Huayu Study Group from National Utsunomiya University in Japan Visits MOE in Taiwan
Dr. Nicole Yen-Yi Lee, the Director General of the Department of International and Cross-strait Education of Taiwan’s Ministry of Education, met with a Huayu Language and Culture study group from National Utsunomiya University in Japan on August 25. The study group of 17 people was led by Dr. Matsukane Kimimasa, the vice president of Utsunomiya University. Their study trip activities included studying Mandarin Chinese, Taiwanese, Taiwanese culture, Taiwanese tea ceremonies, and exchanging ideas with university students in Taiwan.
In her opening remarks, Director General Lee warmly welcomed the study group and introduced the Mandarin Chinese education environment in Taiwan. She explained how the education system was able to provide an outstanding best Mandarin learning experience. She also talked about the higher education system in Taiwan and encouraged the young students to study in Taiwan.
Vice President Dr. Matsukane has been devoted to promoting comprehensive interactions in between Taiwan and Japan for decades. He told Director General Lee that the study group established by their university always receives a warm welcome from the universities in Taiwan, but they haven’t been able to embark on this journey for more than three years, since the outbreak of the pandemic. For this reason, they had a high participation rate this time, with people from National Tottori University and Shizuoka University of Art and Culture also participating as well.
Dr. Matsukane expressed his hope that Taiwan and Japan can build closer bonds through the study trip and he encouraged networking among the participants. This study trip included arranging for the group to visit historical spots in Taipei and Taichung City that have a strong Japanese influence, to help to deepen the understanding of Taiwanese culture among the students and establish friendly relationships between young people in Taiwan and Japan. They visited, for example, the Control Yuan (the Taipei administrative office in the Japanese colonization period) and Paochueh Temple (寶覺寺). All the members of the study group enjoyed the visits and felt better able to understand the special relations between Taiwan and Japan from a historical standpoint.
