European countries such as the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland, where the native languages are not English, have striven hard in recent years to offer all-English curriculums to attract international students. Many prestigious institutions of higher education in those countries have taught a substantial portion of international students. Language is the key.
The Canadian godfather of mass communication, Marshall McLuhan, said: “The medium is the message.”
English language is the medium for internationalizing our local universities. It is also the message to attract foreign students.
Establishing an all-English, four-year undergraduate curriculum in Taiwan is much more difficult than establishing a graduate program, because undergraduate students need to take more than 100 credits in an array of courses, including general courses, general-education courses and professional courses. If we are to implement the Ma’s ideas, we will need many faculty members who can use English as their communication medium in the classroom and in their course Web pages.
Based on our experience of promoting an all-English curriculum in the International Master Program of Agriculture, we should pay close attention to candidates’ level of English when recruiting new faculty members. It should be understood by all involved that a new faculty member should be able to offer courses completely in English. With such a corps of competent professors ready, we will be able to develop “all-English curriculums” to benefit both local and foreign students.
Israel Bau-Jen Jiang is the academic secretary to the dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at National Chung Hsing University in Taichung.
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