Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lin Yue-chin (林月琴) today said she plans to propose a bill this session aimed at regulating safety in kindergartens, as experts advised parents on what to look for when choosing a school.
As kindergarten enrollment season begins this month and scandals involving misconduct in schools become more frequent, Lin held a news conference at the legislature this morning with the Taiwan Early Childhood Education Union (TCEU) and the Jing Chuan Child Safety Foundation to discuss kindergarten safety.
Lin said she would propose a bill this legislative session to address illegal conduct in schools by establishing the number of early education specialists required in independent review committees and speeding up the creation of a guidebook for handling inappropriate conduct.
Photo courtesy of Lin Yue-chin's office
The bill would also call for clearer procedures when accessing footage from surveillance cameras to prevent violations, she said.
The foundation has found that the three main kinds of misconduct in kindergartens are corporal punishment by teachers, forcing children to undergo corporal punishment, and verbal abuse or emotional neglect, foundation executive director Hsu Ya-jen (許雅荏) said.
Parents should report any concerns to the kindergarten if they notice changes in their child’s physical appearance, mood or daily habits, or if their child is reluctant to go to school, she said.
When choosing a kindergarten, parents should check that the school is officially registered, has proper fire safety measures, hires qualified staff and has clear communication between teachers and parents, she added.
Parents can check whether kindergarten staff hold valid qualifications or graduated from programs in early education or related fields, TCEU chairwoman Hsu Wen-ching (許文菁) said.
Furthermore, each class should ideally have two teachers, and parents should ensure that the staff-to-children ratio is at least one teacher to every 12 or 15 children aged three and above, or one teacher to every eight children for classes with children under two years of age, she said.
Parents should also check that the fee structure is transparent with no additional charges throughout the semester for extracurricular activities, English classes or books, she added.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS