In a society where a vast majority of people now go to university and not doing so is seen as bringing great shame on the family, it is interesting to read that 75.7 percent of Taiwanese believe that a vocational education can still lead to a bright future.
That result came from a Huang Kun-huei Education Foundation telephone survey of 1,074 people, the results of which were announced on Saturday.
Foundation officials said there has been a shift in the public’s attitude toward vocational education, adding that government neglect of the sector has led to unemployment among young people while industries are unable to find skilled employees.
Society has long perceived vocational schools as places for students who fare poorly academically. In a value system where good grades matter more than learning, this is a good sign that many people are actually starting to value professional skills instead of emphasizing entry to a top university to study something that might be interesting, but not very practical.
In the US, it is understood that not everyone goes to college. Some towns do not have universities, but vocational training centers where people learn skills such as practical nursing, welding, even robotics.
However, in Taiwan, too many people go to university just for the sake of entering university, whether it be due to familial pressure or simply to follow the “natural path” that everyone else is taking.
Many of these students end up majoring in whatever subject their university entrance exam scores could get them into, without a real passion, which leads to great frustration among professors.
It is very common to hear “I just got accepted” as the answer when asking someone why they chose to study a particular subject.
When they graduate, such students have no interest in pursuing the subject of their studies, nor do they have any other skills — unless they actively pursued an interest in their spare time — and end up working menial office jobs for NT$22,000 a month and complain about the low pay and lack of advancement. So what was the point of a college education?
Yet, at the same time, firms needing carpenters, electricians, welders and other “blue-collar” trades are having a hard time finding employees, and factories end up hiring migrant workers while college graduates complain they cannot find any job, much less a suitable one.
Exacerbating the problem is that the nation’s declining birth rate has meant that many of the universities established in recent decades now suffer from overcapacity and are having to shutter some departments because of a dearth of students.
It is clear that the educational system no longer fits either the nation’s or students’ needs, and the government knows it. In March, the Ministry of Education released the latest vocational training policy guidelines, part of its effort to make vocational education a respectable option.
Among the ministry’s efforts are introducing skills and career options to elementary-school students through “day-on-the-job” opportunities and field trips to various industries. It also proposes improving career counseling and assessment programs in secondary education.
The guidelines stress practicality and real-life experience, which are exactly what Taiwan’s educational system lacks.
Industry involvement is also important, as is making vocational licenses and certifications more valuable.
However, even with these guidelines, change will not occur if society continues to emphasize familial pride or status over solid career training.
It is not a shame if your daughter or son does not go to college; having the training for a solid career is much more important. As such, the poll’s results are truly welcoming.
George Santayana wrote: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” This article will help readers avoid repeating mistakes by examining four examples from the civil war between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) forces and the Republic of China (ROC) forces that involved two city sieges and two island invasions. The city sieges compared are Changchun (May to October 1948) and Beiping (November 1948 to January 1949, renamed Beijing after its capture), and attempts to invade Kinmen (October 1949) and Hainan (April 1950). Comparing and contrasting these examples, we can learn how Taiwan may prevent a war with
A recent trio of opinion articles in this newspaper reflects the growing anxiety surrounding Washington’s reported request for Taiwan to shift up to 50 percent of its semiconductor production abroad — a process likely to take 10 years, even under the most serious and coordinated effort. Simon H. Tang (湯先鈍) issued a sharp warning (“US trade threatens silicon shield,” Oct. 4, page 8), calling the move a threat to Taiwan’s “silicon shield,” which he argues deters aggression by making Taiwan indispensable. On the same day, Hsiao Hsi-huei (蕭錫惠) (“Responding to US semiconductor policy shift,” Oct. 4, page 8) focused on
Taiwan is rapidly accelerating toward becoming a “super-aged society” — moving at one of the fastest rates globally — with the proportion of elderly people in the population sharply rising. While the demographic shift of “fewer births than deaths” is no longer an anomaly, the nation’s legal framework and social customs appear stuck in the last century. Without adjustments, incidents like last month’s viral kicking incident on the Taipei MRT involving a 73-year-old woman would continue to proliferate, sowing seeds of generational distrust and conflict. The Senior Citizens Welfare Act (老人福利法), originally enacted in 1980 and revised multiple times, positions older
Taiwan’s business-friendly environment and science parks designed to foster technology industries are the key elements of the nation’s winning chip formula, inspiring the US and other countries to try to replicate it. Representatives from US business groups — such as the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, and the Arizona-Taiwan Trade and Investment Office — in July visited the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區), home to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC) headquarters and its first fab. They showed great interest in creating similar science parks, with aims to build an extensive semiconductor chain suitable for the US, with chip designing, packaging and manufacturing. The
RSS