Seven-year-old Lee Ying-chieh has paid a weekly visit to an elegant temple in Taipei for the past three years, rain or shine. But she isn't there to worship any deities, she has been studying the lessons of Confucius -- the great educator and philosopher of ancient China.
Hundreds of thousands of Taiwanese children like Lee have enrolled in the weekend Chinese classics programs or "Duchingban" (
They study Chinese literary classics ranging from the teachings of Confucius and Mencius from some 2,500 years ago to the poetry from Tang (618-906 AD) and Sung (960-1279 AD) dynasties, which were famous for literature achievements.
The classics are often taught through songs and games while field trips to historical and cultural sites are part of the curriculum.
"I like the lessons because it's fun and I'm learning a lot more Chinese words than my classmates," says Lee during a break in a Saturday afternoon class at the Confucius Temple, a traditional yellow-roofed and red brick-walled building in the quiet Datong neighborhood of the capital.
"I want to be a Chinese language teacher when I grow up," she adds.
On any given Saturday, the rhymes from children aged between three and 12 years old reciting literary classics or poems seem to be giving a new vitality to the 121-year-old shrine to the ancient sage, a key Taipei landmark.
The growth of "Duchingban" is significant in Taiwan where a controversy has been raging over the teaching of Confucius -- China's most famous philosopher and political theorist whose ideas have influenced civilization in China and East Asia, including Japan and South Korea.
The Ministry of Education announced last November its plan to further reduce high school lessons in Chinese classics, including dropping the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, another of ancient China's prominent scholars, from the mandatory literature course list, ostensibly to ease the burden on students.
But some educators see the move as politically motivated. They say the government of President Chen Shui-bian (
Cross-strait tensions are high after Beijing last month passed the "Anti-Secession" Law threatening the country with war if it declares formal independence.
Education officials have brushed aside the criticism, saying they were adjusting the curriculum to "balance traditions and modernity."
Even if the government succeeds in wiping Confucius off the compulsory school curriculum, it will likely provide a further boost to private "Duchingban."
"I think it's crucial for children to learn more about our culture and history. Even the foreigners are now studying Confucianism," says Li Mei-yu, a 35-year-old housewife from Taipei County.
Li waited for two years to enroll her two sons in the popular free programs at the Confucius Temple, one of the first venues to offer such lessons.
Parents and teachers also hope that the teachings of Confucius, who stressed moral values, will provide a much-needed "character education" for the younger generations.
"My child is learning filial piety and other virtues through the classics. I believe such education will better equip him in today's problematic society," says Hsiung Shu-chen, whose eight-year-old son has attended the program for three years.
Parents are not alone in believing that politics and education should be kept separate.
"I think it's wrong to let politics interfere in education," says Chien Wan-hua, chief of the Taipei Classics Association which has offered Chinese classics programs in the Confucius Temple since 1999.
"Now more and more students can't even write proper Chinese compositions and they lack the values and ethics which are the foundations of Confucian classics," he sighs.
The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday vowed to protest at the EVA Air Marathon on Sunday next week should EVA Airway Corp’s management continue to ignore the union’s petition to change rules on employees’ leave of absence system, after a flight attendant reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight while ill. The case has generated public discussion over whether taking personal or sick leave should affect a worker’s performance review. Several union members yesterday protested at the Legislative Yuan, holding white flowers and placards, while shouting: “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime.” “The union is scheduled to meet with
‘UNITED FRONT’ RHETORIC: China’s TAO also plans to hold weekly, instead of biweekly, news conferences because it wants to control the cross-strait discourse, an expert said China’s plan to expand its single-entry visa-on-arrival service to Taiwanese would be of limited interest to Taiwanese and is a feeble attempt by Chinese administrators to demonstrate that they are doing something, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said the program aims to facilitate travel to China for Taiwanese compatriots, regardless of whether they are arriving via direct flights or are entering mainland China through Hong Kong, Macau or other countries, and they would be able to apply for a single-entry visa-on-arrival at all eligible entry points in China. The policy aims
Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung and Taoyuan would issue a decision at 8pm on whether to cancel work and school tomorrow due to forecasted heavy rain, Keelung Mayor Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said today. Hsieh told reporters that absent some pressing reason, the four northern cities would announce the decision jointly at 8pm. Keelung is expected to receive between 300mm and 490mm of rain in the period from 2pm today through 2pm tomorrow, Central Weather Administration data showed. Keelung City Government regulations stipulate that school and work can be canceled if rain totals in mountainous or low-elevation areas are forecast to exceed 350mm in
EVA Airways president Sun Chia-ming (孫嘉明) and other senior executives yesterday bowed in apology over the death of a flight attendant, saying the company has begun improving its health-reporting, review and work coordination mechanisms. “We promise to handle this matter with the utmost responsibility to ensure safer and healthier working conditions for all EVA Air employees,” Sun said. The flight attendant, a woman surnamed Sun (孫), died on Friday last week of undisclosed causes shortly after returning from a work assignment in Milan, Italy, the airline said. Chinese-language media reported that the woman fell ill working on a Taipei-to-Milan flight on Sept. 22