New Standard for University Teaching
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By promoting the Project to Encourage Excellence in University Teaching by replacing the traditional emphasis on research with focus on teaching, the MOE hopes to boost the competitiveness of the universities as well as of Taiwan.
In recent years, the number of the universities has risen sharply, transforming university education from the traditionally elite education into popular education.
"With university education becoming quite common, the people’s clamor for higher education is satisfied," pointed out Education Minister Tu Cheng-sheng while looking at the phenomenon. "However, the overnight increase in the number of students has given rise to problems such as poor quality in university teaching and the lack of competitiveness."
In December 2004, the MOE announced the launching of the Project to Encourage Excellence in University Teaching, appropriating a budget of NT$1 billion in 2005 to fund on a competitive basis various universities' proposed plans to improve teaching quality.
In 2005, 13 universities were selected after a series of strict screenings. The annual budget for the project increased to NT$5 billion in 2006, incorporating vocational schools, normal schools and physical education colleges. In all, 28 higher-education institutes and normal universities, as well as 30 vocational schools were subsidized in 2006.
Many universities through this project have substantially improved their teaching, strengthening inter-related aspects like the curriculum, the faculty and the students.
The MOE hopes that every university graduate can put to practice what he or she has learned and become a highly competitive newcomer in society.