The National Academy of Civil Service is next month to include English as part of the mandatory training for civil servants, with an estimated 10,000 people expected to receive lessons each year.
Hao Pei-chih (郝培芝), head of the Civil Service Protection and Training Commission, who also heads the academy, on Thursday said that to comply with the government’s bilingual education policy, the academy has created English-related training programs to prepare civil servants.
The training programs include an all-English course focused on globalization livestreamed on the academy’s Facebook page every Thursday evening, as well as weekend workshops on topics such as giving presentations, hosting foreign guests, attending meetings and writing letters, Hao said.
There would also be opportunities for medium to high-level officials and high-potential talent to participate in overseas workshops or internships, Hao added.
Starting from Nov. 30th, additional changes would be made to meet the government’s goal of making Taiwan a bilingual nation by 2030, such as incorporating English into each link of the civil servant training program and introducing immersive situational exercises based on business tasks, she said.
The academy would also collaborate with other agencies on a series of online courses, which would include English-language news, daily English practice related to government tasks and lectures hosted by professional native English-speaking teachers, she said.
Examination Yuan President Huang Jung-tsun (黃榮村) said that improving civil servants’ English proficiency is a must in national development, and also a priority when the branch devises polices.
For someone to improve their English proficiency takes time, and education institutions should use the limited available training hours to teach students how to utilize a wide range of resources for self-learning, Huang said, adding that reading English-language newspapers and taking advantage of learning tools, such as apps, are helpful.
The Examination Yuan is responsible for administering national civil servant exams and appointing, training and protecting the rights of civil service personnel.
Additional reporting by CNA
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