In 2007, Sun Zhijuan joined the Faculty of Science and Engineering at the Open University of China (OUC), and is currently the deputy director of and a full-time teacher in this department. She mainly researches the design and analysis of mechanical structures, mechanical and electronic engineering, and distance education related to engineering. She is responsible for the undergraduate Mechanical Design Manufacturing and Automation major at the OUC, and presides over the teaching, resource development, and team operations of seven engineering courses.
Imparting Knowledge and Fostering Virtue Through Education
Sun Zhijuan has remained true to her aim of "imparting knowledge and fostering virtue through education". A lot of outstanding graduates of the major were her students, including Li Wanjun, winner of the National May 1st Labour Medal, and Zhu Shijie, a national “model worker”.
In 2020, under her guidance, her Beijing-branch student Zhang Gaofeng designed a fully enclosed vehicle for waste-separation and collection. After several modifications to the design, a prototype vehicle was eventually manufactured, and successfully patented and trademarked. With her help, Zhang Gaofeng collaborated with classmates in the College Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, and achieved third place in Beijing.
Keeping Tradition While Pursuing Innovation
She has been promoting the pilot work of the OUC's New Industrial Worker Training and Development Assistance Programme, making distance education the basis of innovative training and platform-development. By cooperating with industries and enterprises, she has provided degree and non-degree continuing education to over 100,000 workers.
Constructing Disciplines
Since 2016, she has presided over Bachelor-degree conferral in the major. She also presided over the discussion and compilation of the OUC Teaching-reform Programme for Mechanical Engineering Courses, focusing on integration of disciplines such as automatic-control technology, information technology, and computer science and technology, stressing the reconstruction of traditional engineering courses in concert with the new Engineering majors. At the same time, to enable the open university to offer training in a variety of regions and industries, she promoted the construction of a platform for electromechanical-engineering courses, putting in place designs that have achieved outstanding results.
Teaching with Dedication and Constantly Improving
Both teaching and service are important aspects of distance learning for her, and she is focused on the needs of teachers and students in the open-university system, as well as motivating learners to actively participate in online courses.
She has presided over the construction of the courses "Hydraulic and Pneumatic Technology", "Fundamentals of Mechatronics System Design", and "Electromechanical Control and Programmable Controller Technology", which won OUC awards for online courses. The platform for "Hydraulic and Pneumatic Technology" came second in the national Mechanical Vocational Education competition.
Leverage Research to Enhance Teaching
Recently, as either leader or participant, she has completed research projects for the China Adult Education Association (CAEA) and China Education Association of Machinery Industry (CEAMI) Vocational Education National Natural Science Foundation, among others. In domestic and international journals or conferences, she has published more than 30 papers, and she delivered her conference thesis at the 2020 ICOIE（International Conference on Open and Innovative Education）and the 2017 AAOU conferences on behalf of the OUC. She has also applied for two approved patents and one software copyright.
She is passionate and determined when it comes to distance education, adhering to tradition while making innovations, and facing all difficulties to help build a world-class open university.
By OUC News Network