Enrollment at Taiwanese schools is to decline sharply over the next 16 years, a Ministry of Education report released yesterday said.
The report, which uses historic data and predictive modeling to cover enrollment trends from 2010 to 2036, is used to guide education policy, resource distribution and curriculum plans, it said.
Enrollment at elementary schools is to decline by 16,000 students per year, falling to fewer than 1 million by 2029 and to 923,000 by 2036, it said.
Photo: Hung Mei-hsiu, Taipei Times
The downward trend has been correlated to births since 2010, it said, adding that policy interventions and the belief in certain Chinese zodiac signs have affected the birthrate in some years.
Many couples avoid giving birth in the Year of the Tiger, which fell on 2010 and is to occur again next year, the report said.
In 2010, 215,000 students enrolled in elementary schools, which fell to 175,000 the following year, it said.
The figure rose in 2018 to 214,000 due to a spike in births in 2012, which the report attributed to government policies and the Year of the Dragon, it said.
These policies have since maintained enrollment at elementary schools at more than 20,000 students, it added.
However, first-year enrollment at elementary schools is expected to fall next year, while the rate of decline for the 26-year period is projected to be 29.6 percent, it said.
Over the next 16 years, enrollment at junior-high schools is forecast to decline by 8,200 students, or 1.5 percent per year, it said.
The figure includes an annual loss of 2,100 first-year students and 3,400 graduating students, it said.
Enrollment at high schools and vocational schools is to decline by 9,700, or 1.7 percent per year, including an annual loss of 3,000 first-year students and 3,600 graduating students, it said.
The overall population of vocational and high-school students would fall to 500,000 students in 2036, it said.
Universities would have 11,000 fewer students each year starting next year, and the student population would fall to 828,000 in 2036, the report added.
PROTECTION: The New Taipei City mayor said a pass could cover stores, but not eateries, while Ko Wen-je said vaccinated people could be exempted from some rules Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) on Saturday proposed implementing a “COVID-19 pass” regulation that would allow only vaccinated people into certain areas. New Taipei City is planning to require a “COVID-19 pass” for entry to “vulnerable spaces” to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Hou said. Non-students entering elementary schools in New Taipei City are required to show their COVID-19 vaccination cards or proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test. This is for the protection of students under the age of 12, who are not eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, city officials have said. The
PAPERS, PLEASE: A digital certificate or a printout would return one of three results: green for ‘pass,’ red for ‘not passed’ or yellow for ‘to be determined,’ the CECC said Starting today, people can download a Digital COVID-19 Certificate, with the government now requiring people at night clubs, karaoke bars and other businesses in “eight major special establishment categories” to be fully vaccinated and present a vaccination certificate. The eight categories include dance venues, massage parlors, hostess bars and saunas. Customers and service personnel at the venues have a higher risk of contracting COVID-19, as they can neither avoid contact with people nor strictly observe distancing guidelines, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said. As such, both groups are required to be fully vaccinated, meaning that they must have had at least a
LAWMAKERS RALLY: Beijing’s unlegislated actions breach international and WTO trade rules, and affect the basic principles of the EU single market, the letter said A group of 41 EU lawmakers on Tuesday condemned China for its political and economic coercion of Lithuania, and called on leaders of the bloc to demonstrate solidarity with Vilnius. The letter was initiated by Slovakian Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Miriam Lexmann, who is cochair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. “We, the undersigned members of the European Parliament, resolutely condemn political and economic coercion of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) against Lithuania,” the letter said. The letter addressed European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and
‘GOOD FRIEND’: The Slovenian prime minister said he had visited Taiwan four or five times, and that Taiwanese should have the right to determine their future The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed Slovenia’s plan to establish a representative office in Taiwan, after Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa revealed the plan in an interview with Indian TV station Doordarshan on Monday. Taiwan is a democratic country that respects international democratic standards and international laws, the Slovenian prime minister said in the interview. Slovenia and Taiwan are working on “exchanging representatives,” he said. “Of course, this will not be on the level of embassies. It will be on the same level as many of the EU member countries.” “When I spoke with our businessmen who are trading with Taiwan, they
RSS