The expansion of the higher education system has turned universities from institutions for the elite to ones for the masses. Why are the university gates being opened wide? Where will the money for expansion come from? Minister of Education Lin Ching-chiang, who is in charge of educational reform, has the following thoughts on these fundamental issues.

In the past, most of the money for state-sponsored institutions came from the government, while most of that for private schools came from tuition fees. Today, while the government can still provide funding, we want universities to explore alternative financial sources as well, including private contributions. But there is no tradition of private donations to universities in Taiwan, so this will take time.

One way to look at it is that the relationship between today's students- tomorrow's alumni-and the university should be a long-term one. Recently, the president of Cornell University in the US came to Taiwan, and we discussed how students might be encouraged to feel that they should do something to repay their universities after graduation. He suggested that the best professors be assigned to them in their first year. For example, a Nobel Prize winner could be asked to teach freshman. Also, students who are facing financial difficulties should be provided with work-study opportunities and scholarships. Only if they feel that the university has helped them on the road of life will a close relationship be established.

In the past, universities invested most of their time in instruction and research. But now universities must also apply management concepts to effectively use existing resources. Otherwise, poor management will prevent the university from properly fulfilling its functions.

No limit on academic ambitions

Since the 1960s, the development of higher education in Taiwan has been affected by national manpower planning considerations, emphasizing a balanced supply of manpower and setting numbers for how many, and what type, of graduates universities should produce. At that time the country was poorer, and each investment of resources had to be calculated for its economic returns. But we have left that society and culture behind, and now that people are wealthy they want to continue to study. It is no longer desirable, or possible, to set the direction of higher education based on manpower planning.

In the future the idea of "restricting the number of students in order to raise educational quality" will not survive in any university, because the function of the university is to satisfy social demand. Universities should be continually expanded.

Of course, some people are not comfortable with the idea of increasing the number of universities. They feel that higher education exists to provide elite education, so what is the need for so many different kinds of institutions of higher education (public and private universities, technical colleges, community colleges, and so on) for various needs? But using quotas and manpower supply considerations to limit the number of university students is increasingly difficult in modern society.

In the past, people went to university to get a diploma, pile up academic credentials, or prepare for some exam. If this continues, the successful education of the past will be a failure in the future.

We hope to begin reform at the primary and secondary levels. In the past primary school students did nothing but memorize texts and take practice exams. Everything was geared to passing entrance exams. This type of education has had a negative impact on young people and on social development. We have already announced that we will eliminate the national entrance exams for high schools starting in the 2001 academic year. The purpose of all reforms-in curriculum, pedagogy, or examinations-is to replace the former system with its limited focus on rote memorization.

In the past, too much emphasis was placed on diplomas in higher education. Most people thought, first get the diploma, then we'll see. But if everyone has diplomas, when they get into the job market, they will need ability. Possessing a diploma, but no ability, has lost its value.

We are providing opportunities to the great mass of people. It is up to them whether or not they can bring their talents into play after completing their studies. If everyone wants to study, how can the government stop them?

Institutional intelligence

Academics may think it is deleterious if society judges which departments are good, and which are poor, which are popular, and which are bereft of students, and each department will want to protect itself. But allowing departments to set their own standards, and limit the number of students, is, from an educational point of view, wrong. Of course it may happen that a large number of students will transfer into one particular department, but some universities abroad just let it happen. Their thinking is that, if that many people want to study something, then let them try. We in Taiwan just have to try it and then see how well we can live with it.

The university mindset should not be to just get the diploma and then never study again. So we are promoting lifetime education. Graduate institutes have always accepted young students, but more and more countries' institutions of higher education are using work experience as a criterion for entrance, and the percentage of graduate students who are simultaneously working could be raised.

For example, teachers who wants to go back for further education do so to become better teachers. You cannot ask them to compromise the quality of their current teaching by asking them to devote their time to preparing for some exam. And if a hard-working, fair-minded and incorruptible judge were to take his or her experience back to the classroom to share with younger students, this would be very helpful to the young people as well.

Universities go back a long way, and their spirit has always been to pursue academic freedom and develop capable people. But they cannot be ivory towers. They must genuinely understand the needs of the times, and make necessary innovations. Oxford University was always unwilling to establish a school of business management, but lately it has had no choice but to change with the times.

I often say that universities should be "the most intelligent of organizations." But the institutions themselves must learn. If they stagnate, if they don't go out and earnestly reassess their functions, structure, values, curriculum, pedagogy, students' needs, and overall culture, and make the necessary adjustments, then they will become "stupid."

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"The university is, in a sense, the most 'intelligent' of organizations, but if it cannot understand the needs of the students, it would be a drag on intelligence," says Minister of Education Lin Ching-chiang, who has been involved in education for decades.

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Where will the money come from to expand universities? Alumni contributions are one possibility. The photo shows an alumni dinner marking the anniversary of National Chengchih University.