The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on the education sector, with some cram schools and tutoring centers saying they might soon be unable to pay their instructors due to the extension of a nationwide level 3 COVID-19 alert.
The heightened alert level means schools must remain closed, so cram schools and tutoring centers have had to return tuition fees, one cram school said.
June is normally the peak season for recruiting new students at cram schools and tutoring centers, but this year many such schools might need to lay off half of their staff due to a lack of revenue, some operators in the sector said, adding that schools have had to spend money on equipment to continue running some of their classes online.
Photo: Cheng Ming-hsiang, Taipei Times
About 30 percent of the nation’s cram schools and tutoring centers would likely face closure if the level 3 alert is extended throughout the summer, they said.
Taipei alone has 2,593 cram schools and 199 tutoring centers, city data show.
The level 3 alert was imposed in Taipei and New Taipei City on May 15 and expanded nationwide four days later. It has been extended through June 28, while schools are to remain closed until July 2.
“The private education sector has been hit worse by this outbreak than it ever has been before, and we still need to pay rent,” one tutoring center said, estimating that it would incur a total loss of NT$2 million (US$72,382) for last month and this month.
“Things are a bit better for cram schools, because they can teach some classes online, but some families require tutors to assist their children in person, so about 20 to 30 percent of tuition fees have had to be returned,” it said.
Some families have also seen their income affected by the pandemic, so they cannot afford cram schools or tutors even if classes are available online, it said.
After classes reopen, cram schools and tutoring centers would likely see only about 60 to 70 percent of their students return in the short term, and full recovery would likely take at least six months, some cram school operators said.
Some tutors have also been earning unreported income from online classes, “and it is possible that we will see consumer disputes arising from that in the future,” the operators said.
Cram schools and tutoring centers might find it difficult to recruit students after the pupils experienced such an abrupt halt to their studies, they said.
Under the government’s relief program, cram schools and tutoring centers that earned half their March or April revenue in any month from last month to next month can apply for a one-time subsidy of NT$40,000 per employee.
However, due to the nature of the sector, many instructors teach at a number of schools on a part-time or class-by-class basis — rather than being full-time employees of one school — and are therefore ineligible for subsidies, one tutoring center said.
“It would be helpful if the government could issue ‘education vouchers’ to reduce the burden on families affected by the pandemic, and to encourage continued enrollment once the pandemic alert level is reduced,” it said.
Shih Chen-hsu (施貞夙), an official at the Taipei Department of Labor, said cram schools and tutoring centers in the city can apply to the city government for subsidized instructor salaries, in addition to the central government’s relief program.
Schools can apply to the city government for a guaranteed minimum salary of NT$24,000 per instructor for three months, she said, adding that applications can be made until June 30 next year.
Taipei Department of Education Deputy Commissioner Chen Su-hui (陳素慧) said the city has been encouraging property owners to reduce rent during the pandemic, adding that a number of property owners have reduced rents by 10 to 20 percent.
The Taipei Department of Education is also collecting feedback on relief measures and would pass its findings on to the Ministry of Education, she said.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
RSS