Zusun Chinese School: Looking back on history and creating the future

Zusun Chinese School: Looking back on history and creating the future On September 27, Zusun Chinese School celebrated its 65th anniversary, and the school held a grand celebration at Zusun Chinese Cultural Center...

On September 27th, Zusun Chinese School celebrated its 65th anniversary, and the school held a grand celebration at Zusun Chinese Cultural Center. "Seminar on Teaching Philosophy and Teaching Methods in Chinese Schools" is an event specially organized for teachers. Sixty-five years of overcoming obstacles and reforming the old. At 9 a.m. that day, teachers from two Chinese schools in Tucson gathered together, and a seminar on "Teaching Philosophy and Teaching Methods in Chinese Schools" was held as scheduled. Chen Weiheng, Consul of the Education Section of the Consulate General in Los Angeles, came to the scene and delivered a speech. He first congratulated Zusun Chinese School on its 65th anniversary and expressed his gratitude to Zusun Chinese School for its contribution. He said that Zusun Chinese School has been the foundation and banner of Chinese education and the dissemination of Chinese culture in Tucson from scratch. He hopes that Zusun Chinese School will not only become a learning place for Chinese Americans, but also become a source for non-Chinese Americans to learn Chinese and understand China. Later, Consul Chen presented Fuzhou jasmine tea on behalf of the consulate to express his congratulations. Immediately afterwards, Ms. Liao Ying, president of the Tucson Chinese Association, briefly introduced the history of Zusun Chinese School to the attending teacher representatives and expressed her care for Zusun Chinese School. After taking a group photo, the seminar officially started.

Dr. Yang Li, a Chinese historian from Phoenix, titled "A Historical Review of Chinese Teaching in the American Overseas Chinese Community and Talking about the Historical Changes of Chinese Schools in Tucson", tracing the development of Chinese education in Tucson from a historical perspective and the inspiration of Chinese immigrants in the United States. She showed everyone the history of Chinese schools run by Chinese Americans with detailed historical information. The history of Zusun Chinese School was reviewed with precious pictures and specific data, highlighting the historical achievements of the Tucson Chinese who overcame difficulties and persevered in establishing Chinese education. Many teachers attending the meeting said that this was the first time they understood the development history of Chinese education in Tucson in such detail, and they felt the heavy responsibility and glorious mission on their shoulders. Dr. Chen Pu, the former principal of Hope Chinese School in Arizona, changed the subject and brought everyone back from history to reality. As soon as he took the stage, he asked a few questions that caught the teachers off guard: "What challenges have we encountered? What is the future of Chinese education? What should Chinese schools do?" Dr. Chen Pu prepared a lot of materials for this seminar, but based on the atmosphere of the seminar and the specific situation of the teachers present, he decided to break away from the originally prepared speech and focus on discussing the issue of cultivating people in Chinese schools. He started with the AP project and talked about the dilemma that Chinese schools are facing being eliminated. He suggested that Chinese schools should focus on the spread of Chinese culture on the basis of good Chinese teaching. He has repeatedly emphasized that Chinese schools should become cultural bodies, and the program should integrate Chinese culture throughout education. The teaching philosophy that he vividly put forward in Chinese schools is "just don't teach the students enough." This is refreshing. Dr. Chen’s speech brought the atmosphere of this seminar to a climax. The participating teachers asked questions and interacted with each other, covering how teachers teach culture, how to arrange class time, how to choose teaching materials, how to grasp the content, etc. The questions and answers led to in-depth discussions. Later, Lei Hong and Ma Jing, the former principals of Zusun Chinese School, also delivered speeches on school development and Chinese education. The originally scheduled three-hour seminar was extended by more than an hour, and the discussion ended without any satisfaction until the afternoon celebration meeting was about to begin. As Chen Rongji, the current principal of Zusun Chinese School, said: "We sit down and truly discuss school development and Chinese education. Every collision of ideas and emotional exchange will promote and promote the inheritance and innovation of Zusun Chinese School." Written by: Ouyang Jing, Chen Rongji, Photography: Zhang Jian