“公共精神”:培育当代民族精神的核心理论维度

"Public Spirit": the Core Theoretical Dimension to Cultivate Contemporary National Spirit

现代教育的最终使命和核心任务在于塑造和培育民族精神。任何民族的民族精神,实质上是该民族之“公共性”文化精神的理论表达,以及对共同的价值理想、信念的理解和不懈追求。现代“公民社会”需要具备现代性社会精神气质与人格特质的人,国民教育尤其是民族精神教育实质上是一种社会化的“公众教育”,是指全社会都参与到新的理性与人文精神的学习、传播、创新和实践中来。培育民族精神中的“公共精神”品质的关键,是发育中国的“公民社会”,培养民众的“公民意识”。一个国家的公民意识和公民精神,可以折射出这一民族和国家文明的面貌;反之,从一个民族国家的文明中也可以看到公民意识和公民精神的投影。突出民族精神中“公共精神”信念的教育,既是在国际社会中树立中华民族的“国家形象”的长远之策,又是构建一种涵摄“公共性”文化精神与价值理念追求于其中的、富于鲜明时代特色的开放的民族精神新生形态之必需。

The ultimate mission and the kernel goal of modern education lie in shaping and cultivating national spirit. In fact, the national spirit of any nation is embodied in the theoretical expression of the ＂publicity＂ of the cultural spirit and the untiring pursuit of public value ideal and belief understanding. Modern ＂citizen community＂ needs those who are fully built with the quality of modern spirit and special personality; citizen education, particularly national spirit education, is essentially a ＂public education＂ for socialization, which demands all members of the society to take part in leaning, transmitting, creating and practicing new rationality and humanistic spirit. The key in fostering the ＂public spirit＂ in national spirit is to lead to Chinese ＂citizen society＂ and public ＂citizen awareness＂. In fact, the citizen awareness and citizen spirit could reflect the true appearance of the civilization of the nation, and vice versa. To emphasize the education belief of ＂public spirit＂ in na- tional spirit is not only a long--term strategy to erect the ＂national image＂ of the Chinese nation, but also a necessary direction to construct an open nation full of contemporary characteristics.