Nursing students protest school policy

Nursing have protested the policy of obtaining "body exposure agreements" from students, which allow teachers to ask them to strip for classroom demonstrations in all-female classes.

Students the Chang Gung Institute of Technology's Chiayi branch said they were pressured to sign permission forms stating that they were willing to act as models for demonstrations of medical examinations. The demonstrations require the students to expose their upper torso.

The school responded to the complaints by saying the policy was not intended to demean students and the school would consider scrapping the practice.

Students that they feared their grades would be affected if they did not sign the form. Some also felt that bonus points awarded to students who signed the form were inappropriate.

One "Lulu," said students were told that anyone who did not sign the form would need to discuss the matter with their teacher. This made students fearful of repercussions, she said.

Other said they supported the policy. Nurses need to be familiar with anatomy, some said, and teachers allowed students to cover their breasts with tape.

The school said the form was meant to explain to students that their class would involve exposing certain parts of their bodies.

The demonstrations were done in closed classrooms to ensure privacy, with no cellphones allowed, it said.

Legal and the Ministry of Education said the school was in the wrong if it was compelling students to sign the forms. Ministry officials recommended that the school discontinue the policy.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STAFF REPORTER