Taipei offers the best elementary and junior-high school education in the nation, followed by Taichung, New Taipei City and Taoyuan, a survey published yesterday by Chinese-language magazine Parenting (親子天下) said.
The survey also found that only 50 percent of teachers and principals said they are ready for the new curriculum guidelines that are to be implemented next year, the magazine said.
Considering only one year is left before elementary and junior-high schools will be teaching the new curricula, they must step up their preparation efforts, CommonWealth Education Media and Publishing Co managing editor Chen Ya-huei (陳雅慧) said.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The magazine has been conducting the survey every two years since 2010. This year’s poll was based on 11,874 valid responses collected from parents, principals and local governments over more than half a year.
Questions in the survey cover 46 areas of education, from diversity and innovation to teaching, reading and education policies.
Taipei has returned to the top of the ranking this year, achieving the best scores in teaching, reading, diversity and innovation.
In the 2016 survey, the city was ranked fourth, with the fourth-lowest score for education policy, due to discord between Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and many principals.
This year, the survey found that 82 percent of principals in Taipei approved of Ko’s education policies.
The city is promoting international and bilingual education, and plans to spend NT$100 million (US$3.25 million) to send teachers and students abroad on academic exchanges next year, Taipei Department of Education Commissioner Tseng Tsan-chin (曾燦金) said.
The city has also set aside NT$1.6 billion to build smart classrooms and upgrade Internet infrastructure at more than 200 schools, he said.
The municipality aims to provide all students with free on-site Internet access to ensure that all children can engage in independent learning, regardless of their family’s wealth.
Taichung, which headed the list two years ago, fell to second place after losing three points in this year’s survey.
It received the highest grade from teachers and principals for reducing their administrative workload.
New Taipei City fell from second to third place, but received favorable scores for its readiness for the new curricula.
Kaohsiung did not make the top 10 and received a low average grade for policymaking.
Kaohsiung Teachers’ Union president and Shengli Elementary School teacher Tung Shu-you (董書攸) said that her school does not have a gymnasium, even though the air in the area is seriously polluted, with the concentration of PM2.5 — fine particulate matter measuring 2.5 micrometers or smaller — exceeding safe levels more than a quarter of the year.
Last year, she joined a protest in front of the school to demand a sports hall, she said.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,900) for advertisements that exceeded its approved business scope and ordered the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license would be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter supervision of Chinese e-commerce platforms and more stringent measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan as US President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on origin laundering. The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday met to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report on the matter. Democratic Progressive Party
Taiwan and its Pacific ally Tuvalu on Tuesday signed two accords aimed at facilitating bilateral cooperation on labor affairs, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). The governments inked two agreements in Taipei, witnessed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and visiting Deputy Tuvaluan Prime Minister Panapasi Nelesone, MOFA said in a news release. According to MOFA, the agreements will facilitate cooperation on labor issues and allow the two sides to mutually recognize seafarers’ certificates and related training. Taiwan would also continue to collaborate with Tuvalu across various fields to promote economic prosperity as well as the well-being of their
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
RSS