Hongren Chen used to be one of my students, who studied in the Mapo Middle School, reviewed in the Zhengji Middle School and entered Suzhou University, majoring in Chinese language and literature. He returned to Zhengji and taught Chinese. Later he transferred to Tongshan Middle School, which was not far from Pengda. One day he asked me for the material about my teaching English myself, edited and contributed to the column of Elites of Science and Education of Xuzhou Daily. On one date of April, 1998, my story appeared on the paper of Xuzhou Daily. The whole text is as follows:
Defu Song: God helps those who help themselves.
Figure’s archive
Defu Song: graduated from the foreign language and literature department of Nanjing University, acted as an English teacher in the Mapo Middle School and the Zhengji Middle School successively. In 1990, he was transferred to Pengcheng University and now is dean of the Financial Department, and associate professor and party secretary of the department branch. From 1985 up to now, he has published more than 200 academic theses, coaching articles and experience presentations. He began to write books in 1994, and the presses of National Defense University(NDU), Beijing Normal University, Beijing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics (BUAA) , China Book Press, High Education Press(HEP) have published his three English tool books and two computer English courses.
Mr. Defu Song entered Nanjing University in 1964 and began to study the basic German. In 1969, he went to the countryside in North Jiangsu to receive reeducation, when he got to know that later he would teach in the middle school, where no German was taught. He decided to teach himself English and borrowed some English text books used in the middle school before the Cultural Revolution. Every day, after the hard physical work he taught himself English in spirits despite of tiredness.
In 1972, Song began to teach English in a middle school. After Mazhenfu Incident[1], English teaching was almost stopped. However, he still showed great interest in it and had never stopped studying English. After the downfall of the Gang of Four[2] he came to teach English again. Because of strong ability of teaching and excellent results, he was transferred to a key middle school. For so many years, he has never given up learning English, read through the teaching materials from BFSU (Beijing Foreign Studies University), BU (Beijing University), SJTU (Shanghai Jiaotong University) and then read for CGEL (A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language) with 1700 pages written by famous grammarians headed by Randolph Quirk. At that time, he had little reference book and therefore had a lot of difficulties reading it. “Where there is a will, there is a way”. Facing the difficulty, Mr. Song said, “The moment which is hardest to endure tends to be close to the success. Persevering in an effort may come to the target.” In order to read and understand CGEL, he kept patient, one word, one sentence, one paragraph, one chapter…. He got up early in the morning and didn’t go to bed until late into the night, chewing and tasting the work repeatedly. There being still some sentences which remained unsolved, Mr. Song wrote directly to Professor Quirk, asking for help or calling in question to the truth or their validities. Up to now he still preserves all the letters from Quirk. He wrote the admonition about reading by Zhu Xi, who was a famous Confucianist of Song Dynasty, on the flyleaf of the CGEL: “Peel the skin and you can see the meat; pick out the meat and you can see the bone; break up the bone and you can see the marrow.” Deep and thorough understanding what was written in Quirk’s works caused his mind to occur his own thought. He was not satisfied with absorbing knowledge from GCE（A Grammar of the Contemporary English）and CGEL(A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language), and he would display his own performance to the world. From 1985 to 1988, he released more than 100 articles, or English coaching materials on 23 varieties of magazines or papers. Anyone cannot reach his or her goal in one step, and his successful way was full of obstacles. It is hard to imagine that his first article appeared on the magazine “English Learning” edited by BFSU (Beijing Foreign Studies University) after he contributed the 18th manuscript.
With his enterprising spirit, his teaching and research ability appeared quickly. In 1988, he was promoted to one of the first few high rank middle school teachers.
In 1990, Defu Song was transferred to Pengcheng University, and his title changed from High-rank middle school teacher into an associate professor. He continued to step forward and opened up the new area of the teaching practice and theory in the college.
In the domain of the English grammar he communicated with Professor Quirk of College University of London, talked and consulted, and wrote a series of theses and published on the journal of SISU (Shanghai International Studies University), “Foreign Languages”. Filled with the confidence, he keeps up with the time, teaching himself the computer and the knowledge of business and finance and becomes an old hand. “English Dictionary for Middle School Students”, “CEE English Dictionary”，written by Mr. Shihua Li and “Dictionary of CEE English Words” edited by himself, are popular among the students in the middle school and the colleges and universities respectively. Two versions of computer English were published by China Book Press and the HEP (High Education Press) , esp. “Computer English Course” issued by the HEP has become the computer English teaching material for 132 colleges and universities. Since 1997, Pengda has cooperated with the Caterpillar Incorporation and formed Caterpillar English Training Centre at Pengcheng University. Defu Song, as the head representative, negotiated with the representative coming from the US. His listening and oral English ability was praised by the American guests. Recently he has received a letter from the chief editor of “English Learning” edited by BFSU, saying that in 2000, the journal would use Defu Song’s series of 12 articles about the Internet in English with Chinese notes. Now, as dean of the Department of Business and Finance, Defu song is busy writing “English Course of Business and Finance”. All the work of putting in and typesetting is to be done by Mr. Song himself.
After my story appeared on Xuzhou Daily, a lot of colleagues and students of mine expressed congratulation on me. I was thinking of a higher target that I would try my best to obtain the title of professorship. In Pengda at that time there were very few associate professors, let alone professors, and I had no confidence in getting it. I thought of it but dared not always think of it. Accordingly, I had to hide this aim in my deep heart.
April 10 of 2011, in Xuzhou
Proofreading on March 14 in Chicago
Uploading on Aug. 6 of 2023
[1] Mazhenfu Incident: see Section Fourteen in detail
[2] the Gang of Four: Wife of Mao Zedong Jiang Qing and three others from Shanghai, who followed Mao, supporting the cultural revolution. See section Seventeen in detail
