From a Word to a World: An Innovative Teaching at a Higher Educational Institution in China

China’s higher educational reform created innovative ways to cultivate talents urgently needed for social development during the late 1970s. This paper investigates an enlightening teaching reform of English major on the basis of Tianshui Normal College in Gansu Province. The historical course has three typical examples: enthusiastically fostering talents, seeking more profound cultural exchanges, and moving educational reform forward. Professor Hu Dingyi, as a leading implementer, explored and created a good learning atmosphere for collegiate students beyond the classroom teaching and achieved remarkable results. His innovative thoughts are of great value to promote classroom teaching for students’ gaining the most precious noble ideal, ethnic culture and more subject expertise.