Construction of the Style of Study in Colleges and Universities in the New Period

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1.College of Agriculture, Kunming University, Kunming 650214, China; 2.School of Geography, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China

Abstract　The Nineteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China has defined the mission of educating people for our educators. The style of study reflects the education philosophy, culture and spirit of a university from the inside to the outside. Starting from the present situation and existing problems of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities in the new period, this paper puts forward some recommendations for the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities in the new period.

Key words　New period, Colleges and universities, Style of study, Recommendations

1　Introduction

TheImplementingOpiniononStrengtheningandImprovingtheStyleofStudyinCollegesandUniversitiespromulgated by the Ministry of Education points out: "The style of study is the embodiment of the spirit of universities, the essential requirement of teaching and educating people, the foundation and the soul of the development of colleges and universities." Style of study is the fundamental guarantee to improve the quality of education and teaching[1]. The Nineteenth Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is a very important and grand meeting in the key stage of building a well-off society in an all-round way and entering the new period of socialism with Chinese characteristics. In the report of the Nineteenth National Congress of CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping drew a grand blueprint for the future of China, pointed out the way forward for every Chinese, and clarified the mission of educating Chinese educators. As a college education and teaching worker, we must face up to the problems existing in the development of contemporary higher education. We must promote the continuous development of higher education with the pioneering and innovative spirit of times, create new achievements with the concept of increasingly innovative development, and take on the sacred mission of "running universities in China" in the new era with the new requirements of educators in the new era.

2　Current situation of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities in the new period

The construction of the style of study is the basis of the establishment of colleges and universities, directly related to the quality of school personnel training, playing a very important role in the long-term development of school and society. The construction of the style of study is the practical behavior of teaching and education management which guides the students’ behavioral characteristics and spiritual features in the process of receiving education. We should carry out the concept of management and service all-sidedly and throughout the whole process, which is of great significance to improving the orientation of students’ study, ensuring the lasting stability of learning motivation, and building the learning atmosphere of mutual help and co-advance[2-5]. However, in the teaching and education management of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, there are some problems in the cognition, management mechanism and scientificity of the style of study, which causes a large difference between the construction of the style of study and the expected value, especially in the ordinary colleges and universities.

2.1Cognitivedifferences

2.1.1Lack of scientific understanding of subject and object in the construction of style of study in colleges and universities. The subject and object of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities are not clearly divided, and the mechanism of scientific guidance and self-discipline is lacking. Some colleges and universities in the actual operation mainly focus on the students, class teachers and counselors, neglecting the absolute implementation of the concept of all-staff education, and there is always an one-sided trend. In order to promote the construction of the style of study, some colleges and universities carry out the evaluation of "class with the excellent style of study", but the evaluation condition is vague, the quantitative index is not clear, and the boundary of qualitative index is blurred. These problems lead to the difficulties in identifying key contradictions in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities.

2.1.2Lack of consciousness of multi-dimensional cooperation in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. The construction of the style of study should coexist with the construction of school spirit, party style, teacher style, teaching style, class style and examination style in colleges and universities. However, in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, there is often an emphasis on teaching style, examination style, the attendance of students, classroom teaching discipline supervision, but it lacks a top-down unified and systematic long-term management mechanism. The definition of responsibility is too rigid, and the departments are out of touch with each other and shy away from responsibility, which leads to the exhaustion of teachers and the resistance of students. It is difficult to understand the working ideas and methods of "who should take charge" and "how to manage".

2.1.3Inadequate understanding of connotation and extension in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities can be divided into two forms: tangible and intangible. The rate of excellent and good examinations, the rate of failing subjects, the passing rate of CET-4 and CET-6, the rate of violating discipline, the situation of scientific research declaration and completion, the situation of scientific research achievements of college students and attendance in class, are all tangible and quantifiable indexes for the construction of the style of study, which are easy to be paid attention to by colleges and society, and also easy to be examined. However, the intangible spiritual civilization in colleges and universities (returning to the owner what one has picked up, never hesitating to do what is right and studying diligently) is the expansion, extension and inheritance of its connotation, which is often ignored and has not been included in the construction of the style of study[6].

2.2Unscientificevaluationandoversightmechanisms

2.2.1"Who to assess"—selection of evaluation and supervision subject. At present, the main body of the evaluation for the construction of the style of study in some colleges and universities is mainly the counselor groups of each college and department. The content of the evaluation is assessed according to the application materials submitted by each class. The application materials are generally in accordance with the requirements of the "StudentHandbook" and related documents, lacking unified, mandatory indicators for evaluation and verification. The evaluation content is not very scientific and systematic, it is very transparent in the assessment, and it will inevitably produce more jobbery and make the students have more negative emotions and lose the spirit of fighting, so that it can not achieve the basic purpose of the construction of the style of study and lose the original intention of the evaluation of the construction of the style of study. From the content of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, the content of construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should include five aspects: morality, intelligence, physical education, beauty and labor. The "examiners" for the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should set up corresponding high, middle and primary assessment teams according to the construction contents. The members of the examination team must consider the speciality and authority. In order to avoid the phenomenon of unfairness and unfairness in the evaluation, the evaluation should be carried out in the form of concealed evaluation in combination with the training objectives and characteristics of professional personnel, so that the construction of the style of study can be promoted, and it is easier to be carried out and examined.

2.2.2"What to assess"—content of the construction of style of study. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should include the contents of morality, intelligence, physical education, beauty and labor, and focus on the students’ study and participation in teaching and scientific research and the construction of spiritual civilization, so as to quantify and easily evaluate the subjects involved in teaching and scientific research, the achievements of undergraduates’ innovation and entrepreneurial projects, the attestation of academic achievements and practical skills, patents, papers and awards, and so on. As for the construction of spiritual civilization, the examination is difficult and detailed, usually propagandizing and educating the students in the form of articles, but not quantifying the students’ daily words and deeds into tangible forms, so it is easy to be weakened and ignored. For example, college students actively participate in a variety of volunteer services, blood donation, helping others and so on, which are not included in the assessment quantification, resulting in the lack of assessment content.

2.2.3"How to assess"—quantitative and qualitative evaluation indexes. At present, in the evaluation of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, it is mainly assessed mainly from the quantitative and qualitative aspects. The quantitative assessment is performed on the conventional construction items easy to be estimated and operated, while the qualitative assessment is performed on the construction items at spiritual level not easy to be estimated and operated. Because of the difference between subjects and the attribute of examination content, we only assess the construction of the style of study in the quantitative and qualitative form, and do not bring the normalization, systematization and features into the examination according to the local conditions, the proportion of quantitative and qualitative indexes is not defined, and there is a lack of all-round evaluation on the construction of the style of study.

2.3Lackofcharacteristicandsystematicguidanceintheconstructionofthestyleofstudy

2.3.1Lack of university features. Each university has its own characteristics in its location, concept of running a school, campus culture and so on. The construction of the style of study can use some common aspects for reference, and it is necessary to be based on the orientation of school development and discipline characteristics, instead of copying and divorcing from reality. In the new period, colleges and universities can expand the traditional teaching mode of the first class by means of Internet, and widen the channels and resources of students’ study with rich and colorful teaching forms, so as to lay the foundation for students’ characteristic development.

2.3.2Lack of systematic construction. On the whole, the development of the style of study in colleges and universities is not even. In the report of the Nineteenth National Congress of the CPC, the socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era should emphasize the self-confidence of the road, the theory, the system and the culture. This requires us to pay equal attention to the construction of material civilization and spiritual civilization in the construction of style of study, and pay attention to the development of the first class and the second class construction at the same time, so that the formation of the second class is an omni-directional and beneficial supplement to the first class. We should let students spend most of their time and energy preparing for and developing the second class. But we should not put the cart before the horse, fill with normal teaching practice, open the exit for students to skip classes, flunk and lose interest in study, mislead students to deviate from the theory and practice of study, and affect the effect of the construction of study style.

2.3.3Lack of initiative in the construction of a style of study. In the aspect of the direction of running a school and maintaining the security and stability of the campus, colleges and universities usually transmit the information to those above and those below in the form of "administration"[7], the teaching classes of each department only implement the notice arrangement in the identity of "performer", lacking the consciousness and ability of self-innovation and advice. Moreover, influenced by the social mood, utilitarianism breaks the primitive tranquility of the fertile soil of the university. The educators often take their own interests as the starting point, as the direction of the construction of the style of study of the university, and they are too utilitarian, so that the work is passive and deviates from the original intention of the construction of the style of study, and and loses the purpose of the construction of the style of study.

3　Recommendations

3.1Strengtheningthecooperativeconsciousnessandexecutionabilityofallstaff

3.1.1Strengthening the understanding of one’s own post in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities covers all aspects of students’ study and life. Teachers and students in colleges and universities should do the corresponding essential work according to their respective posts, and play different roles in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. For example, teachers should actively impart knowledge and skills; the logistic service personnel should do well the logistic support service work for the student; the teachers in charge of the various kinds of work should do the corresponding management work, divide and cooperate, and jointly contribute their own strength to the construction of style of study, teachers’ style and school spirit. Therefore, in order to achieve good results in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, teachers of colleges and universities should, first of all, scientifically recognize their own work and role orientation, give play to their subjective initiative, conscientiously practise the socialist core values, and promote the construction of the style of study with excellent style of teachers. In addition, we should be based on the reality, on the post, strengthen our own study, actively implement coordination, dedication to work, and strive for the maximization of benefits. We must not be rigid, lack study, lest it should affect the effectiveness of the construction of the style of study and lose the significance of the construction of the style of study.

3.1.2Strengthening the objective and overall understanding of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. The construction of the style of study is the result of the comprehensive exertion of moral education, intellectual education, aesthetic education, physical education, participation in social commonweal activities and so on. Students’ achievements, daily activities, teaching attendance and system construction should not be regarded as the sole basis for evaluation. Excessive strengthening of unilateral factors violates the objective laws and connotations, which will inevitably affect the normal development of other factors and put the cart before the horse, thus forming a abnormal development situation, and hindering the construction of the style of study. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should pay more attention to the overall situation, pay attention to the relationship between individuals and the whole, and set up the consciousness of the overall situation. After the Fifth Plenary Session of the Eighteenth Central Committee of CPC, it was advocated to share and cooperate, give full play to the subjective initiative of human beings, strengthen the cohesion and combat effectiveness of the team, realize the unity of thought, cooperate in work, and persist in sharing and win-win development thinking.

3.1.3Improving and promoting the connotation of construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. Style of study is a comprehensive reflection of learning attitude and moral quality, and it is embodied in every bit of life. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should follow the important speech made by General Secretary Xi at the national conference on ideological and political work in colleges and universities and keep pace with the times[8-11]. We should follow closely the pace of development of the times, keep in mind the historical mission of the new era, adhere to the socialist core value system and core values, continuously promote the connotation of the work of building the style of study in colleges and universities, adhere to the educational purpose of "building morality and cultivating people", and always train the technical talents with both ability and morality to achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as the ultimate goal. Secondly, the faculty of colleges and universities must adhere to the correct political direction, firmly practise the core values of socialism, achieve the unity of knowledge and practice and lead by example, guide and drive the students, strengthen the promotion of Marxist theoretical accomplishment, strengthen the accumulation of humanities and social sciences knowledge, and cultivate the socialist core values by virtue, so as to improve the attractiveness and persuasion of students’ education management. We can give full play to the value of guiding and cultivating the qualified builders and reliable successors of socialism with Chinese characteristics for the socialist cause.

In summary, in our work, we should actively face the differences, diverse values and interests of all parties, firmly believe in the socialist core values, and externalize them into conscious action force in carrying out the construction of the style of study[12-13]. Since the 18th Congress of CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed in his speech "the unity of knowing and doing" and emphasized the cultivation and practice of socialist core values. It is necessary to focus on the empirical demonstration of teachers’ work and life behavior, in-class and out-of-class education publicity, cultural activities edification, perform ideological guidance and practical training to college students, realize the spiritual, ideological and cultural guidance of socialist core values, promote the connotation of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities and promote the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

3.2Perfectingtheevaluationmechanismoftheconstructionofthestyleofstudy

3.2.1Who?—evaluation subject. The subject of evaluation for the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should be based on the principle of "fairness and openness" to prevent corruption, correct the examination style, improve the credibility of the evaluation results and avoid the phenomenon of malpractice for personal gain. In order to promote the scientificity of the style of study and make up for the shortcomings, we can make the cross-evaluation among different types of colleges and universities in different regions, and invite the experts from home and abroad to take part in the evaluation with different cognitive structure, viewpoints and perspectives as the basis of the evaluation, and promote the result of the evaluation to be more comprehensive and more scientific.

3.2.2What?—evaluation content. The main body of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should include students and faculty on the whole, so the evaluation content should also include students’ learning style, learning attitude, teachers’ style of study, work style and workers’ work style. For this reason, the content and scope of the appraisal of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should grasp the comprehensive characteristics of the work category of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities. By grasping the whole and giving prominence to the part, there is a need to evaluate objectively the students’ self-consciousness, initiative, learning motivation, learning interest, learning emotion, learning perseverance, learning attitude, learning behavior, and learning atmosphere. The training plan, characteristics and discipline characteristics of professional talents are evaluated from the aspects of professional practice ability, innovative projects of college students, passing rate of participating in CET-4 and CET-6, national computer grade, industry certification and so on.

3.2.3How?—evaluation method. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities is an important condition for carrying out the Party’s educational policy, realizing the goal of cultivating talents, and measuring the level of running colleges and universities, and it is an important component of the ideological and political education in colleges and universities. Therefore, the evaluation methods of the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities should be consistent with the evaluation methods of the ideological and political education. First, we must collect complete and detailed assessment data and specific content, and prepare for the development of the assessment methodology. Secondly, the evaluation of the style of study should have clear goal orientation, and there is a need to understand and collect the actual problems in the work carried out through a variety of channels, make scientific adjustment of working methods and ideas, correctly guide and create a good atmosphere of learning.

3.3Strengtheningthescientificnatureoftheconstructionofthestyleofstudyincollegesanduniversities

3.3.1Strengthening the systematization of the construction of the style of study. The construction of the style of study is a whole, and different departments form different participants and different evaluation mechanisms. It is easy to produce conflict of value orientation, and there are certain cultural differences, information asymmetry and other contradictions, restricting the overall operation of the work of the construction of the style of study. So in the process of building a style of study, we must be based on the whole, to give full play to the synergies among the various elements, give full play to the core leading role of Party committees in colleges and universities, adhere to the "people-oriented" concept to serve teachers and students wholeheartedly at all times, give full play to the democratic and collective strength of Party members and teachers to enhance the scientific nature of our work, and lead teachers and students in schools with continuously strengthening Party spirit.

3.3.2Stressing the characteristics of running colleges and universities in the construction of the style of study. In the construction of the style of study, colleges and universities should be based on their own advantages and the orientation of running a school, to highlight the long-term stable school-running model of each university in the development process, as well as recognized, unique, outstanding characteristics of running a school. Therefore, in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, each major, subject orientation and teaching mode should be closely centered on the characteristics of colleges and universities, and it is necessary to train qualified builders and reliable successors who have the core values of socialism with Chinese characteristics for the Party and the state and who can develop in an all-round way. In order to further promote the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, we can use various channels such as communication technology, computer technology, mobile technology and network technology platform, some excellent methods and concepts in the construction of the style of study in colleges and universities, and carry out innovative construction of the style of study by adhering to the principle of seeking practical facts based on the conditions of colleges and universities[14-15]. In order to make the construction of the style of study fruitful, the innovation part of the construction of the style of study can be attempted, adjusted and popularized from the point to the surface, from the part to the whole. It is necessary to establish the working mode of the construction of the style of study with the characteristics of colleges and universities from the practice.

3.3.3Keeping and promoting the initiative of the construction of style of study. The construction of the style of study in colleges and universities is a systematic task, which needs the joint participation of teachers, students and staff. The leading body of the Party and government in colleges and universities plays an absolute leading role in the work of the school. The implementation of each work is carried out step by step by each person in the grass-roots units according to the requirements of the superior notice. Without a complete set of incentive and supervision mechanisms, the subjective initiative of the people will be gradually lost, and the work is lacking in initiative and creativity. Therefore, in the construction of the style of study, according to the administrative management framework of colleges and universities, it is necessary to implement the objectives and management at the high, middle and grassroots levels, promote the linkage between the systems, ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of the implementation of the work, and avoid disconnection from the actual situation, so as to achieve a rational allocation of existing resources, complementary advantages, and mutual improvement. In addition, in order to ensure that the construction of the style of study is really effective, in the centralized and unified deployment, the education object should be given the individualized education in view of the subject characteristics of each college.

In short, the work of construction of the style of study in colleges and universities needs to be based on the reality of university development, to find the best point of entry, realize multi-perspective, all-round, all-staff participation, clearly understand the characteristics of education objects, use the Internet thinking and technology to improve the inadequacies in daily work management, open "5 + 2", "day+ night" work mode, affectionately focus on the actual work, and listen to the needs of education objects anytime and anywhere, so that the work of construction of the style of study in colleges and universities can play the greatest effect.