Negotiation, not supervision
After reading Hsu Yu-min’s letter about parents’ rights to supervise their children (Letters, Oct. 28, page 8), I, as an assistant professor who needs to guide students with their learning activities, have a different take on the issue.
There is certainly a new conflict of interests between parents and their children. Parents pay for their children’s tuition and would be informed of their academic performance. However, students would like to gain full autonomy and freedom without having to report to their parents because they have been granted full citizenship over the age of 18. Both parents and children must take full responsibility.
Parents do not have to take control of their children’s performance by demanding to look at their academic reports. They have to respect their children’s right to privacy. Thus, I recommend that parents learn to control their emotions to improve their communications skills so that their children would have more willingness to discuss matters related to their studies if needed. Second, parents must use efficient negotiation skills to help their children solve any problems related to the payment of their education and other administrative matters.
When children agree to enter university, they should take full responsibility to go to class regularly, complete their assignments on time and fulfill their promise to graduate. Children should communicate with their parents when they ask reasonable questions regarding their studies. As parents have invested a large sum of money for their children’s study, it is the parents’ rights to ask questions to be informed about their children’s schooling situation. Nevertheless, children should provide a reasonable excuse if they do not want to provide information to their parents.
Thus, the job of parenting is not an easy one as their children have gained awareness about their rights. There is no discussion needed when everything goes smoothly. Parents and children only need serious discussions when problems crop up. It is thus imperative that both parents and children develop good communication skills to solve problems efficiently. That way, children would agree to provide relevant information to their parents regarding their academic performance.
David Blasco
New Taipei City
When it became clear that the world was entering a new era with a radical change in the US’ global stance in US President Donald Trump’s second term, many in Taiwan were concerned about what this meant for the nation’s defense against China. Instability and disruption are dangerous. Chaos introduces unknowns. There was a sense that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) might have a point with its tendency not to trust the US. The world order is certainly changing, but concerns about the implications for Taiwan of this disruption left many blind to how the same forces might also weaken
As the new year dawns, Taiwan faces a range of external uncertainties that could impact the safety and prosperity of its people and reverberate in its politics. Here are a few key questions that could spill over into Taiwan in the year ahead. WILL THE AI BUBBLE POP? The global AI boom supported Taiwan’s significant economic expansion in 2025. Taiwan’s economy grew over 7 percent and set records for exports, imports, and trade surplus. There is a brewing debate among investors about whether the AI boom will carry forward into 2026. Skeptics warn that AI-led global equity markets are overvalued and overleveraged
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Monday announced that she would dissolve parliament on Friday. Although the snap election on Feb. 8 might appear to be a domestic affair, it would have real implications for Taiwan and regional security. Whether the Takaichi-led coalition can advance a stronger security policy lies in not just gaining enough seats in parliament to pass legislation, but also in a public mandate to push forward reforms to upgrade the Japanese military. As one of Taiwan’s closest neighbors, a boost in Japan’s defense capabilities would serve as a strong deterrent to China in acting unilaterally in the
Taiwan last week finally reached a trade agreement with the US, reducing tariffs on Taiwanese goods to 15 percent, without stacking them on existing levies, from the 20 percent rate announced by US President Donald Trump’s administration in August last year. Taiwan also became the first country to secure most-favored-nation treatment for semiconductor and related suppliers under Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act. In return, Taiwanese chipmakers, electronics manufacturing service providers and other technology companies would invest US$250 billion in the US, while the government would provide credit guarantees of up to US$250 billion to support Taiwanese firms
RSS