Minister of Education (MOE) Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) last week announced that the Sports Administration would ask the about 3,800 public schools below college level to take an inventory of their sports equipment and offer some of them for public use outside school hours within two weeks. The next day, the ministry abruptly announced that the policy was “well-intended,” but could easily cause “misunderstanding,” so it would re-evaluate the policy and communicate further with schools.
Cheng said the measure would give residents free access to basketballs, volleyballs and other sports equipment, and would help promote the government’s “fitness for all” policy. However, it immediately sparked a backlash from schools. Junior-high and elementary-school teachers are already facing a multitude of complaints from parents and a heavy administrative workload, among other overwhelming work demands, the National Federation of Education Unions said. Giving the public free access to schools’ sports equipment would only add more administrative work for teachers and staff, as they would need to manage the equipment, and deal with equipment losses, damage and other issues after work hours.
Some schools said that opening campuses for public use had already resulted in facility damage, created trash and sanitation issues, especially in restrooms, and also raised security concerns. The schools added that they needed more funds and staff to fulfill such a policy, while protecting students’ rights to sports equipment and facilities. The federation urged the ministry to instead address pressing issues such as staff shortages, under-resourced schools and overworked teachers.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) said the “ill-considered” policy was “out of touch,” urging the ministry to halt it and questioning if free access to the equipment would meaningfully promote fitness for all.
On Thursday morning, the ministry said that it would provide regular funding for ball-related sports gear, which would be viewed as consumable items, and offered to the public such as “courtesy umbrellas.” However, later that afternoon, it scrapped the policy and assured schools that it would not be implemented without careful consideration.
Similarly, last month, 11 medical groups issued a statement to oppose the ministry’s plan of allowing three universities — which were permitted to admit government-funded postbaccalaureate medical students under special provisions between 2022 and this year — to continue admitting such medical students next year, but changing it to be self-funded and increasing the admission quota. Medical schools can admit a maximum of 1,300 students per year, a government-set quota that has not changed for more than two decades. Medical associations said the ministry’s plan would break long-established rules by raising the enrollment quota. They had even planned protests, but the Executive Yuan shortly thereafter concluded that the annual cap would remain unchanged.
The ministry later issued a statement saying it did not intend to exceed the 1,300 medical student enrollment cap, even though it was planning to allow the transition of the three universities’ postbaccalaureate medical departments.
However, the policy to allow free access to ball equipment on school campuses was clearly not a “misunderstanding,” but was instead poorly planned without feasible supporting measures. Perhaps it was a spur of the moment remark from the minister. It and the medical student policy show that the ministry must improve communication with schools and stakeholders. A “well-intended” government policy requires careful planning and communication with stakeholders, or it could disrupt people’s lives and harm public trust in the government.
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