Wu Tieh-hsiung (吳鐵雄), president of National Tainan Teachers College (
"I have already made up my mind, Wu Tieh-hsiung is a very good choice because he completely meets our criteria -- he has a good public image, is a good team player and is keen about educational reform," said Tzeng.
Although the decision will not be finalized until it wins the approval of the Executive Yuan next Wednesday, the minister said he was quite certain the executive department would endorse his finding.
"[The executive branch] always respects our opinions because [the ministry's officials] always make decisions out of professional considerations."
Since Tzeng took office last May, he and Wu have had frequent contact concerning a number of educational issues.
After Lin made public his intention to retire last Thursday following his demotion, Tzeng sought out Wu to see if he was willing to assume the post of vice minister.
Asked how he felt about stepping into a ministry stricken by problems, Wu told the Taipei Times yesterday that he didn't think the ministry should take all the blame, because it would only be through painstaking reform that the educational system could be ameliorated.
"To carry out educational reform, everything needs to be well planned and cautiously implemented. And it is only natural and inevitable that problems will arise along the way, and criticism as well," he said.
"But this does not mean the ministry is moving in the wrong direction," said the educator, who has been teaching for almost 30 years.
"What's more important is that once you determine to do something, you ought to put all your energy into overcoming any difficulties," he added.
Responding to a question regarding how he would prepare himself for the transformation from being a scholar to being an executive official, Wu said he had a lot of learning to do but expressed confidence in his ability to do the job.
"Whether I work at the educational or the administrative department, I always make sure that I am fully engaged. It is true that the two are different environments and I will need to fumble about for a while to search for a clear path, but with my abundant experience within educational circles and my willingness to learn, I don't think there will be any major problem," he said.
Despite his lack of experience as an executive, the 62-year-old scholar is not a novice when it comes to educational reform, something the education ministry is intensively promoting.
Wu, who holds a doctoral degree in educational statistics from the State University of New York in Buffalo, has also been hired by the education ministry as an adviser for the "Nine-Year Educational Program" (
The initiative is slated to be launched this September and aims to integrate the two stages of Taiwan's educational system -- its elementary and high school programs.
Wu also actively champions computer-based learning for elementary and high school students.
Wu has been the president of the the Tainan-based teachers college since 1992, before which he was a professor at National Taiwan Normal University (
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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