Befitting the exhibition “From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace” and stressing the importance of education in spreading the message of peace, SGM Johor invited well-known educator, Yang Ruiqing to give a lecture on child education at the SGM Johor Culture Centre, Johor Bahru on January 31, 2008. The lecture focused on how parents can make the home a “bay of love,” and create a harmonious environment for the healthy development of their children. Yang said that children had unlimited innate potential which should be properly cultivated. He also said that the home should not be a “battlefield” but a place filled with love.

In order to make the home a “bay of love,” Yang introduced seven principles: 1) a lack of love is like lack of oxygen; 2) not knowing how to love is equivalent to no love; 3) love that is from the heart is true love; 4) protect a child with a loving heart; 5) love allows us to have choices; 6) love gives us strength to carry on; 7) carry love with us on the journey of happiness. Yang used simple language to drive home his points in front of 600 listeners.

Yang graduated from Nanjing Xiaozhuang Normal Teachers College in 1981 and started his teaching career in the rural areas. He is recognised as one of China’s outstanding school teachers. The principal of Xingzhi Primary School in Nanjing since 1985, he is a key member of the Chinese Ministry of Education’s Teachers’ Professional Ethics Reporting Team and Deputy Director of the Appreciation Education Research Department of the Tao Xingzhi Research Association of China. His widely acclaimed book, “Walking on the Road of Xingzhi,” is a popular reference for contemporary educators in China.