Retirees at private schools
As a retired teacher from a state school, I would like to comment on the debate over the trend of retired public-school teachers, military personnel and civil servants taking teaching positions in private schools.
First, employee rights are clearly enshrined in the Constitution, including protections for equality in the workplace. The government should be setting a good example, but by treating public-school teachers differently from those working in the private sector, it is behaving unconstitutionally.
Second, we should examine the two main factors that are driving this phenomenon.There is nothing strange about public-school teachers deciding to change careers or retire: The problem is the rate at which these teachers are leaving the profession, which is increasing year-on-year.
Some teachers retire due to old age, while others take early retirement or change careers because of dissatisfaction with the profession. Recent gripes that have encouraged some teachers to head for the exit include the controversy over changes to the national curriculum, changes to regulations on disciplining students and perceived increased interference from students’ parents.
In addition, due to uncertainly brought about by the government’s education reform programs, some schools do not replace full-time teaching positions, instead opting to use part-time or substitute teachers.
Some retired teachers also take up a teaching at a private school due to a number of reasons, including a desire to supplement their pension.
Significantly, in private schools, management retain the right to hire and fire their teachers, so there is less job security than in state-funded institutions. Whether this phenomenon will alter Taiwan’s hidebound teaching profession or result in education becoming increasingly formulaic — indeed, in danger of becoming “North Koreanized” — is a matter for debate.
The reason private school administrators have chosen to use retired teachers public-school teachers rather than train their own is probably due to two factors. First, to draw on the experience of seasoned teachers, and, second, to enhance the school’s reputation with a “famous” teacher.
Without a doubt, hiring retirees to teach in private schools is a form of exploitation at the expense of younger teachers, many of whom will be unable to find a job. It will bring market forces and a system of supply-and-demand to Taiwan’s teaching profession.
Some private schools need to go through a period of adjustment and adopt a more farsighted approach to running their schools. New teaching graduates need to be more self-sufficient than the previous generation to find jobs.
Rather than the government amending the law to prohibit retired public-sector workers taking up teaching positions in private schools, we need a bottom-up reform of the education profession.
Kuang Te-hsun
Taipei
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