Chiang Chih-chien Unveils Six Major Education Policies: Foreign Teachers in Every School, $100 Million Annual Fund to Safeguard Campuses

With Teachers' Day approaching, Taichung mayoral candidate and Legislative Yuan Vice President Chiang Chih-chien unveiled his education platform today (24), formally presenting the 'Six Priority Education Policies.' The press conference drew support from across industry, government, and academia, with attendees including Legislator Lo Ting-wei, City Councilor Huang Hsin-hui, Deputy President Wei Ching-chun of Ling Tung University, former Taichung Education Bureau Director Wu Jung-feng, and Deputy Director Wang Ming-yu.

Chiang emphasized that "investing in education is investing in the city's future," with the core principles centered on "children first, professionalism honored." He pledged that the city government will allocate dedicated funds to upgrade school infrastructure, introduce AI smart systems to reduce administrative burdens, and integrate diverse resources to create a safe, warm, and competitive educational environment.

Having taught at the university level for nearly a decade, Chiang stated he deeply understands the immense pressure frontline teachers face—not only teaching but also handling excessive paperwork, evaluations, parent communication, and special education support—leading to what he described as a 'teacher shortage and teacher anxiety' crisis.

To address hardware safety, Chiang proposed breaking free from over-reliance on central government subsidies by committing the city government to annually allocate at least NT$1 billion (approx. USD 30 million) to accelerate reconstruction of aging classrooms, restrooms, running tracks, and anti-fall facilities.

On the software side, he plans to increase special education aides, flexibly reduce class sizes, establish clear disciplinary guidelines, and implement psychological counseling mechanisms for teachers, aiming to become the strongest support for frontline educators.

For preschool education, Chiang proposed establishing a 'Taichung City Women and Children Development Committee' chaired by the mayor to coordinate childcare and early education policies. This includes forward-looking reviews of total enrollment capacity and targeted resource investment to ensure equitable access to early childhood education for all parents.

To refocus education on teaching, Chiang advocates developing a dedicated 'AI Smart System' for school administration—a national first—that automatically compiles reports and evaluation data, truly realizing the principle of 'teaching first, administration second.' He also plans to gradually lower student-teacher ratios, reduce the proportion of substitute teachers, ensure full-year contracts, and introduce AI teaching assistants to precisely identify learning gaps and enable personalized instruction.

Leveraging Taichung’s manufacturing strengths, Chiang proposes establishing a dedicated vocational education unit and a 'Career Exploration Center' within the Education Bureau to deepen seamless industry-academia collaboration. This aims to cultivate key talent in smart manufacturing, AI robotics, and unmanned vehicles, positioning Taichung as the 'Robot Manufacturing Capital of Taiwan.' Additionally, the city will establish a 'Science Education Development Center' to promote the 'Every Student Plays with AI Robots' initiative and build interdisciplinary STEAM demonstration hubs across five major living zones: mountain, coastal, Tun District, urban core, and high-speed rail gateway.

Chiang also emphasized the philosophy of 'local rootedness leading to global reach.' He will advance 'Bilingual Plus Education' to progressively achieve 'a foreign teacher in every school,' encouraging students to serve as volunteers and city ambassadors in international events. The plan also includes promoting low-carbon agricultural and food education using local ingredients, deepening AI digital preservation of Hakka language, preserving indigenous languages and cultures, and advancing leadership programs for second-generation new residents—ensuring children can grow deeply rooted in their homeland while confidently engaging with the world.

Industry, government, and academic representatives at the press conference highly praised this educational vision. Legislator Lo Ting-wei noted that administrative overload has long plagued frontline educators, stating that 'AI-powered stress reduction' directly addresses this pain point. He added that deeper integration between vocational training and local industries will enable youth to apply their learning and thrive locally.

City Councilor Huang Hsin-hui emphasized that deteriorating school buildings and bullying prevention are urgent issues. She commended Chiang’s commitment to self-fund NT$1 billion annually as a strong demonstration of his determination to protect student safety.

Deputy President Wei Ching-chun of Ling Tung University believes that amid labor shortages and digital transformation challenges, establishing a dedicated vocational unit can effectively link vocational high schools with universities, helping alleviate enterprises’ immediate workforce needs.

Former Education Bureau Director Wu Jung-feng and Deputy Director Wang Ming-yu both highlighted that Taichung has consistently ranked first among the six major cities in education budget allocation. Building on this solid foundation, they affirmed that Chiang not only enhances teacher dignity but also pioneers AI system development to free educators from bureaucratic tasks, fulfilling the original mission of returning teachers to students and restoring the essence of education.