The legendary life of Yang Xianjiang

Yang Xianjiang was born in Xianjiang Village, Changhe Town, Cixi, and spent his teenage years here. Originally named Qijia Village and Yangjia Village, it was later renamed Fenjiangshi Village. In 1995, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Yang Xianjiang, it was named Xianjiang Village.

The former residence is a small bungalow with brick and wood structure, facing south, with seven sandalwood, five columns and five bays with a front porch. There are two side rooms on the east and west sides. There is a courtyard in the center, and the layout is in a "concave" shape. The main room, secondary room and top room are all 3.6 meters wide and 6.5 meters deep. The east and west side rooms are 6.8 meters wide and 3.6 meters deep. The total area is 285 square meters. The former residence has a simple architectural shape and is well preserved. It is a typical "Three North" folk residence in Cixi.

In 2004, the Changhe Town People's Government carried out large-scale maintenance of Yang Xianjiang's former residence and added the "Yang Xianjiang Memorial Hall" on the northwest side of the former residence. The former residence is decorated according to the style of Yang Xianjiang's early life here, and his works, manuscripts, diaries, photos, documents, files and other relics are displayed and preserved. These precious cultural relics vividly display Yang Xianjiang's fighting life and his glorious course.

In April 1958, the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Civil Affairs approved a posthumous document to remember Yang Xianjiang as a revolutionary martyr. In August 1986, Yang Xianjiang's former residence was announced by the Cixi County People's Government as the second batch of county-level key cultural relics protection units. In August 1997, the former residence was announced as a provincial cultural relic protection unit. In 1995 and 1998, it was announced as the patriotism education base of Cixi City and Ningbo City respectively. Changhe Town was originally located in the northern part of Yuyao County, bordering Hangzhou Bay in the north. It was originally a saline-alkali barren land. After the tidal pond was built around the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty, villagers gradually gathered and formed a market town on the pond, making a living by the sea. Since the Qing Dynasty, villagers have been weaving straw hats as a family side job. They are known as "there are no idle women in the ten-mile long street, and every family is a hat weaver".

Yang Xianjiang was born in this Haitian cotton town. Her father, Yang Shufang, was a tailor, and her mother, Fang, spun and weaved all year round and grew vegetables for sale to support the family. Since Yang Xianjiang was 8 years old, his parents saved money and sent him to school. From the village school, to Xishan Elementary School, to the County Chengyi Higher Elementary School, and then to Zhejiang No. 1 Normal School, he studied diligently and achieved excellent results. The elders of Xianjiang Village still tell the story of the time when Chengyi High School presented diplomas to outstanding graduates: before the Spring Festival this year, the school sent diplomas and Yang Shufang welcomed them at the Yang Family Ancestral Hall. Men, women and children in the village gathered in the ancestral hall, beat gongs and drums, lit firecrackers and set off firecrackers, just like celebrating a festival. The school representative read out Yang Xianjiang's diploma in public. Yang Shufang solemnly took the diploma and posted it on the wall of the ancestral hall. The villagers took it as an honor.

Yang Xianjiang is an outstanding graduate of Zhejiang First Normal School in 1917. He is excellent in both character and study, has a persistent pursuit of education and capable work ability. Principal Jing Hengyi admired him very much and recommended him to Nanjing Normal University. Teacher Li Shutong also introduced him to Tao Xingzhi of the school, so Yang Xianjiang quickly received an appointment letter from Nanjing Normal University after graduation and became a higher education institution. staff.

In 1919, the "May Fourth" movement broke out. On May 9, students from Nanjing Normal University took to the streets impassionedly, holding flags and slogans. Yang Xianjiang was particularly active in the parade. He and the teachers and students shouted: "Give me back Qingdao! Don't be a slave to the country's subjugation!" He distributed leaflets along the way. In June, when the climax of the May Fourth Movement had just subsided, Yang Xianjiang made a calm analysis and summary of the movement he had experienced personally, and wrote the article "New Lessons", which was published in the "Student Magazine" on July 5, causing a stir. The national intelligentsia paid attention to this budding figure. In early February 1921, Yang Xianjiang came to Shanghai as editor of the "Student Magazine" after being hired by the Commercial Press (at that time one of the important activity venues of the Shanghai Communist Party Group). In May 1922, after being introduced by Shen Yanbing and Dong Yixiang, Yang Xianjiang joined the Communist Party of China. He transformed from an educational omnipotent and democrat to a communist with firm beliefs, completing a major turning point in his life.

From then on, Yang Xianjiang used the "Student Magazine" as his base and often wrote editorials for the publication to guide young students on the road to revolution. He also opened the "Newsletter" and "Q&A" columns in the "Student Magazine" to answer various questions from students.

Whether it is major events such as the international situation, national destiny, personal future, or specific problems faced by young people such as love and marriage, career choices, and making friends, he patiently guides them and helps them find practical solutions. Yang Xianjiang cares about young students and regards them as his friends; young students love Yang Xianjiang and regard him as a mentor for young people.

Yang Xianjiang counterattacked Cao Muchuan

On March 25, 1924, Yang Xianjiang published "Reply to the letter of Cao Muchuan, the principal of Chengsheng Middle School, discussing the national heritage" in "Current Affairs War Report" Further criticism was given to the Chinese Language Council examination questions.

He pointed out: Educators with a little common sense should understand the purpose of secondary education and the difference between Chinese language and Chinese studies. What middle schools want to cultivate is healthy citizens, not 'specialized talents'. A healthy citizen cannot express his thoughts in his own language, and cannot understand his country's national conditions and the general trend of the world. This is inappropriate. In January 1926, Yang Xianjiang was elected as an executive member of the Shanghai Special City Party Headquarters of the Kuomintang and concurrently served as youth minister. In October, he was elected as a standing committee member and actively participated in the preparations for the Shanghai workers' armed uprising.

In the autumn of that year, news of the victory of the Northern Expedition continued to reach Shanghai. The imperialists and the reactionary warlords entrenched in Shanghai were frightened. The working class and people of Shanghai were shocked by the victory of the Northern Expedition and the panic of the enemy. I saw the light and hope of Shanghai.

On October 23, Yang Xianjiang, Lin Jun and other city party leaders, in order to cooperate with the first armed uprising of Shanghai workers, negotiated with representatives of the Kuomintang Central Committee and bourgeoisie to establish a civil government until the 24th Dawn, all night long. Due to hasty preparations, especially insufficient armed forces, the uprising quickly failed, which also made Yang Xianjiang deeply aware of the importance of uprising preparations. In January 1927, in compliance with the opinions of the Shanghai District Committee, he formally resigned from his position as editor of the "Student Magazine" and devoted himself to preparing for the workers' armed uprising.

On February 22, 1927, the Shanghai District Committee launched the second armed uprising, which was still rushed into battle. Yang Xianjiang and other city party leaders were deeply worried about the prospect of the uprising. In order to strengthen the leadership of the Shanghai workers' armed uprising, on February 23, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Shanghai District Committee jointly established the Party's Special Committee and organized the Party's Special Military Commission. It was decided that Zhou Enlai would serve as Secretary of the Special Military Commission. After Zhou Enlai took office, he immediately held a series of meetings to carefully summarize the lessons from the failure of the first two uprisings and deploy preparations for the third armed uprising. In late February, Yang Xianjiang met Zhou Enlai at a meeting held at Jingping Girls' Middle School in Nanshi. On March 21, the Shanghai workers' armed picket force, under the command of Zhou Enlai, began the third armed uprising, opening a new page in the history of China's working class struggle. Yang Xianjiang was responsible for organizing a student picket team composed mainly of Shanghai college students to participate in the fierce battle in Zhabei. After the victory of the uprising, he immediately participated in the preparatory work for the Shanghai Provisional Government. On April 12, 1927, Chiang Kai-shek and Bai Chongxi launched a counter-revolutionary coup in Shanghai, bloody massacre of communists and revolutionary masses, and listed Yang Xianjiang as a wanted felon. Following the party's instructions, Yang Xianjiang secretly went to Wuhan in late April and stayed in Wuhan to work in the General Political Department of the National Revolutionary Army and served as the chief editor of the official newspaper "Revolutionary Army Daily". On July 15, Wang Jingwei openly rebelled, and Yang Xianjiang returned to Shanghai and began a more difficult life.

At the end of the year, the situation in Shanghai became even more dangerous. In order to preserve the revolutionary power, the party ordered party members and comrades in extremely dangerous situations to go abroad and hide. Therefore, Yang Xianjiang left his wife and children and traveled east to Japan, taking the pseudonym Li Haowu. He not only went to seek refuge, but also was responsible for the Japanese special branch of the Communist Party of China. At the same time, he made a living as a translator and writer. There, he translated Engels's "The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State" and compiled my country's first monograph that uses the historical materialist perspective to study the history of education and narrates the educational process based on social development patterns - "The History of Education ABC" ", and other works such as "Outline of World History" and "Today's World".

In the past two years of his stay in Japan, in addition to contacting party members and writing, Yang Xianjiang also interacted with the upper echelons of the overseas Chinese community, creating conditions for extensive work in Japan.

He carefully and skillfully arranged for Dong Biwu, Lin Boqu, Qian Jiepan and other important officials to leave Japan safely. He also received and carefully arranged the travel-related matters for important officials such as Guo Moruo, brothers Gao Erbo and Gao Ersong, and Shen Yanbing. In May 1929, Yang Xianjiang returned to Shanghai from Japan and served as a member of the Central Cultural Work Committee of the Communist Party of China (referred to as the Cultural Committee). When the Cultural Affairs Committee was established, it was decided to strengthen the propaganda work of Marxism and organize the compilation of the "Emerging Social Sciences Series" as a popular reading material and strive to popularize it. The series of books covers many fields, and the writing tasks are undertaken by members of the Cultural Committee. Yang Xianjiang took on the task of writing books on education.

After the conception was completed, he began to write day and night, writing at an average rate of more than 5,000 words a day. He completed the first draft of a book of nearly 200,000 words in more than a month, and then revised and revised it. After polishing it, it was finally named "New Education Outline". Shanghai Nanqiang Book Company took just over 2 months to compile and publish the book in March 1930. The first edition sold out quickly, and a second edition was released in September of the same year. Due to the huge influence of the book, the Nationalist Government authorities listed it as a banned book in 1936. However, the more it was banned, the more readers bought it, and a third edition was released in March 1937.

"New Education Outline" is China's first book that uses Marxist principles to explain educational theory. It exposes all kinds of errors and deceptions in education. Many contents and views are the first time in China. It is proposed that it is of great significance in the history of Chinese education. The first chapter of the book is about the nature of education. *** is divided into four sections: what is education; the nature of education and its degeneration; criticism of several misinterpretations of education; and the effectiveness of education. Chapter 2 is the evolution of education. It focuses on education in primitive communist society, education in feudal society, education in capitalist society, and education in socialist society. Chapter 3 is an overview of education. Its contents are almost all new theories that have never been seen before in our country. The first big issue involved is the relationship between education and economy, and the second big issue is the relationship between education and politics. Finally he wrote about students. The "students" written here are not purely from an educational perspective, but to clarify the status of Chinese students at this stage, with the starting point that students should engage in political movements. This is Yang Xianjiang's most important educational work, a brilliant educational work. It is my country's first immortal masterpiece that systematically uses Marxist viewpoints to clarify the principles of education, and the theory is closely connected with China's reality.

After that, he continued to work hard for the party in a difficult and difficult environment, but eventually became ill due to overwork and overwork. In July 1931, he went to Japan for renal tuberculosis, but the treatment failed. On August 9, 1931, He died in Nagasaki, Japan, at the age of 37 due to ineffective treatment for renal tuberculosis. Hu Yuepeng/Text

In 1981, the Ministry of Education and the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League jointly held a meeting to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Comrade Yang Xianjiang. They spoke highly of Yang Xianjiang and confirmed Yang Xianjiang’s glorious position in the history of the Chinese revolution and the history of Chinese education—— - A staunch communist fighter, an outstanding youth movement leader, and a Marxist education theorist.

In 1984, Yang Xianjiang Educational Thought Research Association and Yang Xianjiang Education Foundation were established. He has successively edited and published a number of works such as "Memorial Collection of Yang Xianjiang", "Biography of Yang Xianjiang", "Collected Works of Yang Xianjiang on Education", "Research on Yang Xianjiang's Educational Thoughts". In 1995, "The Complete Works of Yang Xianjiang" was published. On April 11, 2005, the 110th anniversary celebration of Yang Xianjiang’s birth was held in Cixi City. At the same time, the "Book Series Commemorating the 110th Anniversary of Yang Xianjiang's Birth" was published by Guangming Daily Publishing House.