Beijing, 10 September 2025 - To thoroughly implement the spirit of President XI Jinping’s important reply letter to eight representatives from the Special-Post Teachers Programme and to promote the spirit of educators in building a high-quality teaching workforce with dual competencies, the Open University of China (OUC) held a celebration on 10 September 2025, to mark the 41st Teachers’ Day.
The event, themed “Carrying Forward the Spirit of Educators to Empower Teachers and Compose a Glorious Chapter in Building a Leading Country in Education”, was attended by the university’s leadership in Beijing. Dr. WANG Qiming, Secretary of the CPC OUC Committee and President of OUC, delivered a speech. The event was chaired by LIU Xuanxuan, Deputy Secretary of CPC OUC Committee and Secretary of the OUC Discipline Inspection Commission.
Dr. WANG Qiming, addressed the ceremony.
LIU Xuanxuan presided over the event.
XU Mingjun, Deputy Secretary of CPC OUC Committee, announced the list of research achievements and awards.
In his speech, WANG Qiming noted that in the reply letter to representatives of rural teachers under the Special-Post Teachers Programme, President XI Jinping extended festive greetings and sincere regards to teachers nationwide, fully demonstrating the great importance the CPC Central Committee attaches to the teaching workforce. President XI emphasised that teachers are the foundation of education and expressed his hope that educators will remain committed to their original aspiration, continuously enhance their teaching skills and nurture more young people with sound moral grounding, intellectual ability, physical vigour, aesthetic sensibility, and work skills needed to join and carry on the socialist cause.
WANG analysed the mission of open education in serving national strategies in the new era, and elaborated on the core principles of President XI Jinping’s important instructions on teachers. He put forward four hopes for the university’s teaching staff: First, to uphold firm ideals and beliefs, and shoulder the mission of building a leading country in education; Second, to cultivate noble ethics and continue the original mission of fostering virtue through education; Third, to enhance dual competencies and promote innovation in education empowered by digital intelligence; Fourth, to strengthen the sense of responsibility and work together to write a new chapter in the university’s development.
Dr. WANG Qiming presented awards to staff with 30 years of service in education.
University leaders presented awards to winners of the Teaching Skills Competition and their departments.
GU Xiaohua, representative of outstanding teaching management staff, delivered a video speech.
LI Zhixiang, representative of outstanding teachers, delivered a speech.
QIU Songnan, representative of young teachers, delivered a speech.
New faculty members took the oath of office.
During the event, the university honoured staff who have been engaged in education for 30 years, winners of the 3rd Teaching Skills Competition, as well as collectives and individuals who received awards in comprehensive, teaching reform, and scientific research categories during the 2024 - 2025 academic year. Representative of outstanding teaching management staff GU Xiaohua, outstanding teacher representative LI Zhixiang, and young teacher representative QIU Songnan each delivered a speech, followed by the solemn oath-taking ceremony of the newly recruited faculty members of 2025.
All faculty members, heads of university departments, and staff representatives attended the event on site, while other faculty participated online.
Special-Post Teachers Programme is a central government-funded initiative that has sent about 1.18 million college graduates to teach in rural areas of central and western China since 2006, covering over 30,000 schools, spanning more than 1,000 counties in 22 provincial-level regions.
Source: OUC WeChat Official Account