Education as a vehicle for success
Dr. Douglas C. Smith and his wife (who is Chinese and from Taiwan) are frequent visitors here. Smith is an administrator and adjunct professor at West Virginia University.
China has had the most splendid and protracted systems of education on earth. The Chinese take great pride in their equalitarian, competitive and excellent educational process, which finds its roots deep in dynastic history. Rebellion and revolutions have been rare in the five millenia of Chinese history. One major reason for this is that education has been a vehicle for upward social and economic mobility. Parents and children see the educational process as a means to a better life and, historically, this has reduced societal unrest. Children from even the poorest homes - rural or urban - can succeed in modern Taiwan by academic achievement. Academe is in China the avenue for social and economic success, and both young and old recognize and respect this most important facet of their society.
This article will address the subject of modern Free China and its public and higher educational system. While in Taiwan (on grants from the Pacific Cultural Foundations and the West Virginia University Foundation), I had the opportunity to meet with numerous scholars, administrators and students. This essay is a synthesis of my discussions, as well as readings, on the subject of education in Taiwan, 1945 - 1980.
The Japanese defeat in World War II led to the retrocession of Taiwan to the Chinese government and thus to the reorganization of the educational system and education policy on the island. With the fall of the Chinese mainland in 1949 the leaders of non-Communist China moved to Taiwan and there radically altered the course of Taiwan development. Virtually every phase of life in Taiwan was affected as new leadership set about revamping and modernizing the island.
Education in Taiwan in the post-1949 period has made substantial gains. The only Asian society that can compete with Taiwan in educational vividity is Japan; yet the Japanese system, with its "examination hell" and obsessive pressure on children to enter the right kindergarten and then the correct public school, has created numerous psychological and societal problems that are perhaps neutralizing the high quality of learning and teaching. An excellent discussion of this situation is found in William H. Forbis' book,Japan Today (1975).
Competition, examination, and conformity are also found in the educational system of Taiwan; they have, however, been minimized by two forces. The Chinese are more reflective and philosophical about success and failure than the Japanese, and education in Taiwan is a meld of the traditional draconian examination system and the more pragmatic, egalitarian and liberal progressive ideas of American pedagogical philosophy and psychology. This synthesis has created a system of which the people of Formosa are proud and supportive.
It has been suggested by David E. Apter in his important book, The Politics of Modernization, that in a developing society education plays a number of very important roles. It helps promote high literacy which in turn assists a society's technical and economic development, but perhaps more importantly it enhances the socialization and integration process by creating a common background and identity among the peoples and allowing them to join with the governing groups in a cooperative effort toward societal modernization. David Lerner in The Passing of Traditional Society suggests that as a society like Taiwan becomes industrialized a natural phenomenon of expanded educational opportunity occurs. "Increasing urbanization has tended to raise literacy; raising literacy has tended to increase media exposure; increasing media exposure has [enhanced] wider economic participation (per capita income) and political participation (voting). "
Education is of such importance to Chinese society and the political leadership of the ROC that, unlike the United States, the issue is addressed specifically in the Constitution. Expenditures, educational goals and specific comments on the fiscal base of operation for all aspects of Taiwan education are detailed in Chapter 13, Section 5 of the National Constitution (which became effective on Dec. 25, 1947). The provisions relevant to education state:
Article 158: The nation's educational and cultural services shall have as their aim the development among the citizens of national characteristics, democratic spirit, traditional morality, good physique, scientific knowledge, and the ability to earn a living.
Article 159: All Citizens shall have an equal opportunity to receive education.
Article 160: All children of school age, to wit, those from six to twelve years, shall receive free primary education. Those from poor families shall be supplied with textbooks at the expense of the Government.
All citizens above school age who have not received primary education shall receive supplementary education free of charge and shall likewise be supplied with textbooks at the expense of the Government.
Article 161: The national, provincial, and local governments shall create scholarships to assist students of good scholastic standing and of exemplary conduct who lack the means to continue their school education.
Article 162: All public and private educational and cultural institutions throughout the country shall, in accordance with the law, be subjected to State supervision.
Article 163: The State shall pay due attention to the balanced development of education in different regions and shall promote social education in order to raise the cultural standard of the citizens in general. The National Treasury shall give cash grants to border regions and economically poor areas to help them meet their educational and cultural expenses. The Central Government may itself undertake the more Important educational and cultural enterprises in such regions or give them financial assistance
Article 164: Expenditures for educational programs, scientific studies, and cultural services shall be in respect of the Central Government, not less than 15 per cent of the total national budget; In respect of the provinces, not less than 25 percent of the total provincial budget, and in respect of the municipalities or hsien, not less than 35 per cent of the total municipal or hsien budget. Educational and cultural foundations established in accordance with the law shall, together with their property, be protected.
Article 165: The State shall safeguard the livelihood of those who work in the field of education, sciences, and arts and shall, in accordance with the development of the national economy, increase their remuneration from time to time.
Article 166: The State shall encourage scientific discoveries and inventions and shall protect monuments and articles of historical, cultural or artistic value.
Article 167: The State shall give encouragement or subsidies to the following enterprises or individuals:
(1) Private educational enterprises in the country which have a good record;
(2) Chinese educational enterprises abroad which have a good record;
(3) Persons who have made discoveries or inventions in the fields of learning and technology; (4) Persons who have rendered long and meritorious service to the cause of education.
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The Constitution has worked as a guide for educational development; however, due to economic circumstances, the national government, which is called upon to give 15 percent of the national budget, has been unable to meet this provision.
There are many subjective methods of measuring the quality of educational experience. The schools in Taiwan are in excellent condition, discipline problems are virtually nonexistent, daily attendance is much higher than in the United States, and parents playa great part in the education of their children. While in Formosa we visited a number of urban and rural schools. The grounds were well kept and graffiti was nonexistent. Children study aloud and the respect afforded teachers is immediately evident. Parents are asked to review their children's completed homework assignment each night and then to sign a homework record sheet indicating that the work is done and is of an acceptable quality. Events at schools, such as music recitals, art shows, sports activities and science displays, are attended very well by parents and grandparents (many of the latter live with the family). Perhaps the best subjective factor is the way the children look and behave on the way to and from school. They are generally walking fast or hurrying to the public bus (a common and cheap means of travel) and they inevitably carry with them a satchel filled with books, papers and other materials. Some children are not much bigger than their homework satchels! Smiles are the most common expression seen on the faces of students. When one compares the attitude of most public school students in the United States with the feeling that pours out of the students in the ROC, it is evident that most of these youngsters like school and are able to internalize the relationship between education, family pride and future social, academic, and employment success. One also notes in Taiwan that misbehavior, though present, is not dealt with as severely as in the U.S. schools. Parents are called upon to solve the problem. The school teachers and administrators do not see their role as one to enforce discipline. The parents seem to handle these problems in a variety of ways; the end result is that the difficulties that plague U. S. schools do not exist in Taiwan. They are simply not part of the culture or social setting and discipline problems, disrespect and disruptive and uncontrolled behavior on the part of students is unacceptable. Incidentally, every school visited had a statue or large painting of Confucius at its entrance. The moral and ethical implications of this symbol represent well the general tone of the academic atmosphere that has developed. Respect, kindness, and cooperation are found in the public and private schools; discrimination, phasing, mainstreaming, truancy, poorly groomed teachers and administrative rancor are enigmas to Chinese education in Taiwan. When the issue of discipline is brought up, teachers and administrators indicate it is never a problem. In the U. S. this area - classroom management rates highest on the list of ills (1975-1980) as perceived and articulated by American pedagogues.
Objective criteria when applied to education in the ROC also show the system to have been successful. One of the major determinants of educational vividity is enrollment trends. This next section will compare the year 1950 with 1979. Statistics are available for the year 1945 but due to the problems of dislocation brought on by the war and the provisions of the peace, 1950 appears to be a more meaningful time from which to measure quantitative change. It must be noted that to compare Taiwan with European or American education is quite impossible; to compare the Taiwan of 1950 with contemporary Taiwan is possible and plausible.
In 1950 there were 28 kindergarten centers with an enrollment of about 17,000 students. By 1979 the number of students had increased to 151,290 and there were almost 1,000 kindergarten settings. This reflects an increase in pupils of about 800 percent over a 30-year period. The reason for the success of the preschool program in Taiwan is the result of economic opportunities for married women and the general attitudinal change about women holding jobs outside of the home.
The Constitution clearly defines educational opportunity in grades 1-6, which are mandatory, and grades 7-9, which are free but not compulsory at this time. In 1950 there were 1,231 primary schools on the island with an enrollment of 906,950. In 1979 there were 2,412 primary schools and the enrollment had reached 2,278,726. A major change came to the structural designs of Taiwan education in 1968-69. At that time the public junior high school (also called at times the national high school) was established. This gave children the opportunity to continue their education sans an entrance examination through grade 9. Before this, admission to the junior high school was predicted on the score of a national exam given to sixth graders. The number of public junior high schools today is 632 while in 1969 it was 487. The enrollment increased in this same year period from 617,225 to 1,082,074. It must be added that this extension was not without major economic and facility allocation difficulty.
When one talks of secondary schools in the ROC a unique frame of reference must be employed. There are three types of secondary institutions; the academic high school, the normal four-year school, and the vocational high school. The traditional academic high school incorporates three years of intensive academic course work. Its intent is to prepare the able student for two objectives: (1) To pass the national joint entrance examination for college and university admission; and (2) to give the student an adequate academic base from which to build his college education or his career. In 1950 there were in Taiwan some 62 academic high schools and about 19,000 students. By 1979 the number had increased to 183 schools with an enrollment of 177,647. Vocational school educational opportunity has likewise increased. There are some 184 vocational schools today with an enrollment of over 312,000. This is an 800 percent increase in the 30-year period under study.
One of the unique facets of higher education in Taiwan is the teacher education institutions (called normal schools or normal universities). All of these schools were established by the government and offer free tuition. The period of study is five years; this includes a year of practice teaching. Upon graduating from a normal school/university the person must teach for a period of time, at a location, field and level determined by the government (which has covered tuition cost). Young people in the provincial public education system benefit greatly from this government controlled policy in that rural areas as well as urban can expect to have highly qualified and nationally certified teachers. The discrepancy between rural and urban educational quality are hence, in theory, minimized by the government using a central placement service to determine which schools or areas are in need of more science, math, art, music, social studies or special education teachers.
In Taiwan there are three types of junior colleges. There is the five-year model (three years of high school followed immediately by two years of college), the three-year post-high-school junior college, the five-year normal school for the preparation of elementary teachers and the two-year junior college. As the enrollment in the public school system has increased, so has the total enrollment figure for the various types of junior colleges.
At the peak of the educational system are the public and private colleges and universities. These are available only to students who have done exceptionally well on the National Joint Entrance Examination offered each summer. In 1950 there were only three colleges, one university and a few junior colleges and research centers. The total higher education student enrollment was about 6,600. The number of institutions of higher learning is now at 101. This represents an increase of 13.43 times in the 30-year period. An increase of 46.59 times the number of students was also registered. The students in these higher education institutions as of 1979 numbered approximately 317,200.
As has been stated, entrance to institutions of higher learning is based on successful completion of an academic high school and passing the Joint National Competitive Entrance Examination. Once a year, in midsummer, all institutions of higher learning hold joint entrance examinations to select freshmen. These examinations (even in the eyes of those individuals interviewed who were dissatisfied with higher education in Taiwan) are open to all, competitive and fairly graded. Utmost scrutiny is used in grading and there is no indication of favoritism or dishonesty in this process. When registering for the national exam (which is held at numerous sites and covers all academic topics), the applicant lists up to one hundred choices of subjects in which he wishes to major and numerous schools he would like to attend. He may like, for instance, Department A in School A, Department B in School C, and so forth. Only those with the highest scores (10 percent) gain admission to both the field of study and the university of their first choice.
One would wonder how students who did poorly on the exam would be motivated to study diligently in an area that was, for example, choice 50, school 10. The answer was given to me quite clearly by a sociology professor at Tunghai University: "Of the 100,000 who took the exam, only 30,000 passed and were admitted to college. Hence 70,000 students would gladly replace anyone who was unmotivated." Further, as was explained to me by a dean at National Normal University in Taipei, "Few high school students really have any idea of what they wish to major in. Once they are in the department they normally become quite enthused with the challenge and subject matter." To support this thesis, one need only to look at the graduation rate of students. Approximately 93 percent of students who are admitted to one of the universities in the ROC graduate with the baccalaureate degree in four or five years. In America most high school graduates can get admitted to some college (about fifty percent elect to go). Yet only approximately 37 percent of these (1971-78) graduate in the four- or five-year period. One could say that because of the strict and competitive admission policy of the Ministry of Education the most talented students are accepted. These quite naturally should graduate and do. Transfer from one school to another is very rare; transfer from one department within a school to another is less rare but does necessitate approval by the Ministry of Education (which reevaluates the student's examination performance). The better private colleges and universities in the United States also practice highly selective admissions policies and also graduate a very high percentage of their freshman classes. Schools like Harvard have a retention rate of over 80 percent. The strict criteria for acceptance seems to translate into a more future-oriented studentry.
Most popular of the fields of study in Taiwan in recent years are medicine, the pure sciences, languages, information sciences, business and management, the pedagogical sciences and law. The curriculum of law school is 5 years in length, dentistry 6 to 7 years and medicine 7 to 9 years. A student who has graduated from an academic high school does not have to repeat in college the material that was supposedly covered in high school. The entrance exam assures the college that those students accepted have a mastery of their high school subject matter. This is a major difference between education in Taiwan and the United States; it is something that an educator in America can learn from.
The most prestigious degree that can be earned in Taiwan is the Ph.D. (the Ed.D. is not available). Only a few of the better schools have been granted permission by the Ministry of Education to offer these programs. The doctorate, it might be noted, is not granted by a university. Rather it is awarded by the national government upon recommendation by a university. Evaluation of a student's educational standards is made by a committee from his school and other scholars selected by the Ministry of Education. The theory is that the doctorate transcends university limits and should be considered a national degree. This is in keeping with Chinese history. Historically the Emperor alone had the power to bestow the higher degrees on a successful candidate. Few candidates have been vetoed by the Ministry of Education when they sat for their doctoral exams; this possibility does, however, exist. The doctorate normally is earned after the master's and generally is a 3- to 5-year program in residency and is research oriented, as are most Ph.D. programs in the United States. The most prestigious school in Taiwan, National Taiwan University in Taipei, offers the doctorate in more than a dozen fields. This university, which began during the period of Japanese administration, can be ranked as one of the finest institutions in the world. Its medical college is internationally respected and physicians from many nations visit it for training and to teach.
The Ministry of Education assures that all graduate degree-granting programs have strong faculties and available research material. Most of these schools have only one or two Ph.D. degree programs; many universities offer numerous master's degree programs. These also must have approval of the Ministry of Education, as must all new departments, new faculty, and curriculum revision. As a high official at the Ministry of Education stated, "We do not want to have a marketplace where highly educated men and women cannot find employment. Rather, we control the number of persons gaining degrees and consequently assure fuller employment at the level of a person's education. "
Institutions of higher learning in Taiwan have had a continuing problem of attracting the best and brightest professors. Until the early 1970's a serious "brain-drain" affected higher education. Many young people who took the terminal degree or post-doctoral work in America remained on the faculty of U.S. colleges and universities. Though the Ministry of Education recognized this as a serious liability for its own system, no effort was made to limit the movement of people. China has a history of emigration. Interestingly, over 30 million Chinese live outside of China. The so-called brain-drain, which did in the statistical sense hurt the academic profile of teachers in Taiwan, ended in the early 1970's when nations like the U.S. and Japan found that the 1960's had produced an overabundance of Ph.D.'s to teach in their colleges and universities. Consequently, Taiwan today is not only attracting the best and the brightest of its own Ph.D.'s, but also has thousands of inquiries from foreign professors seeking teaching positions. Taiwan does have a basic rule: The college professor who hopes to become part of the regular (as contrasted to visiting) faculty must have fluency in Mandarin Chinese, the language that is used in all colleges and universities. However, visiting professors may be hired from other nations; all college students speak, read and write English, and most graduate students have proficiency in a third or fourth language (usually Japanese, German and/or French).
The main accomplishments in Education in Taiwan since World War II have been in professional training. Virtually all physicians (the term "doctor" in China always denotes a Ph.D.), engineers, lawyers, teachers and most scientists have received their education in Taiwan. Scholars in the humanities and social sciences usually take their terminal degrees abroad in Japan, the U.S., France, Germany or England. Yet, with the significant improvements in the Taiwan faculty since 1970, more students are remaining in their homeland for their graduate liberal arts education.
The faculty of Taiwan's colleges and universities has four ranks: Full professor (10 years of experience, publications, service and the terminal degree or its equivalent); associate professor (3 to 7 years of experience, service, publications and usually the terminal degree or its equivalent); instructor (3 years of experience, a master's degree and successful experience in writing and teaching); and teaching assistant (this is normally a part-time position held by a doctoral candidate and may last from 1 to 7 years). The rank of assistant professor does not exist. The latest statistics indicate that only about 40 percent of persons holding professional rank have the earned doctorate. The statistics do not show the large number who hold the "A.B.D." degree. Tenure, as we in America know it, is not part of the Chinese educational system nor seemingly a desired commodity.
For many Chinese, especially those studying abroad, the dissertation written in their second or even a third language is simply beyond their resources. It would be encouraging if at some future date a dissertation could be written in the native language of the student and its quality judged by persons speaking that language. Those of us who have studied a second and third language realize the near impossibility of developing an advanced level of proficiency in that language while at the same time taking classes, teaching and doing the numerous mundane chores associated with doctoral candidacy.
If there is a characteristic that from this observer's view dominates higher education in China it is dedication. Presidents, deans, professors and students take pride in being part of the academic community. The reason for this deep-seated feeling is partially historical.
Also, a basic law of economics has enhanced education in modern Taiwan: colleges admit only 25 to 30 percent of all applicants at the undergraduate level and less than 5 percent of those applying for graduate study. This competition (for admission) makes the product sought (education) a highly prized and in some ways idealized and romanticized commodity.
Teaching loads are prescribed by the Ministry of Education. Full professors teach an average of 9 credit hours per week; individuals with lower rank teach more. Moonlighting is not uncommon. An interesting factor in Chinese higher education is that professors usually have no posted office hours. Students may stop in at their leisure. Also - and many American academics will find this fascinating - students are encouraged to visit professors at their homes in the afternoons or evenings for tea. This is a common practice and has, on the whole, not been abused. Fortunately, genteel behavior and respect is seen in all student/professor-professor/student relationships. On the first day of class, students who have the honor of having a senior professor as their mentor will rise and often bow. The professor t’ien thanks the students for their politeness and asks that this formality be discontinued. No sense of subservience is seen in this by either the students or the professor - rather it seems to show respect for learning and age much as the handshake does in western society or the younger man standing when his senior enters a room. Incidentally, uniforms are abandoned after high school, as are short hair, beardlessness and other trappings of the pre-college phase of education.
All colleges and universities are under the control of the Ministry of Education. Public institutions depend on the Ministry of Education for financial support. Private schools - religious and independent - have little or no governmental bases of economic support. Four of the best private colleges in Taiwan are Fujen (Catholic), Tunghai and Soochow (Protestant), and the University of Chinese Culture (independent). Many private junior colleges, two-year business colleges and four-year schools exist. A total of 60 private schools are located in Taiwan.
If one attempted to rate the universities in Taiwan in terms of quality, three would head the list: National Taiwan University, founded by the Japanese in 1928 and today considered one of the finest institutions in the world, National Chengchi University and National Taiwan Normal University. The last school mentioned, a teachers' college, has numerous visiting scholars and has successfully synthesized modern methods of teaching with classical Chinese scholarship. Competition for admission is extremely hard at these schools.
Universities show neither sex no ethnic discrimination in any program. In some areas women tend to outnumber men, particularly in education. In the sciences men tend to have a slight edge. In the medical sciences it is fairly equal, but in law and engineering men tend to dominate. Legally, sex, race, and origin discriminations are taboo, and one senses that status of all persons, be they "mainlanders," Taiwanese, Hong Kong residents, aboriginese or foreign visitors (numerous Japanese come to China for their education), is on an equal basis. Such things as quotas do not exist: the national entrance examination does away with subjective admission practices.
Higher education administration in Taiwan differs significantly from the system of governance at the national level in the U.S., yet it does not significantly differ from the methods used by many state governments in America to administer public colleges and universities. Nor does it differ radically from the French, Swedish, German or British systems.
At the top of the pyramidal chart in the ROC one finds the Executive Yuan (Cabinet) which as a group has the responsibility to administer the social, economic, military, judicial, educational and policy-planning needs of the ROC. The men and women who staff the Cabinet are the leaders of the various executive departments and also have advisement and staff responsibilities to the President and the Premier. They have line authority for their ministry. The executive department that deals directly with universities and colleges is the Ministry of Education. It would remind one of a U.S. state board of governors or regents, rather than the U.S. Department of Education, which has only peripheral influence on U.S. institutions of education.
The Ministry of Education does have a great deal of power and in reality sets the tone of higher education throughout Taiwan. The Minister, appointed by the nation's chief executive, takes overall charge of his department. He or she is often a former college president and is knowledgeable about academic life. Needless to say, his politics are attuned to those of the government. He is assisted by one general vice-president and two administrative vice-ministers. Housed in the Ministry are seven departments, five bureaus, three offices, and numerous committees. The Ministry has final say in numerous matters including hiring and dismissal of professors, promotion, retention, admission of students, administration of the national exam, textbook ordering, publications, department size and degree offerings, teaching materials, cultural programs, building needs, scientific betterment and administrative appointments at all public colleges and universities. It also serves as the authority of final resort in all professorial and student appeal cases. Occasionally students who are dissatisfied with some aspect of their education (e.g. an incompetent or unethical professor) will petition the Minister of Education. According to both teachers and students, these appeals are usually investigated and, if the students have a legitimate complaint, corrective action is taken. Normally, however, the system of appeal is through the departments, deans and the school's presidential appeals committee (made up of professors, administrators and students) rather than to the Ministry of Education. The system, though highly structured, is flexible. Most of the people in the Ministry of Education have advanced degrees and come from academic life. They, therefore, have had practical experience in colleges and universities, have themselves been students and understand the problems of student-age men and women.
At the various colleges that this writer visited, one characteristic of in-house administration and procedure was noted: no two schools are quite the same. National Taiwan University has a streamlined staff/line system with a structural approach to administration. The administrators at this school (I had the honor to meet the president and academic vice president) are personally very liberal and democratic in their orientations. They were gentlemen par excellence, and the students agreed with this impression. On the other side, Fujen University (Catholic University) is far less centralized in its approach to administration, but has numerous deans who are given significant power. The president has historically been low-profile. This school also has men and women in administration of the highest academic credentials; a student centered ness also prevails here. as at all schools visited. The other universities fit between the centralized and the decentralized approaches.
At all colleges and universities, the committee system that prevails in U.S. schools (for better or worse) has caught on in Taiwan. Committees on all aspects of college life exist. Student representation is found on some of these, but most committees are made up of senior and junior faculty persons and administrators. Though there is a purely coincidental relationship between committees and democracy, the committee system of decision making always works as a buffer zone between authoritarian rule and those being governed. Seldom does a decision reach the faculty or students without having been altered by the numerous committees it must pass through.
Most professors and administrators saw the Ministry of Education as a necessary agency; some expressed concern that it was not devoting enough money or time to their particular departmental needs, especially if they chose to develop a new degree or a graduate institute. (All "departments" that offer the M.A. or Ph.D. are referred to as "institutes" and, unlike the undergraduate programs, must be economically solvent.) If anyone complaint was heard on a somewhat regular basis, it was that the Ministry of Education was too involved with projected manpower needs of the society and used its influence and the national entrance examination to channel students and professors into socially relevant careers, eg, social work, education and medicine as opposed to history and literature. When this point was brought up to a high level official in the Ministry of Education his response was this: "In America you have too many well educated people to have them all find meaningful employment. We wish to avoid this hardship before it begins." Another major administrative drive is to move more students into vocational/technical colleges and out of traditional arts and sciences colleges.
The Ministry of Education has set as its goal that 40 percent of academic high school graduates should attend traditional academic colleges and 60 percent attend business/vocational/technical colleges. In 1979 the percentages were about 50-50. It is felt that this change will strengthen Taiwan's economy and allow for fuller employment of all graduates. It should also lessen the social schism that tends to exist between the vocationally oriented and the traditional academician.
In general, education administration in Taiwan's universities appears to be student oriented. One achieves the higher ranks in college administration by his or her academic talents first, and his managerial skills second. The scholar/ administrator, a rare and endangered species in the U.S., is still alive and well in Taiwan.
Though the Ministry of Education does have significant influence, day-to-day matters of administration are managed at the various schools. Typically, a college or university has a president who, having led a successful academic life, is selected by a screening committee and then recommended, in public universities to the Ministry of Education, and in private schools to a board of trustees or founders. Beneath this office are the academic, financial, and managerial provosts and deans. The personality of the president and the history and traditions of the school determine the centralization/decentralization of the college administration and decision-making process.
The deans and directors tend to be called in on a weekly or biweekly basis to discuss the general concerns facing the university. This writer was not proxy to these meetings and cannot comment on their organization, nature and openness. Most higher level administrators stated that the presidents of their institutions did indeed listen and support the provost and deans, even if it meant disagreement with the Ministry of Education.
Hiring of a professor is done at the departmental level with the advice and consent of the dean, provost, college president and Ministry of Education. Very few nominees are vetoed after a department submits the name. If there is a challenge it normally comes because of budgetary problems or manpower changes. Salaries, though by our standards low, allow a professor to live the good life; academic moonlighting is quite common. Further, all professors are guaranteed university housing or very low interest payment loans to buy a home. (Condominiums are the normal housing units in Taipei, an obvious consequence of limited land and dense population.) The domiciles supplied by the universities to their professors and administrators are delightful, generally near the campus and reflective of the high esteem historically given scholars in China.
Student admission at the graduate level is also a departmental administrative decision. It is based on undergraduate records, the graduate entrance exam and personal interviews. At the undergraduate level, departments (and for that matter, universities) have little to say about their freshman classes. The entrance exams and, to a degree, student preference determine where one attends school. This is reversed in graduate school.
All institutions have internal conflicts. This is a healthy indication that ideas and values exist on a broad range of topics. Conflict resolution is normally handled at the most local level. Committees of arbitration, made up of faculty persons and administrators, are available to resolve problems not easily resolved within the department. The Ministry of Education may be called on if the nature or intensity of the conflict requires this. Their decision is quite final.
Student needs are cared for by the department and the dean of students (depending on the situation). The department chairperson's influence in departmental matters depends on his or her personality and the traditions of the department. Perhaps the only quality that can be expressed about chairpersons is this: they work 8 to 10 hours per day and on Saturday mornings and they seem enthusiastic about their responsibilities and the honor of heading a division.
In summary, traditional education in Taiwan - kindergarten through the postdoctoral study - has expanded dramatically in the last 30 years. To evaluate quality in transsocietal studies is difficult and relies on subjective factors.
To judge an institution from a quantitative vantage point is possible and feasible but does not always give an accurate appraisal. Together they paint a picture of an educational system fulfilling the aspirations and expectations of the people of Taiwan.
One of the major goals of any public educational system is to develop in the populace an acceptance of their society, its political institutions and the economic system. It is felt that through an understanding of these institutions that are the foundation of a harmonious community, members of the group will have a greater chance to live in comfort, economic and social security and future-orientedness.
Mandarin is the language of instruction in the school system of the ROC. Taiwanese (and Hakkanese, to a much lesser degree) is the language also spoken in the playgrounds, streets and home of 90 percent of the population.
Youngsters today are fluent in both Mandarin and Taiwanese and the post-1949 Chinese and the pre-1949 Chinese (commonly called Taiwanese) have, in all but the most isolated regions, an equal opportunity in the educational system of Taiwan. Each year the percentage of persons who were born on the mainland decreases and in the not-too-distant future the island will consist of virtually all native Taiwanese-born Chinese. Research conducted by Sheldon Appleton in 1970 ("Taiwanese and Mainlanders in Taiwan: A Survey of Student Attitudes," China Quarterly. Oct.-Dec. 1970, p. 56-57) strongly suggests that students of both mainland and Taiwanese ancestry have similar attitudes toward government, family and other vital institutions in Taiwan society. Other researchers have come to basically the same conclusion. Interestingly, they have also found that in Taiwan a direct relationship exists between one's educational achievement and one's support for the institutions of the society. My impression is that generally the educated class has such a vital interest in the nation's success that they perceive rancor as disruptive to their personal good fortunes. Debate over policy issues is often heated, but the extension of this Socratic exercise seldom moves beyond the coffee circle of seminar rooms.
My impression and the impressions of others who have visited Taiwan would suggest that the traditional educational system is achieving its goals as prestated in the ROC Constitution and anticipated by the population. Of all of the institutions in Taiwan, the people have the greatest faith in education as a vehicle for upward mobility and self actualization. This feeling, complemented by China's long and unique history of educational excellence and the support of the populace at large for educational quality, has created an excellent environment for the teaching/learning process.
Dr. George K.C. Yeh. (File photo)
George Yeh Dies at 77
Senior Advisor to President
Dr. George K.C. Yeh, senior adviser to the President, died Nov. 20 at the age of 77 in the Veterans General Hospital. He is survived by Mrs. Yeh and two children.
Heart failure was the immediate cause of his death.
Dr. Yeh was admitted to the hospital in order to undergo surgery on a broken leg. He was recovering well when suddenly he had a heart attack.
President Chiang Ching-kuo was informed of Dr. Yeh's illness and immediately called on him at the hospital.
Mrs. Yeh and their two children are in the United States. She is reportedly in poor health herself.
Dr. Yeh, who did postgraduate studies in the United States and Great Britain, began his career as a professor at National Tsing Hua University in Peiping. He joined government service during the Sino-Japanese war.
His diplomatic career started in 1946 when he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As foreign minister, he negotiated the now-terminated Sino American Mutual Defense Treaty with the U.S. government in 1954.
Later on, Dr.Yeh headed the Chinese Embassy in Washington from which post he was recalled in 1962 to serve as a minister without portfolio until his retirement in 1978. But he remained active in the cultural field until his death.
His publications include Social Forces in English Literature, Introducing China, The Concept of Jen, and Cultural Life in Ancient China.
Dr.Yeh - Scholar, Artist, Statesman ...
All his friends, of whom there are many both here and overseas, will be saddened to hear that Dr. George K.C. Yeh has passed away. They will no doubt all feel personally poorer as a result.
In Dr. Yeh's death, the Republic of China has lost a patriot and a statesman. There have not been too many like him on the national scene in recent decades, and his departure leaves a vacuum which will be hard to fill.
Dr. Yeh was a scholar-turned diplomat. He was tapped to be the minister of foreign affairs in 1949 shortly after the fall of the Chinese mainland into the hands of the Communists. The ROC's diplomatic front was crumbling. But Dr. Yeh held on and worked hard. By the time he left office in 1958, the Sino-American Treaty of Mutual Defense, which he had negotiated with the late John Foster Dulles, was already in its fourth year of operation.
In later years, the Republic of China became a showcase of economic success. Nowadays, few realize or remember that this was made possible in the initial stage largely because of the security provided by that treaty.
It must have broken Dr. Yeh's heart to see his handiwork destroyed by Jimmy Carter in the latter's infamous decision to sever diplomatic relations with the Republic of China in December 1978 and to terminate that treaty a year later.
Dr. Yeh was our ambassador to the United States for almost five years (1958-1962). It was during his tour of duty that President Dwight D. Eisenhower came to visit the Republic of China - the first incumbent U.S. president to have ever done so.
After his return from Washington, Dr. Yeh became a minister of state without portfolio and later a senior advisor to the President. Though he rarely wrote or spoke for publication on diplomatic matters in recent years, his views were known to have been often sought and valued by people in high places. Now that he is gone, his mature opinion and wise counsel will be sorely missed.
Dr. Yeh was a man of many parts and many talents. Aside from his knowledge of the English language and literature, which was his original field of study, and his knowledge of world affairs, which he practiced as a government official, he was an artist of great renown. His calligraphy and brush paintings were much coveted and treasured.
Above all, however, Dr. Yeh was a man of culture and a gentleman. Though he sometimes suffered no fools and was impatient with incompetence, he was kind and considerate to those who worked with him either in the foreign office or the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C. He was particularly helpful to young colleagues, many of whom are now holding responsible position5 in the government.
Many of us at the China News were privileged to have known Dr. Yeh as a personal friend, and we are extremely sorry that he has left us. We wish to send our heartfelt condolences to his family.
Dr. Yeh had served his country long and well and he will be long remembered as a patriot and as a statesman. -reprinted from the China News.