A coalition of education groups yesterday rallied in front of the Ministry of Education in Taipei to protest the ministry’s appointment of “fake” parents to its curriculum guidelines review committee for the 12-year national education system, saying that the appointments have created conflicts of interest.
The committee consisting of students, parents and teachers was assembled last year following student-led protests in 2015 against China-centric curricula for high-school social studies and Chinese literature.
Alliance on Obligatory Education director-general Wang Li-sheng (王立昇) said that most of the 13 parents on the committee have children who have already graduated from senior-high school, so they might not be able to reflect current students’ needs when reviewing curriculum guidelines.
Photo: Wu Po-hsuan, Taipei Times
As such, they are no different than “fake” parents, he said.
The roster is reviewed by a board charged solely with the task of reviewing the composition of the committee, he said.
Board members in charge of checking the backgrounds of committee members are nominated by legislators across party lines, Wang said, adding that it was unbelievable that the board approved the composition of the committee.
Ministry officials who approved the roster should be held responsible for their negligence, he said.
National Parents’ Alliance for 12-year Compulsory Education vice president Chen Chi-chen (陳綺貞) said there could be an exchange of benefits behind the appointments.
One member, surnamed Lin (林), runs a company that represents the American Mathematics Competitions in Taiwan, selling tests and programs, Chen said, adding that Lin could affect the committee’s decisionmaking by using his influence to promote the group’s products.
New Taipei City Parental Alliance president Su Yu-cheng (蘇祐晟) said that the New Taipei City Education Department has a similar committee comprising teachers, parents and students to discuss policies related to the 12-year national education system.
Parents who want to serve on the city board must have children in elementary, junior-high or senior-high school and register the classes and schools their children attend, he said, calling on the ministry to adopt similar rules when selecting committee members.
The protesters called on the ministry to review the makeup of the committee and asked parents whose children are not in the 12-year education system to give up their seats.
K-12 Education Administration official Hsu Chen-hsing (許陣興) said the roster was compiled from a list of candidates nominated by education groups nationwide, drawing protests from the demonstrators, who said their nominees were snubbed.
Administration Division Chief Tsai Meng-kai (蔡孟愷) said the ministry would not review the composition of the committee.
The members were selected based on their understanding of the education system, teaching experience and long-term participation in education affairs, rather than the age of their children, he said.
The administration would look into the alleged graft and ensure that the review process remains
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
There are 77 incidents of Taiwanese travelers going missing in China between January last year and last month, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. More than 40 remain unreachable, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday. Most of the reachable people in the more than 30 other incidents were allegedly involved in fraud, while some had disappeared for personal reasons, Luo said. One of these people is Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒), a 22-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung who went missing while visiting China in August. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office last month said in a news statement that he was under investigation
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
An aviation jacket patch showing a Formosan black bear punching Winnie the Pooh has become popular overseas, including at an aviation festival held by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force at the Ashiya Airbase yesterday. The patch was designed last year by Taiwanese designer Hsu Fu-yu (徐福佑), who said that it was inspired by Taiwan’s countermeasures against frequent Chinese military aircraft incursions. The badge shows a Formosan black bear holding a Republic of China flag as it punches Winnie the Pooh — a reference to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) — who is dressed in red and is holding a honey pot with
RSS