On the night of March 21, prestigious Tsinghua University held a ceremony to honor model teachers in a grand auditorium. Some of the university heads plus 100 teachers and 1,000 students took part in the ceremony.

The ceremony concluded an annual model teacher election organized by Tsinghua's Graduate Student Union. It also marked the 10th anniversary of the election.

Thirty-seven teachers were elected by over 5,700 graduate students through an established procedure. These highly accomplished scholars were proudly and loudly hailed by their students once they stepped onto the stage for awards. They all noted that the honor meant a lot to them as it was recognition directly from students. It would motivate them to work harder and serve their students better, they added. Representatives of the graduate students presented the model teachers with flowers and awards.

Students present flowers and awards to their teachers.

Some students sang songs and read poems to express their gratitude to their beloved teachers on behalf of their peers. The ceremony, lasting more than two hours, was concluded by a long poem recited by all honored professors.

The honored professors conclude the ceremony by reciting a long poem.

Tsinghua University has always attached great importance to its teachers. In order to realize its goal of becoming a world class higher education institution, the university has stressed even more on the quality of its teachers. In 1998, supported by the university's graduate school, the Graduate Student Union initiated the first annual model teacher election. Since then the election has acquired a standard and rigid procedure and garnered its fame for fairness and interactivity.

The honored professors.

(China.org.cn by Pang Li, March 26, 2008)