When the “New Syllabus Initiation” was launched in 2019, a number of challenges presented themselves at high schools in the rural parts of southern Taiwan. To meet these, a number of technical schools and businesses jointed together to create channels of support and exchange. One of the key players in the response effort was National Pingtung University of Science and Technology (NPUST), who headed up a Ministry of Education project designed to “upgrade rural education and sow seeds for the ‘New Syllabus’”.
Following a year-long effort to take inventory of teaching resources and assess challenges at ten vocational high schools in the rural parts of Pingtung and Taitung, on January 25th, 2021, NPUST held a strategic alliance agreement signing ceremony and an achievements exhibition.
NPUST’s president, Chang-Hsien Tai, explained that the “the declining birthrate has resulted in many difficulties for student recruitment at all levels. The biggest challenge is to create a system that will be able to equip students with the qualities and precision skills they need in the future— so that they can stay in their local areas to work. That’s why this strategic alliance is such a major pillar in the southern region. We hope that in the future, partner schools can work together to make a strong network for vocational education in Southern Taiwan”.
NPUST is the main base for the project, which is working to integrate teaching resources, equipment and educational materials from vocational colleges and the industrial sector. The Second Southern District Office will serve as a match-maker and offer assistance to bring together resources from technical universities and businesses, so that teachers in related fields can develop their capabilities. Expectations are that, through the project, interdisciplinary education will increase and, in cooperation with industry, new courses will be developed for more effective learning outcomes.
The achievements exhibition put on display some of the progress made so far, and with the coinciding signing of the strategic alliance agreement, the focus is now on the future of the cooperation and the benefits that the participants will see on account of the shared resources and services. In 2020, the project was used to assist with the offering of 21 courses at eight vocational high schools—and National Cheng Kung Commercial & Aquaculture Senior Vocational High School was selected to represent the two major groups of ‘smart agriculture’ and ‘hospitality & tourism’. As things move forward, plans are in place to invite technical school teachers, industry representatives and senior high school teachers to discuss and develop the curriculum planning for the coming semester with the aim of improving education quality in rural areas, and working towards long-term growth.
