Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung (潘文忠) yesterday said he returned to the ministry in the hope of completing the policies he had previously planned.
“Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) asked me to reassume the position because many of the policies I have planned are still in the process of being implemented and time is a bit tight at the moment,” he said after being sworn in.
“The premier says I am responsible for ensuring that the policies are successfully carried out. I know that is a huge responsibility, but I am willing to shoulder that,” he added.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The new 12-year curriculum guidelines, which are to take effect on Aug. 1, are a “big change for students,” he said.
He had planned the details and budgets for new textbooks, facilities and equipment required under the new guidelines and would do his best to work with schools to implement them, he said.
While former deputy minister of education Yao Leeh-ter (姚立德) is to return to teaching at Taipei National Taipei University of Technology, Deputy Minister of Education Fan Sun-lu (范巽綠), who had tendered her resignation on Sunday, would stay on in her position to help with the implementation of the guidelines, he said.
Fan has experience in compulsory education, which is a skill the ministry needs, he added.
Pan had stepped down as education minister less than a year into his term in April last year over controversy surrounding the election of National Taiwan University president Kuan Chung-ming (管中閔).
He had expressed hope that his resignation would end the political manipulations surrounding the issue that were causing “unnecessary stress and burden” to the ministry.
Following his resignation, two more education ministers stepped down over the election, while Kuan was appointed on Tuesday last week.
In response to media queries yesterday whether he felt wronged for having to step down, Pan said he did not feel that way.
“The election involved many controversies, but I felt it was a good thing that the flaws in the election system were exposed,” he said, adding that he had reviewed the system hoping to improve transparency in the election process while protecting university autonomy.
National Federation of Teachers’ Unions director-general Huang Yao-nan (黃耀南) on Sunday said that the new minister must deal with a number of pressing issues, such as the new curriculum guidelines and the transformation of private universities.
“Compared with previous curriculum changes in 2006 and 2010, this year’s changes are more extensive and require more supplementary measures and resources,” Huang said.
Having planned the curriculum guidelines, Pan is familiar with the policy, “but hopefully he would hold his ground and not compromise so easily under political pressure this time,” he added.
National Alliance of Parents Organizations chairman Hsieh Kuo-ching (謝國清) said that teachers and parents’ associations are happy to see Pan return, adding that they hope he would stay in the position until next year.
Hopefully Pan would help ensure a smooth transition for teachers and parents when the new curriculum guidelines take effect, he added.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-fu, Rachel Lin and Wo Po-hsuan
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday said it is fully aware of the situation following reports that the son of ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai (薄熙來) has arrived in Taiwan and is to marry a Taiwanese. Local media reported that Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), son of the former member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is to marry the granddaughter of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital founder Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政). The pair met when studying abroad and arranged to get married this year, with the wedding breakfast to be held at The One holiday resort in Hsinchu
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon this morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan between Friday and Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The storm, which as of 8am was still 1,100km southeast of southern Taiwan, is currently expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, the CWA said. Because of its rapid speed — 28kph as of 8am — a sea warning for the storm could be issued tonight, rather than tomorrow, as previously forecast, the CWA said. In terms of its impact, Usagi is to bring scattered or
An orange gas cloud that leaked from a waste management plant yesterday morning in Taoyuan’s Guanyin District (觀音) was likely caused by acidic waste, authorities said, adding that it posed no immediate harm. The leak occurred at a plant in the district’s Environmental Science and Technology Park at about 7am, the Taoyuan Fire Department said. Firefighters discovered a cloud of unidentified orange gas leaking from a waste tank when they arrived on the site, it said, adding that they put on Level A chemical protection before entering the building. After finding there was no continuous leak, the department worked with the city’s Department
‘SIGN OF DANGER’: Beijing has never directly named Taiwanese leaders before, so China is saying that its actions are aimed at the DPP, a foundation official said National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) yesterday accused Beijing of spreading propaganda, saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had singled out President William Lai (賴清德) in his meeting with US President Joe Biden when talking about those whose “true nature” seek Taiwanese independence. The Biden-Xi meeting took place on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Peru on Saturday. “If the US cares about maintaining peace across the Taiwan Strait, it is crucial that it sees clearly the true nature of Lai and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in seeking Taiwanese independence, handles the Taiwan question with extra
RSS