Every year in April, students at Renmin University of China have more pleasure than other students in Beijing. Why? Because they get a week off in the middle of term, the so-called(所谓) spring break.
“It’s been a tradition of our school for years,” said Wang Yueran, 20, a student at Renmin University. He organized a weeklong trip to Sichuan with 12 classmates last year.
But having fun is just one part of the spring break. Field trips, voluntary work, and social projects are all on students’ to-do lists. The Chinese proverb says “reading 10,000 books and traveling 10,000 miles”. It means experience is as important as theory. But while Chinese universities have the tradition of spring outings, what’s the aim of making spring break?
Qin Jianguo, from the student affairs office at Shenzhen University, thinks the idea of the spring break in some universities in China comes from the intention(目的) of pushing students out of the ivory tower(象牙塔) to get experience in their life. Many countries have similar vacations in the middle of the semester for students to do things they like. Taking Japan as an example, instead of partying like the US, many Japanese students choose to work as interns(实习生).
Besides Renmin University, only a few other universities in China, such as Yantai University, have a spring break for their students. Wei Xiang, a professor(教授) at Beijing International Studies University, said that the spring break is a good experiment for universities to give students more choices to arrange their own leisure(休闲) and study activities.
【小题1】Why do students at Renmin University of China have more pleasure than other students in Beijing in April?
【小题2】 Besides having fun, what are also on students’ to-do lists?
【小题3】According to Qin Jianguo, what is the intention of the spring break in some universities?
【小题4】 What do many Japanese students do during spring break?
【小题5】Do most of Chinese universities have spring break now?