MOE high school education forum concludes in Taipei

2015/12/22

A Ministry of Education-staged secondary school forum wrapped up Dec. 20 in Taipei City, further expanding communication channels between the government and students.

The two-day event brought together 20 experts, officials and teachers, as well as 100 high school and vocational students, from around Taiwan to discuss the key topics of career and curriculum planning, civic awareness and social participation, multiculturalism and globalization, and smart life solutions and technology development.

Education Minister Wu Se-hwa said the forum serves as a valuable platform for students to voice different opinions. “It also helps them develop independent thinking and glimpse their potential on the road to a bright future.”

Echoing Wu’s remarks, Huang Tzu-teng, director-general of K-12 Education Administration under the MOE, said the forum breaks down the barriers to intergenerational dialogue. “By springboarding off this positive collaboration, we hope to draft policies more in line with the expectations of students.”

One of the key proposals to emerge during the gathering was prioritizing citizen participation in society. The MOE was urged by the students to consider adding current affairs into the curriculum as way of stimulating critical thinking.

It is thought that regular lectures, discussions and seminars by academics in the field could help the youth better filter information and arrive at rational conclusions rather than blindly following the pack.

Another suggestion involves media reform, requiring Taiwan’s news outlets to place a greater emphasis on reporting global happenings as opposed to the existing domestic-heavy coverage.

Students feel that international events are broadcast as filler during off-peak times, with a reverse in this practice broadening their horizons and placing them at the same level of awareness as their counterparts around the world.

A particularly worthwhile idea was implementation of a national non-smartphone day. Students are of the opinion that their addiction to handheld devices, which is ruining classes and undermining the standard of education in Taiwan’s schools, should be addressed by the MOE. By forcing young people to reassess the role of smartphones in daily life, the ministry could help wean them off chatting apps and assist in building stronger interpersonal relationships.

Huang said the government will take the students’ proposals on board and assess them in due course. “We look forward to growing this event in the future so as to incorporate the voices of even more participants and create a better education environment for all stakeholders.”

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=240464&ctNode=2194&mp=9)