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Academics slam educational reform over past decade

A group of academics yesterday condemned the failure of the last 10 years of educational reform, calling the system a "wavering monster" that has left Taiwanese youth even unhappier than before.

Members of the Education Rebuilding Link and the Taiwan Provincial Education Association called a joint news conference in Taipei to air their views on what they call the failure of ongoing educational reform, which they said had not helped the country's children lead a happier life as planned.

Instead, they said, the reforms had only brought a heavier burden to students.

The group complained that over the past several years, changes to entrance exam systems have only benefited the rich while vocational training and apprenticeships had been ignored.

They said the gaps between the rich and poor and between cities and rural areas have grown even wider and that ethics education had been neglected.

Lin Huo-wang (林火旺), a professor at National Taiwan University, said utilitarianist values in society had not subsided one bit since educational reform began.

On the contrary, he said, today's students strive to study only for the purpose of seeking better jobs when they finish their education.

Without ethics education, he said, young people simply become "test machines with animal impulses."

Lin said education and training were different. He said education should allow the young to make preparations for leading a happy life, enable them to perceive the meaning of a happy life and teach them that wealth does not necessarily lead to happiness.

Lin said the public should know what kind of ethics should be built into Taiwanese society.

Taiwan was a free society, and in a free society, people should be educated to tolerate different opinions, he said.
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