Military training for Peking University freshmen draws to an end
Sep 05, 2019
Peking University, Sept. 5, 2019: For Chinese students, it has become a common practice to start the academic year with a short spell of military training when they enter middle school and university. This is no exception to freshmen at Peking University, which is considered as an opportunity for students to hone their willpower, toughen their body, and acquire some military knowledge.
Students arriving at the training base
The 2019 training took place from August 21 to September 1. Here at the Huairou Military Training Base, Wi-Fi is not accessible yet one can indulge in the virtues of nature--the first cockcrow, the twittering of birds at dawn and the rising sun glinting on the trees and the track field; parents are not allowed to visit yet students have each other in company, sharing stories and exchanging ideas. Training base as the campus, playground as the lecture hall, here, students geared up for their upcoming college life.
A glimpse of the military training
Throughout the 12-day training, students followed a strict routine as that in the troops, waking up before 6 in the morning and going to bed before 10 in the evening. Rising earlier than the sun, students got to have breakfast after 30 minutes’ training and were greeted with an inspection on sanitation afterwards. During daytime, students were trained on basic skills under the guidance of the instructors while in the evening the fatigue faded away as students engaged in recreational activities like singing and dancing on the stage.
However fun the evening activities might be, training has always been tough. The most important part of the basic skill training is formation training which includes stand at attention, stand at ease, footwork, salute and review. It endows students with an upright body shape together with an energetic profile.
Students standing at ease
Besides formation, students also studied emergency evacuation, fighting skills, self-defense techniques and learned how to shoot, march and sing army songs.
The opening ceremony
The opening ceremony of the military training camp was held on August 21, the morning students arrived at Huairou Military Training Base, where a total of 3,700 freshmen were asked to endure the rigorous training, to follow the orders unconditionally, to adopt positive attitude and to stay safe during the training.
The opening ceremony of the military training camp
On the evening of August 23, the third day after arrival, students gathered on the training pitch and listened to a lecture given by Peking University Council Chair Qiu Shuiping.
Qiu started from introducing the 121-year-long history of PKU and the legacy that was passed down from generations to generations. Peking University has always been and will always be the pioneer of innovation and improvement, paving the way towards prosperity and social progress. Qiu expressed his hope that PKU students should live up to the following three requirements: be faithful, work hard and stay true to the original aspirations.
Qiu giving a lecture
After listening to Qiu’s lecture, students felt that they had acquired a better grasp of responsibility that they should shoulder as new PKUers.
The Excursion and Rifle Practice
On August 28, before the break of dawn, students already assembled, ready for a long march of 25 kilometers in the steamed air and dazzling sunlight.
Halfway through the excursion, students stopped to practice shooting in the target range. For most of them, it was the first and probably the last time they can touch a genuine gun. Lying still in the grass, putting aside the itchiness from grass that rubs one’s skin, aiming to the target amid the gunshots loud enough to make people deaf, pulling the trigger with sweaty finger, and feeling the excitement and fear that stir up in one’s brain, the freshmen had an extraordinary experience engraving in their memory.
Students practicing shooting with rifle
Transformation
The Education Ministry of China describes the purpose of military training as to enhance students’ willpower, also as an opportunity to toughen young students both physically and mentally. Throughout the course of 12 days, Huairou witnessed the transformation of these students, from callow high-school graduates to mettlesome freshmen. Through numerous organized activities, not only did they get themselves acquainted with their peers, but also fostered habits of a real soldier. The newcomers are now better prepared for their college life, following the closing ceremony of the military training camp on September 1. Meanwhile, their brand-new chapters at PKU have just begun and they are expected to make each day count and keep on writing their own PKU stories.
Students marching in formation
Written by: Qiu Kanghua
Edited by: Huang Weijian
