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It doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t read foreign books.
The integration of young students with workers and peasants and their participation in
productive labour is an important way to transform their world outlook and acquire practical
technical knowledge.

[1] On July 20, 1968, Chen Boda, head of the Cultural Revolution Group of the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of China, and Yao Wenyuan, a member of the group,
wrote a report to Mao Zedong, stating: "According to your suggestion, we have organized
reporters from Xinhua News Agency and Wenhui Daily to write an investigative report on the
path taken by the Shanghai Machine Tool Factory to train engineering and technical
personnel." "We have added an editor's note quoting your latest instructions. I am
submitting this report for your review, revision, and approval!" The original text of the "latest
instructions" quoted in the People's Daily editor's note submitted by Chen Boda and Yao
Wenyuan for review reads: "Science and engineering universities should still be established,
but the length of study should be shortened. Education should be revolutionary, with
proletarian politics in the lead, following the path of the Shanghai Machine Tool Factory in
training technicians from among the workers. Students should be selected from workers and
peasants with practical experience, and after a few years of study in school, they should
return to production practice." During his review, Mao Zedong changed the phrase
"Universities of science and engineering should still be established" to "Universities should
still be established. My main point here is that universities of science and engineering should
still be established." Part 1 is a critique of the investigative report submitted by Chen Boda
and Yao Wenyuan and the People's Daily editorial note. Part 2 is a parenthetical commentary
following the statement in the investigative report that a university graduate, upon first
joining the factory, "spends all day holding a book on foreign thread grinders." Part 3 is a
revision of a sentence in the investigative report, with the text in italics containing Mao
Zedong's additions. Mao also changed the sentence in the editorial note from "We advise



the few who are short-sighted but not yet capitalist-roaders to broaden their horizons" to
"We advise those who are short-sighted but not yet stubborn capitalist-roaders to broaden
their horizons." He also changed the phrase "break through frameworks" in the investigation
report to "break through inappropriate frameworks." He also changed the sentence from
"High school and junior high school graduates with good political thinking and two or three
years of practical work experience should be selected from the grassroots to "Junior high
school and junior high school graduates with good political thinking and two or three years
or four or five years of practical work experience should be selected from the grassroots to
study in colleges and universities." This investigation report and editorial were published in
the People's Daily on July 22.