Bilingual 2030 After Ribbon Cutting: Taiwan’s English Ambition

[@dutchuniverse]

The schools in Taiwan are stressful enough as is, it’s better to make Taiwan more appealing to foreigners to come live in so that English communication naturally integrates into the country

[@maxou8074]

and why do you think foreigners is the way to learn english ? Foreigner in Taiwan also come to learn chinese, what about that ?

[@dutchuniverse]

@@maxou8074 The easier and more attractive Taiwan will be to foreigners, the less there will be the need to truly integrate and learn the local language cause speaking English will turn out to be more convenient and a daily thing for people in the big cities at least

[@maxou8074]

I think you are missing my point here. Many foreigner come also to Asia in general or more specifically Taiwan to get out of their comfort zone, get to know a new culture, a new language. If a foreigner is looking for convenience he can stay home as well. I don’t think Taiwan should count in foreigners to improve their English which is not fair and don’t help integration at all.

[@dutchuniverse]

@@maxou8074 I'm not saying foreigners should come to Taiwan to improve their English at all. I'm saying that there should be many more reasons to come besides learning the local language or culture.

[@maxou8074]

what other reason ?@@dutchuniverse

[@parmenideskim9739]

I am a Korean and watch this movie interestingly. Korea also tried to become bilingual County about 10 years ago but failed. Korean language is so different from English and there was a concern that the nation might be divided into two classes: English-speaking and non-speaking. Anyway I sincerely understand why Taiwan persuits bilingual country and hope for your success.

[@chunjuihsu1972]

Please make more! It'd be interesting to have one video that focuses on the positive side of it and another video on the negative side of it.

[@danzwku]

I wouldn't want Taiwan lose their native languages like Singapore.

[@zhen86]

Singapore is not losing native language. 父母認為英語比較重要不說華語才是問題。在家要說華語。母語母語記得是母語。記得新加坡不是華人國家。

[@summerapple7062]

Who give you the idea that Singaporean lose our native language? We did not lose our mother tongue language. Ethnic Chinese Singaporean got to learn Mandarin as a mother tongue or 2nd language. Ethnic Malay Singaporean have to learn Malay as a 2nd language and similarly Ethnic Indian Singaporean got to learn Tamil as a 2nd language. Each race’s native language is very much alive to this day!

[@davislin7603]

台灣的Native language 非常多，平埔族語就有10種以上，大部分被河洛語淘汰了，高山族語也有10多種，台灣官方語言有，清朝大陸語➡️🇯🇵日語➡️🇹🇼國語（類似普通話）。 只有非常弱勢的語言才會被淘汰，中文會很弱嗎❓️

[@Jcjc749]

@@davislin7603既使是非常弱勢的母語，也是屬於某個族群的mother tongue. 相對於中文， 中文也成了強勢語言 （中文不見得是他們的mother tongue 喔） 家長衡量經濟價值下， 可能就學習英語為主。 我覺得國家對於這樣的弱勢母語， 也是需要提出一些措施的。

[@michaelyuan3382]

It is possible to have multiple languages in a single small country. Switzerland has 4 official languages, and it is smaller than Taiwan. The Taiwanese just have to get past this irrational, backward idea that a multilingual society is impossible.

[@Christina-gj5fc]

雙語進行是可以的，但英文必須副，用鼓勵孩子閱讀英文書而不是不死背文法單字 多一個語言多一個資源查詢資料，並不是完全不好 我會日文，我就可以去日本去抓正確資訊，我會英文，我也可以查詢很多需要的資源。 我的孩子在美國也是雙語學校 以語言學來說，小孩學外語成功機會是最快 只是政府教育部給的教學方向是為了考試還是以後生活跟職場用語呢？這才是重點。

[@余明新]

it still is necessary to memorize the vocabulary and grammar, the key point is to speak and write in English as always as possible.

[@Living321ani]

Thank you very much for this informative video. I find this topic very interesting and have been following it since the 2019 announcement. I plan to follow and study it further within my dissertation.

[@TaiwanNewsEN]

Thank you for your support.

[@stonebrew6116]

This video is pretty biased and misleading at several points. Like when they highlight the text at 7:53, they don’t mention that it’s ONLY English class that is supposed to be taught in all English by all schools.

[@a5280394]

I think this policy should be implemented in real life, that is, people are encouraged to speak and use English in daily life. If we are able to use multiple languages to communicate with people, it will be beneficial to us on building business rapport with other countries.

[@cmmndrblu]

I think Taiwan could learn a lot from Spain's experience in this matter. A better approach in my opinion would be to keep core subjects Mandarin and the n specifically do English for presentations or drama. In my experience pressuring teachers to offer instruction in English has been detrimental in Spain. A language is best acquired via comprehensible Input.

[@Blaze6432]

Maybe dividing the subjects between English and Chinese would be better. Modern Science is primarily done in English anyway.

[@chazyvr]

I would love to hear from proponents of the policy, not just critics.

[@pagan-540]

Two language policy is a necessity for better human resources and connect to the world 🌎.

[@阮Michael]

First, Taiwan is already multilingual with about 20 native (Austronesian languages, Hakka, Taiwanese) or historically colonial languages (Japanese, Mandarin), so the policy name of "Bilingual" is a gross oversight. The aim should be stated more in terms of acquiring the necessary tools for internationalization ("International 2030," for example). Once this policy goal is clarified, the other question of whether Taiwan should becomes obvious. Of course, it should. The devil remains in the details of how. But there should be no doubt on the question of whether. For long-term economic and political stability and security, freedom and independence, does Taiwan have a choice but to internationalize? Taiwan has been repeatedly colonized by several different groups and has managed to absorb each new wave of culture and language. Why should English or even multiple other world languages be any different? The Taiwanese, their democracy, freedom and indepedence will still remain as long as they survive against China with international support. Ideally, knowing as many languages as possible is a good thing. But if the price for national survival is losing Mandarin, so be it. Good riddance to the language of colonial oppressors. The Taiwanese can still speak Taiwanese, Hakka, and Austronesian languages. Those are the languages Taiwan needs to preserve first.

[@jalconque]

I'd like you to consider this....the main reason why English is spoken in so many parts of the world is because it was the language of oppressive regimes right like the British Empire? Out history and culture is what it is. Getting rid of a language simply because it's the of the oppressors or colonizers isn't necessarily a good thing. You'd have to explain why getting rid of mandarin benefits Taiwan.As for international support.... Taiwan didn't just withdraw from the UN or WHO. That was decided by the international community

[@michaelyuan3382]

​@@jalconque The point about Mandarin being just a language of colonial oppressors instead of being a native mother tongue is that there is no need to be sentimental about its loss from Taiwan if that's the price the Taiwanese might have to pay to acquire English. You are right that in many places, English is also the result of oppression and colonialism, but not in Taiwan. It was not the British or the Americans that committed genocide against the Taiwanese in the 228 Massacre and the subsequent White Terror. Emotionally, English is just a tool for internationalization to the Taiwanese, while Mandarin is the language of the colonial murderers and oppressors of tens of thousands of our families. I personally would not want to see Mandarin competency completely disappear from Taiwan because first, I think a language is guiltless of the crimes of its historical speakers and second, I strongly believe that every language gained helps to broaden one's mind and increase flexibility of thinking and international competitiveness. There might be an enormous advantage for Taiwan, however, if Taiwan were to lose Mandarin competency among the general population: it would greatly reduce the effectiveness of communist Chinese propaganda in Taiwan and lessen the danger of developing internal threats to national security. Even in that scenario, a pool of Mandarin-speaking talent should still be maintained in Taiwan if for no other reason than to know and understand one's enemy. On the last point of support from international community: in Realpolitik, alliances change as geopolitical considerations change, often outside of the control of any one country, but it does not mean a country should do nothing to improve its chances of survival. The U.N. pretty much just follows the lead of the strongest members. Just as the U.S. dropped Taiwan to recognize China with the intention of using China against the Soviet Union during the Cold War, the U.S. has now been increasingly warming up to Taiwan with the increasing tensions and competition with both Russia and China: American weapons sales, military advisors, joint naval exercise with 29 countries ostensibly to deter China, etc. Taiwan has also become indispensable to the West with its microchip industry. That is an example of doing what you can to change the international situation. Language competency is a key component of remaining relevant internationally so that the doors remain open for anyone who wants to be Taiwan's friend. We can't compel international support, but we can make it more likely for it to happen by developing international relationships in trade, technology, etc. Language competency can only help.

[@kiwifruitkl]

Language and culture come hand in hand. The best way to learn a language is to immerse yourself in the culture, and then the language will come naturally. The entire population of a country does not need to learn a completely different language, especially if that language is completely non-related genetically/linguistically. Also, speaking a language forces you to think differently. Word order changes. References and allusions change. I think Taiwan / Republic of China should just allow more foreign workers, and the Taiwanese people will be forced to communicate with them and work with them. This increases language ability and cultural awareness, free of charge. Plus, if everyone in the country can speak English, why does it need translators/interpreters? They don't. Look at India. A lot of Indians have high English proficiency. But India is also a post-British-colonial state. Do you want to be like India???

[@maxou8074]

since when you assume that foreigners will connect with them in english and not mandarin ?

[@summerapple7062]

If I’m the foreigner, I’ll think twice whether to come to Taiwan to work, a very Chinese country with majority not able to speak the international business language, unless I really really love Chinese culture, Chinese language and Chinese people. Else most of the time will be chicken and duck talking and so frustrating to talk to Taiwanese. Very likely I’ll end up learning Chinese language faster than Taiwanese learn English from me

[@maxou8074]

I stayed in Taipei to learn Chinese for a few month but it was the most awkward and unpleasant experience I had so far from a language learning perspective. Taiwanese people only wanted to practice their English and I hated their attitude towards foreigners speaking all the time English to foreigners without assuming that maybe we speak Chinese too. In my country we always talk first in the local language to foreigners. I even think it’s a form of racism.

[@jalconque]

I wish people would stop spreading this narrative that immersion = learning. The vast majority of foreigners in Taiwan couldn't speak Mandarin to save their life despite living here toe several years. A language doesn't just diffuse into your brain. You have to pay attention and actively use it. That is how learning works, not just for language but for any academic area. As regards learning a language from such distinctly differnt linguistic families, it's even more difficult to learn by simple immersion. The foundational structures are just too different to learn effectively by casual contact. What people fail to understand is that immersion works best when you have constant contact and that will not be the case because most Taiwanese will not just befriend foreigners and spend hours chatting with them. People have lives to lead. Finally, whatever happened to choice? You can't just flood a nation with foreigners just becsuse a government wants an entire population to learn the language. It's better to have a targeted strategy where those individuals or industries that NEED to learn the language have avenues to do so. Empower the citizens first before you bring in these kinds of disruptions that can be detrimental to national identity and culture

[@jemimaleechatto6084]

In my opinion if they want to make them speak English it should always start at home. The parents should speak English and kids watch English educational in their TVs or English movies or English songs. Meaning speak it at list 50% at home.

[@Devi_Suriyani]

Go taiwan ❤❤❤

[@luciaoliveira2026]

Poderia mandar em português o Vídeo ❤❤😊 Gosto muito de Vcs,uns Povos muito ❤❤❤

[@hoangngochieu6171]

Vậy, thời gian đã qua. Nên biết là đã qua.

[@bill3428]

我 是 外國人, 好像住台灣, 可是沒機會!!! 薪水不夠 ...

[@danzwku]

好想 不是 好像

[@bienne777]

Chinese speak authentic Chinese in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mainland China, and even those who live overseas。 Taiwan is the strategic base globally to preserve Chinese heritage which is now at high risk of being eroded by other languages and cultures, especially English in the region, for the sake of projected economic benefits. This is a short-sighted policy, quite frankly. The right policy should be rooted in knowing who you are clearly and deeply (Chinese, the way you are by blood) and what you stand for (whatever God has given to the Chinese, your origin, your language, your culture and your heritage). This is what all Chinese should excel locally and internationally to gain support from overseas to come and learn the best the Chinese people can offer! There are also a lot of Chinese overseas speaking well also in English and other tongues. These are the ones who go and tell foreigners the strength and the beauty of the Chinese culture!

[@brianswanland5466]

I taught English and studied Mandarin in Taiwan 40+ years ago, then managed academic programs in Japan. My opinion is that Taiwan does not need to be bilingual. Bilingual education in Japan fell off after the 1990's, as it became clear to most Japanese that English gave them few advantages. The few who went abroad found they were penalized for being out of the mainstream company culture when they returned. Although there are a large number of English speakers in Japan, the opportunity for the average Japanese to interact with them are few. I believe the education system should concentrate on having students become truly proficient in Mandarin. The national language in a multi-lingual society (multi-provincial?) is more important than the perceived benefits of proficiency in an international language. Unity in national identity is far more important than the marginal benefits of proficiency in an international language. Ultimately the push for bilingualism will fail if the perceived benefits do not materialize. Far better that students are grounded in traditional Chinese culture than be mis-directed to international language education.

[@zhubajie6940]

The reason that there are so few English speakers in Taiwan is few natives speak English. It is a negative feedback cycle. International commerce and security require a lingua franca and for better or worse that is English. I think maybe a 50-50 split would be better though in high school. Literature and Physical Education for one could be excluded from English-only has little to do with international interactions. STEM and Social Studies could be English only.

[@cmmndrblu]

I don't think STEM should be fully in English, I think that the focus should be on play and comprehensible Input then summarising in spoken English, amd giving presentations in spoken English. Comprehensible Input is the reason English should not be the primary language of instruction but could be a supplementary language of instruction. If you get them to watch TV for 20 minutes a day and then lengthen it, with Chinese subtitles, they will start to pick it up.

[@Blaze6432]

​@@cmmndrblu watching TV isn't enough. You actually have to use it. This is like saying if I state at someone doing math I'll just learn it. Obviously not.

[@tjchiu7821]

方法對的話，50年。

[@robertotai1]

ITS LIKE TO LEARN ICE SKATING WITHOUT ICE !! NOT EVEN AN ENGLISH MENU IN THOSE MILLIONS RESTAURANTS AROUND THE ISLAND !!... AND YOU WANT TO LEARN A "NEW" LANGUAGE IN 6 YEARS??...START TO TRANSLATE HOME PAGES WITHOUT GOOGLE TRANSLATOR

[@JillKuo-ef1ut]

Chinese was not the common language in Taiwan before WW2. People spoke Taiwanese as the common language, or Japanese if they were educated. It was the dictatoship banning kids from speaking Taiwanese at school and forcing people to use Mandarin. So it wasn't the commom language here. Now it seems that we are about to change the common language Chinese to English. and Taiwanese becomes a fading local language. Even myself, I speak better Chinese and English than Taiwanese. It'a bit ironic but it's trend. Instead of focusing on the education in Chinese or English, should we put some effort to the education in Taiwanese or Indiginous languages instead?

[@michaelyuan3382]

Yes, the policy needs to be changed to "Multilingual & International 2030" with emphasis on the revival and development of all native mother tongues in addition to economically important languages like English, French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, etc.

[@korius6732]

What this discourse always neglects is the critical fact that Taiwan is *ALREADY* a bilingual country: in addition to Mandarin, many Taiwanese people also speak Taiwanese (Hokkien). This whole push for a "bilingual" country essentially implies that Taiwanese is not a real language or a language worth promoting because it's too yokel or uncivilized or whatever, and the results are as insidious as they are obvious with how the language is becoming increasingly unintelligible to younger generations. It's bad enough that the Kuomintang martial law period basically destroyed the indigenous Formosan languages by imposing Mandarin upon everyone, but now people want to also erase Taiwanese? Taiwanese people, especially those who are pro-independence, need to ask themselves: what exactly would make Taiwan different from China if you eliminated Taiwanese? What can you say is unique about Taiwan's culture compared to China's? Boba tea? 鹹酥雞 fried chicken? The architecture that's hideously ugly when it isn't the product of Japanese or Dutch occupation? There's little to nothing of substance in terms of what would make Taiwanese culture different from China's if Taiwanese were replaced by English. Language is so essential to a culture which is precisely why colonists and occupiers always immediately mandate their own language to supplant the native one. It's sad and infuriating that the Taiwanese government is actively attempting to destroy what little unique cultural identity it has left in a pathetic attempt to cater to America, and considering how laughably awful the state of English education is here outside of a couple of private schools like TAS (whose students speak English so naturally and indistinguishable from Americans but often at the cost of their Chinese language skills), this 2030 nonsense goal will at best fizzle out quietly or at worst damage Taiwan's already fragile identity beyond all repair.

[@michaelyuan3382]

English and other economically important languages are necessary for Taiwan's long-term national survival and don't have to come at the price of losing native languages. Children at a young age have unlimited abilities to absorb languages naturally. It's perfectly possible to grow up speaking 3 or 4 languages equally well. Many countries in Europe are like that. Taiwan's educational system just ignores that scientifically proven fact and ruins it by throwing tests at the kids to make them hate learning English. What's needed is a total reform of the educational system to emphasize language learning from birth to early school years and delay emphasis on other subjects until later. We also need libraries with interesting books for the children in English. They would learn better on their own without even teachers if they had such resources (and time to read for pleasure to their hearts' content). I know I did. After the age of 17 or so, a child's natural ability to learn languages almost disappears. We are wasting time right now in the schools making them use rote memorization to pass exams with short-term memory knowledge that disappears after the exam. That's why Taiwanese students can't speak a word of intelligible English after 20 or 30 years of school. But they get 100% on written exams. Totally useless.

[@frakorS]

It seems people still don't understand why Asians are so bad at speaking English and why natives of Germanic languages are so good. The reason is very obvious, and it's something that will never change, I'm not saying it's not possible to speak Mandarin and English very well, a person can learn both languages and more, but a country will have to decide.

[@GlobalMechanix]

為什麼中國受到世界最重要的工廠，連美國也跌倒哦

[@angelmorales6012]

Why English?

[@Blaze6432]

If you are stupid enough to ask this question, you are probably not smart enough to understand. Try using the internet while visiting no material in English and see how far you get.

[@sodakk17]

why not?

[@GlobalMechanix]

你們落去你的母語😂， 跟新加坡一樣沒有國家的經濟。

[@devoltaaocaminho3949]

Now therefore, O rulers, shepherds, and kings, be wise; let yourselves be instructed, judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. For this you were created and empowered. Of all the earth, Jesus is the King, he received all power from the Father, as an inheritance he gives us to those who accepted to live according to his will, to restore the previously devastated places and free the captives, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord that it's Today. Those who do not live to serve, will not live, will be lonely, or be eternally dead. Is it so difficult to understand this? Don't trade gold for pyrite unless you're a fool. The little kings of the earth rise up and their heirs together mutter against God, saying: We ourselves are the law, we command and we command, everything belongs to us. The Lord laughs and mocks them. Everyone will be confused. The people and all the people are to blame for this, because they riot and imagine vain things.

[@damon614]

我支持全盤西化