s academy system in detail. Mei Ciqi emphasized Xinya academy’s exploration of “curriculum-professionalism-cross” and shared insights into the “life-oriented” aspects of academy activities. He suggested that academies should help students realize their self-growth during their four years of university, particularly outside the classroom during the “10,000 hours.”

Liberal Arts College of Sun Yat-sen University is similar to Liberal Arts College of CQU in terms of system design, but there are differences in disciplines and faculty environment, etc. In this regard, Wang Chengjiao reviewed the development and achievements of Sun Yat-Sen University over the past few years. He analyzed some difficulties faced in cultivating students and put forward ideas and initiatives for cultivating talents in this new period. Li Meng introduced the development path, cultivation characteristics and school running mode of Peking University Yuanpei College. He shared how to combine the construction of the academy system and the cultivation of top talents, and especially emphasized how to give full play to the advantages of academy life to promote students’ physical and mental growth, etc.

Gan Yang commended the achievements made by Liberal Arts College of CQU and the Institute of Advanced Studies in the past ten years. He highly praised the college’s commitment to serving the overall development of the university and offering core courses in humanities and general studies. Gan Yang believed that the Liberal Arts College of CQU had embarked on a distinctive path to enhance the influence of basic humanities in universities with a focus on science and technology. Gan Yang further encouraged the teachers of the Liberal Arts College to transform their ten years’ worth of course construction results into teaching materials, research papers, and other achievements in a timely manner. By doing so, they can enhance the influence of the Liberal Arts College, CQU.

Finally, Li Zhengliang, Dean of the Undergraduate School of CQU, reviewed the development history and achievements of the Liberal Arts College over the past ten years. He affirmed the college’s outstanding contributions to revitalizing the level of humanities and liberal arts education at CQU. He also recognized the college’s service to campus culture and student nurturing. Dean Li expressed his deep expectations for the future development of the Liberal Arts College.

Tang Jie expressed his gratitude to the experts for sharing their experiences and suggestions. He emphasized that Liberal Arts education is a common cause for all, and cultivating students has always been the passion and noble duty of teachers. Liberal Arts education has been explored at Peking University, Tsinghua University, Sun Yat-Sen University, and CQU from different perspectives. Tang Jie hopes to take this opportunity to formally establish a regular mechanism for mutual exchanges and learning among these four universities. He aims to continuously promote the high-quality development of Liberal Arts education while aligning with the direction of educating people in the new era.