Tue, Feb 09, 2021 page2

• Fewer students take exams for music, art

  GENERATIONAL SHIFT: As technology programs push out arts studies in schools, a professor said that saving the arts should start with funding art appreciation events

  • By Wu Po-hsuan and Rachel Lin / Staff reporters
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  The number of students choosing to take practical exams on music and the arts as part of university admissions has dropped 37 percent over the past decade, data released on Sunday by the College Admission Practical Examination Committee showed.

  There were 7,173 test takers across the two subjects in the 2012-2013 school year, but that figure fell to 4,523 in the 2021-2022 academic year, a decrease of 2,650 students, committee data showed.

  This has affected admission rates at university arts departments, with Tainan National University of the Arts reporting a 60 percent decline in applications for some programs in the past few years.

  

  Huang Chin-lung, a professor at National Taiwan Normal University’s Department of Fine Arts, smiles at a news conference in Taipei on Nov. 11 last year.

  Photo: Pan Shao-tang, Taipei Times

  Ministry of Education data showed that in senior-high schools, the number of music students fell from more than 1,900 in 2018 to more than 1,700 this year, while the number of art students remained at about 2,500.

  The switch to the 12-Year Basic Education Curriculum Guidelines, as well as inconsistencies between the Arts Education Act (藝術教育法) and the Special Education Act (特殊教育法), have led to problems in administering art education, experts say.

  Lawmakers are expected to publish draft amendments to the Arts Education Act in July.

  In addition to a declining birthrate, relatively low incomes make it difficult for parents to cover the costs of art education, said Yang Chyi-wen (楊其文), a professor at Taipei National University of the Arts’ cultural heritage and arts innovation studies program.

  Instruments alone can cost hundreds of thousands of New Taiwan dollars, he said, adding that graduates who struggle to find jobs in music often switch careers.

  Traditional arts programs have been replaced by technology studies, he said, adding that children no longer receive extended training in the arts.

  Musical ability is often developed from a young age, but students are no longer encouraged to take art classes early on, he said.

  He urged the government to provide schools with better equipment, offer scholarships and help arts graduates find employment.

  The arts education environment should be improved, starting with people’s appreciation of the arts, he said.

  The Ministry of Culture could help artists hold regular performances at local cultural venues, while the Ministry of Education could subsidize the costs of transportation and meals for elementary and junior-high schools to organize art-themed field trips, he said.

  National Taiwan Normal University Department of Fine Arts professor Huang Chin-lung (黃進龍) said that even though enrollment has dropped significantly due to the falling birthrate, university departments have not ceased operations, leading to fears of a decline in the quality of the programs.

  Teachers are afraid to make demands of students, and students are being admitted without a screening process, he said.

  This affects the quality of the programs, he said, adding that the government should address the issue.

  Arts classes at senior-high schools also face quality control issues, including an unwillingness of local education departments to hire more teachers, he said.
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