Visiting a school ahead of Children’s Day, president calls for all-round development of students
President Xi Jinping talks on May 31 with students at Beijing Yuying School. During the visit, Xi extended greetings to children across the country ahead of International Children’s Day, which was celebrated on June 1. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
President Xi Jinping extended festive greetings to children across the nation on May 31, encouraging them to seek all-around development in their moral grounding, intellectual ability, physical vigor, aesthetic sensibility and work skills, and dedicate themselves to the cause of national rejuvenation.
Xi conveyed the message during a visit to Beijing Yuying School ahead of International Children’s Day, which was celebrated on June 1. The visit came days after Xi presided over a group study session of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee on building China into a leading nation in education.
Children are the future and hope of the Chinese nation, said Xi, who is also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission.
He urged Chinese children in the new era to have high aspirations and dreams, enjoy studying and working, be grateful and friendly, and have the courage to innovate and strive.
Xi inspected an exhibition hall showcasing the history of the school, which was founded in 1948. The fundamental task of education is fostering virtue, he said, adding that the nurturing of students’ ideals, moral qualities, knowledge, intelligence, and physical and mental strength are all indispensable.
Talking to students exercising at a basketball court, he noted that youth is the critical stage to build up one’s health, adding that a strong body is the foundation for lifelong learning and work.
The president urged schools to provide adequate physical education and create conditions for enhancing the physical fitness of children, while calling on families, schools and society to help children improve their physical condition.
He then visited a small farm in the school where students were honing their agricultural skills. Xi, who started to live and work alongside farmers in Liangjiahe, a mountain village in Shaanxi province, when he was 15, emphasized the value of labor in acquiring knowledge and life skills.
Xi expressed hope that the students would understand the difficulties in farming and the hardships of farmers, foster a love for labor, cherish food, and respect nature from an early age, thereby contributing to building a beautiful China.
The president then visited a science lab where teachers and students were designing an experiment. He encouraged the students to stay committed to building China into a leader in innovation and contributing to the nation’s strength and self-reliance in science and technology.
During talks with the teachers of fifth-graders at the school, Xi underlined the strength of China’s basic education in the world, encouraging the teachers to firm up their cultural confidence and help the children develop broader horizons and more open minds.
He stressed the need to make teaching the most respectable and admirable profession.
Xi concluded his visit by expressing his confidence in the CPC’s leadership and the socialist system’s remarkable advantages, which will help ensure the happiness and better future of all children in China.
