How Marxism Understands “Education”

In the classical texts of Marx and Engels there are a large number of important discussions on education. These important discussions emphasize the main tasks of education, the methodological requirements of education, and the essential laws of education. In *Capital*, Marx, based on the communist mode of production and its basic characteristics, pointed out that the future of education “is the combination of productive labor with intellectual and physical education. It is not only a method of increasing social production but also the only method of producing fully developed human beings.” So, how does Marxism understand and view “education”?

在马克思、恩格斯的经典文本中有大量关于教育的重要论述，这些重要论述强调了教育的主要任务、教育的方法要求以及教育的本质规律。在《资本论》中，马克思基于共产主义生产方式及其基本特征，指出了未来教育“就是生产劳动同智育和体育相结合，它不仅是提高社会生产的一种方法，而且是造就全面发展的人的唯一方法”的教育新形态。那么，马克思主义是如何理解和看待“教育”的呢？

First, from the requirements of socialized large-scale production for cultivating labor power, it points out that education must undertake three main tasks. In *Capital*, Marx proposed that “to modify the general nature of man so as to develop his skill and dexterity in a given branch of labor, and to make him a more developed and specialized labor power, a certain amount of education or training is required.” This thesis points out that the first task of education is “to modify the general nature of man,” that is, from the mission of the proletariat, it means cultivating workers into “newborn people” through proletarian education. On the one hand, this new generation of producers, through comprehensive and systematic social education, sheds the limitations brought by the old division of labor, and at the same time, through practical training in the production process, masters the labor skills required by the social mode of production. On the other hand, Marx and Engels repeatedly mentioned that through proletarian education based on historical materialism, the proletariat should be guided to recognize the historical mission of the new generation of workers from the essential requirements of future social production, the labor demands of socialized large-scale production, and the developmental trends of capitalist social transformation. As Engels pointed out in his “Letter to the International Socialist Students’ Congress,” if university students are to be competent for the work of reconstructing society, they must not only grow into the mental labor proletariat but also closely integrate with the manual labor proletariat, thereby “taking charge of all social production.” The second task of education is “to develop his skill and dexterity in a given branch of labor,” that is, emphasizing that proletarian education must overcome the old education that “trains people into machines,” stimulate people’s talents and abilities, guide people to exert their subjective initiative, help the proletariat clearly recognize what labor they truly love, and choose the labor skills and techniques they wish to acquire, thereby confirming their essential powers in free and conscious labor. The third task of education is “to make him a more developed and specialized labor power,” that is, emphasizing that through proletarian education, the proletariat is cultivated into developed and specialized labor power, capable of leading the masses to achieve the unity of “practice at a principled height” and “the revolution of man at a height.” This means cultivating the proletariat not only as workers with practical skills but also endowing them with firm ideals and convictions, noble ideological consciousness, and a strong spirit of struggle. As Marx pointed out in the “Introduction to a Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right,” it is truly “the brain of society and its heart.”

首先，从社会化大生产对培养劳动力的要求上指出教育要承担三个主要任务。马克思在《资本论》中提出，“为改变一般人的本性，使它获得一定劳动部门的技能和技巧，成为发达的和专门的劳动力，就要有一定的教育或训练”。这一论断指出了教育的第一个任务就是“为改变一般人的本性”，即从无产阶级的使命来说就是通过无产阶级教育把劳动者培养成为“新生的人”。这种新一代生产者，一方面，经过全面系统的社会教育摆脱了旧式分工带来的局限，同时经过生产过程的实践锻炼掌握社会生产方式所需要的劳动技能；另一方面，马克思、恩格斯多次提到要通过基于唯物史观的无产阶级教育，引导无产阶级从未来社会生产的本质要求、社会化大生产的劳动需求以及资本主义社会变革发展趋势中认识到新一代劳动者的历史使命，正如恩格斯在《致国际社会主义者大学生代表大会》中指出，大学生要想胜任重建社会的工作，不仅要使自己成长为脑力劳动的无产阶级，还要同体力劳动的无产阶级紧密结合，从而“掌管全部社会生产”。教育的第二个任务就是“使它获得一定劳动部门的技能和技巧”，即强调无产阶级教育要克服“把人训练成机器”的旧式教育，激发人的天赋和才能，引导人发挥主观能动性，帮助无产阶级认清自己真正热爱什么劳动，选择自己想要获得的劳动技能和技巧，从而在自由自觉的劳动中确证自己的本质力量。教育的第三个任务就是“成为发达的和专门的劳动力”，即强调通过无产阶级教育把无产阶级培养成发达的和专门的劳动力，能够引领人民群众实现“有原则高度的实践”和“人的高度的革命”的统一，既把无产阶级培养成具有实践本领的劳动者，又使他们具有坚定的理想信念、高尚的思想觉悟、坚强的斗争精神。正如马克思在《〈黑格尔法哲学批判〉导言》中指出，“它真正是社会的头脑和社会的心脏”。

Second, starting from the practical activity of object relations, it explores the methodological requirements of the three dimensions of education. The first dimension is reflected in the relationship between the educator and the educated. Marx pointed out in the “Theses on Feuerbach”: “The materialist doctrine that men are products of circumstances and upbringing, and that, therefore, changed men are products of other circumstances and changed upbringing, forgets that it is men who change circumstances and that the educator must himself be educated.” In Marx’s view, education as a practical activity is a process of two-way construction between the educator and the educated. The educator being educated first is the primary prerequisite for educating others. If the educator is to impart ideals, convictions, values, knowledge, and skills to the educated, the educator himself should first possess the corresponding moral qualities, solid knowledge, and practical abilities. Engels wrote in “The Communists and Karl Heinzen”: “The party’s political writers need even more wisdom, clearer ideas, better style, and richer knowledge.” It can be said that the party’s political writers, as educators, bear the mission of arming and educating the people with scientific truth, awakening the proletariat’s class consciousness and revolutionary consciousness. Therefore, for educators like the party’s political writers, they must constantly receive education, constantly “rise to the point of being able to theoretically understand the whole historical movement” in their ideological consciousness, and steadfastly practice it. The second dimension is reflected in the enhancement of the subjectivity of the educated, that is, focusing on self-improvement and self-education. Engels proposed in “The Literature of Exile” that proletarian education is to help the proletariat “diligently devote themselves to self-improvement and self-education,” and in the educational process, to treat “Marx’s entire world outlook” not as a dogma, but as a standpoint, viewpoint, and method for observing and transforming the world, analyzing and solving problems, to achieve the integration of theory and practice, and to “always be determined by the historical conditions of the time.” The third dimension emphasizes that the Communist Party must play a leading role in the education of workers. This can be seen from the thesis in Marx and Engels’ *Manifesto of the Communist Party* that “the Communists do not for a moment cease to instill into the working class the clearest possible recognition of the hostile antagonism between bourgeoisie and proletariat.” [1]1 The original Chinese text quotes the *Manifesto of the Communist Party* as stating “the Communist Party does not for a minute neglect to educate the workers.” The standard English translation of the relevant passage is rendered here. This thesis reveals the urgency and extreme importance of the Communist Party educating the workers. Since the Communist Party from the outset has no special interests different from those of the proletariat, the nature and purpose of the Communist Party determine the proletarian character of education and the consistency of their goals, which is to instill the truth character of Marxism deep into the hearts of the workers, to let the faith of communism resound throughout the world, and to call upon the proletariat of the world to unite.

其次，从实践的对象性关系活动出发探讨了教育三重维度的方法要求。第一重维度体现在教育者与受教育者的关系方面。马克思在《关于费尔巴哈的提纲》中指出：“环境是由人来改变的，而教育者本人一定是受教育的。”在马克思看来，教育作为实践活动是教育者与受教育者之间双向建构的活动过程，教育者本人首先受教育是教育他人的首要前提，教育者要传授给受教育者理想信念、价值观念和知识技能，教育者自身应该先具备相应的道德品质、扎实的学识和实践本领。恩格斯在《共产主义者和卡尔·海因岑》中写道：“党的政论家还需要具有更多的智慧、更明确的思想、更好的风格和更丰富的知识。”可以说，党的政论家作为教育者，承担着用科学真理武装和教育人民、唤醒无产阶级阶级意识和革命意识的使命任务，所以对于像党的政论家一样的教育者而言，他必须不断接受教育，不断“提高到能从理论上认识整个历史运动”的思想觉悟并对其笃行不怠。第二重维度体现在受教育者主体性的提升，即注重自我提高和自我教育。恩格斯在《流亡者文献》中提出，无产阶级教育就是帮助无产阶级“兢兢业业地致力于自我提高和自我教育”，在教育过程中把“马克思的整个世界观”不是当作教条，而是作为观察和改造世界、分析和解决问题的立场观点方法，能做到理论与实践相结合，能做到“随时随地都要以当时的历史条件为转移”。第三重维度就是强调共产党要发挥对工人教育的领导地位。这可以从马克思、恩格斯在《共产党宣言》中“共产党一分钟也不忽略教育工人”这个论断中体现出来，这一论断揭示了共产党教育工人的时间紧迫性和极端重要性。由于共产党从一开始就没有任何同无产阶级不同的特殊利益，共产党的性质宗旨决定了教育的无产阶级性质，决定了二者目标的一致性，那就是把马克思主义的真理品格深入工人的心坎，就是让共产主义的信仰响彻全世界，号召全世界无产阶级联合起来。

Finally, from a historical investigation of educational activity, it points out the political character of proletarian education and the educational essence of realizing the all-round development of the human being. On the basis of an in-depth investigation of the educational situation of the English proletariat, Engels proposed that the political character of “purely proletarian education” is to free education from the influence of the bourgeoisie, to safeguard the interests of the proletariat, and to help the proletariat master the laws of the historical development of human society and its science. Engels again emphasized in *Ludwig Feuerbach and the End of Classical German Philosophy*: “The more ruthlessly and disinterestedly science proceeds, the more it finds itself in harmony with the interests and aspirations of the workers.” As a scientific theory exploring the objective laws and inevitable trends of the historical development of human society, proletarian education guided by Marxist theory will inevitably help humanity find “the key to understanding all social history” with a selfless and impartial scientific attitude. Marx wrote in “Instructions for the Delegates of the Provisional Central Committee”: “The most advanced workers are fully aware that the future of their class, and hence the future of humanity, depends entirely on the education of the rising generation of workers.” In this instruction, Marx paid attention to the intrinsic relationship between proletarian education and the future development of humanity, and closely combined “intellectual education, physical education, and polytechnical training” in education with “productive labor education.” He reaffirmed this view in *Capital* and recognized that only proletarian education can highly unify increasing social production with promoting the all-round development of the human being. The essence of proletarian education lies in improving the proletariat’s labor skills through the transformation of the communist mode of production, while simultaneously enabling the proletariat to grow into communist workers with scientific theoretical knowledge, healthy physical qualities, noble moral sentiments, and practical labor skills, becoming freely and fully developed human beings.

最后，从教育活动的历史性考察指出了无产阶级教育的政治品格和实现人的全面发展的教育本质。恩格斯在深入考察了英国无产阶级的受教育情况基础上，提出“纯粹无产阶级的教育”的政治品格就是要使教育摆脱资产阶级的影响，维护无产阶级的利益，就是帮助无产阶级掌握人类社会历史的发展规律及其科学。恩格斯在《路德维希·费尔巴哈和德国古典哲学的终结》中再次强调，“科学越是毫无顾忌和大公无私，它就越符合工人的利益和愿望”。马克思主义理论作为探索人类社会历史发展的客观规律和必然趋势的科学理论，以马克思主义理论为指导的无产阶级教育必然会以大公无私的科学态度帮助人类找到“理解全部社会历史的锁钥”。马克思在《临时中央委员会就若干问题给代表的指示》中写道：“最先进的工人完全了解，他们阶级的未来，从而也是人类的未来，完全取决于正在成长的工人一代的教育。”在这个指示中，马克思关注到无产阶级教育与人类未来发展之间的内在关系，并把教育中“智育、体育和综合技术教育”与“生产劳动教育”紧密结合起来，在《资本论》中再次申明这一观点，并认识到只有无产阶级教育才会把提高社会生产与促进人的全面发展高度统一起来，无产阶级教育的本质就在于要从共产主义社会生产方式的变革中提高无产阶级的劳动技能，同时使无产阶级成长为具有科学理论知识、健康身体素质、高尚道德情操和劳动实践本领的共产主义劳动者，成为自由全面发展的人。

Education is an important cornerstone for national rejuvenation and social progress, and a project of moral governance that benefits the present age and yields benefits for a thousand years. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has promoted historic achievements in the cause of education in the New Era. General Secretary Xi Jinping has published a series of important discussions on education, which are an inheritance and development of Marxist educational thought, a scientific answer to where Chinese education in the New Era starts from and where it is going, and a timely response to the fundamental question of the proletarian educational outlook of “what kind of people to cultivate, how to cultivate them, and for whom to cultivate them.” These provide the fundamental guidance for promoting the development of China’s educational cause on the new journey of the New Era.

教育是民族振兴、社会进步的重要基石，是功在当代、利在千秋的德政工程。党的十八大以来，以习近平同志为核心的党中央推动新时代教育事业取得历史性成就，习近平总书记围绕教育发表了一系列重要论述，是对马克思主义教育思想的继承和发展，是对新时代中国教育从哪里出发、走向哪里去的科学回答，是对“培养什么人、怎样培养人、为谁培养人”的无产阶级教育观根本问题的时代回应，为推动新时代新征程中国教育事业的发展提供了根本遵循。

Source: *Study Times*, October 21, 2024

文章来源：《学习时报》2024年10月21日

Online Editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧