A head teacher, while connecting a school with its students, is also an educator, manager, service provider, and teacher of ideology and politics. Over my 22 years as a head teacher in radio and TV education, I have always followed the belief that ideological and political education must be given priority and integrated into daily work, guiding students toward adherence to socialism with Chinese characteristics in terms of theory, Chinese culture, patriotic feeling, and desire to serve the country.

Zhang Kailin participating in a "Red Story" publicity activity.

Aiming to strengthen the guiding role of patriotism, and promoting education to develop their ideals and beliefs, I have joined students in studying history, visiting museums, and watching movies related to the original ideals and mission of the Party.

Guiding Students to Experience “Red Culture” Correctly

Participants in the "Remembering Revolutionary Martyrs and Carrying Forward Our National Spirit" activities.

In carrying out ideological and political education, attention should be paid to their emotional appeal. To this end, I integrate texts with pictures, music, video clips, material objects, and historical scenes in order to stimulate the emotions of the students, and guide them to feel and think according to the principle of "learning, thinking, taking action, and getting to understand the truth".

Building a Learning Circle via New Media and Having Students Dedicate Themselves to Serving the Country  

As a powerful form of mass media, new media have made a great difference to ideological and political education. As they bring ideological and political education online, more and more teachers and students, including me, are becoming aware of their importance. I work continually to identify new platforms for ideological and political education using new media, and commit myself to innovations, in order to find new paths for teaching ideology and politics.

In this era of media convergence, it is easy for ideological and political education to follow good practices, exploring new approaches while improving old ones. We can adopt the discourses students prefer while integrating new media with ideological and political education, so as to establish consensus, and unite students in the goal of serving the country.

Focusing on Student Needs

In order to keep pace with the times, ideological and political education should be student-centred, and provide meticulous services. A major task of a head teacher to deal with the practical problems and actual needs of students in order to keep them directed toward the socialist development of China, and to meet the requirements of the times.

First, Provide Targeted Services

Adult students face the challenge of working and studying at the same time, and pose a difficulty for head teachers. To deal with this, I have arranged the management of individual students into five categories: learning progress, formative assessment, final examinations, tuition, and purchasing teaching materials. These efforts have enabled providing students with targeted support. I have also compiled a series of handbooks, including "100 Freshmen Questions Answered" and "Common Problems with Online Learning", which cover work procedures, common problems, and other matters, and are direct and concise in presentation.

Second, Introduce Ideology and Politics Through the Familiar

Ideological and political education can be made vivid and interesting by starting from what is most familiar to students in their lives, and expanding from there to include the whole country.
Third, Take Advantage of Freshmen Orientation

Putting on a freshman university badge.

Avoiding Food Waste activities

The opening ceremony for freshmen is an important opportunity for ideological and political education, with the head teacher guiding them ceremonially toward a sense of responsibility and mission. The educational activities I have organised include the first lesson of the new semester, themed class meetings, and group lectures that motivate students in terms of both national responsibility and pursuit of their individual dreams.

The opening ceremony for freshmen is held at the beginning of the spring and autumn semesters each year, and students are required to take part in the “first lesson of the new semester” there. Patriotic elements include taking pictures with the national flag and singing a chorus of "Ode to Our Motherland", which are integrated with orientation. Through activities such as distributing university badges and student IDs, guidance from seniors, oath-taking, commendation of outstanding students, and reports of outstanding alumni, a feeling of collective purpose is created. In addition, education to stop food waste is promoted to encourage ecological awareness in both teachers and students.

Refer to Model Students

Perplexity and confusion are things all of us experience from time to time, and they can lead to fuzzy thinking in terms of politics, ideals and beliefs, as well as distorted values. In my work related to ideological and political education, I refer to model students who demonstrate socialist core values in terms of their application to their studies and their virtuous conduct.

Spreading Patriotism and Positive Feelings through Ideological and Political Education

Campus culture is the soul of a university. A campus culture with a distinctive style and an enterprising spirit affects students in ways that will stay with them throughout their lives. I have tried to contribute to it through a variety of cultural activities.

First, Respect Traditional Culture and Strengthen Cultural Confidence

Given the fundamental task of cultivating virtue, and following general secretary Xi Jinping's “socialist ideology with Chinese characteristics in the new era”, I try to establish Chinese traditional culture as its foundation, helping enhance the self-confidence and pride of students.

Bringing traditional culture into the construction of campus culture gives students access to the best of it, and brings it alive for them. With this in mind, I have helped build a platform to promote it by means of traditional cultural treasures, including calligraphy competitions, seal-cutting exhibitions, photography exhibitions, and other activities, all to the enrichment of campus culture.

Second, Motivate the Young to Exert Their Power

I have helped organise student associations in calligraphy, speaking, and other skills, with regular activities to enrich their extra-curricular lives and teach them aesthetic and ethical precepts.

Students, including Deng Xin and Zhang Ying, compete in reading aloud classic literary works.

In June 2020, I organised a competitive reading of classic literary works, and instructed students on expressing their patriotic ardour through these. The students were innovative in conveying their passion for their country, instead of simply following traditional models, and their performances displayed hard work and an enterprising mindset. A poem eulogizing the efforts to fight Covid-19, titled "You are the Most Beautiful View this Winter", by Deng Xin, Zhang Ying, Lai Xiaxian and several other students, came first among many works. The winners then represented Fujian RTVU in the finals of "Reading Aloud, China" for all provincial RTVUs, and came second in the college-student group. Through such activities, students are encouraged to understand their responsibilities, and integrate their personal ideals into the development of the nation.

The process of fostering virtue and talent is silent and slow – it is like the spring breeze and the rain. I explore integrating ideological and political education in my daily work, in which I am meticulous, as head teacher, conveying the essence of the "Chinese Dream" to my students. My work produces positive energy and stimulates confidence in RTVU students, inspiring them to serve the country and build that dream.

By Ban Yuling, Work Station of Fujian Shaxian RTVU