Representatives of the Parental Alliance on 12-year Education picketed Ministry of Education meetings in Taipei yesterday, as tensions between the ministry and the Taipei City Government continued to build.
Protesters lined the steps of National Taiwan University’s Shui-seng building, where the meeting was being held, attempting to keep school principals from entering the building. The principals have seats on the civil committee responsible for drafting Taipei’s high-school admissions plan.
The ministry rejected the plan last month, maintaining that it sought to illegally increase the importance of Comprehensive Assessment Program exam scores in the admissions process.
Photo: CNA
However, the city has refused to revise the plan, stating that the disputed details have precedents and do not require ministry approval.
The ministry’s calling of direct talks with civil committee officials drew strong criticism from the Taipei City Government, which accused it of interfering in its affairs.
“The ministry’s going over the heads of the educational administrative bodies of Taipei, New Taipei City and Keelung was extremely inappropriate and disrespectful,” Taipei City Government spokesman Chang Chi-chiang (張其強) said, adding that the ministry’s actions “completely disregarded” laws guaranteeing local self-government.
“We have absolutely not interfered with local self-government,” ministry K-12 Education Administration director Wu Ching-shan (吳清山) said in response. “Today’s meeting was purely to communicate and exchange opinions.”
The Taipei Department of Education said it will hold internal discussions on the possibility of a new plan over the next two weeks in response to ministry demands. However, whether any substantial revisions has yet to be determined, the department said.
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