Chinese Taipei Research Articles

Mathematics teaching and student algebra and geometry performances in Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, and US

ABSTRACT Concept-based teaching is presumably more effective than popular procedure-based instruction in helping students develop conceptual understanding, an important conceptual base for mathematics teaching reforms in many countries. This study examined the extent to which this assumption is true by controlling the influences of student socioeconomic status and mathematics self-concept. It analysed TIMSS 2015 data related to eighth-grade students’ algebra and geometry performances and relevant teacher survey in Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, and the US and revealed the following. Neither concept- nor procedure-based teaching approaches significantly contributed to student algebra and geometry performances in Hong Kong and the US. However, concept-based teaching significantly contributed to student performances in Chinese Taipei. Student socioeconomic status and mathematics self-concept influenced student performances in three places.

Is inequitable teacher sorting on the rise? Cross-national evidence from 20 years of TIMSS

Unequal access to qualified teachers for children of different socioeconomic status—also known as inequitable teacher sorting—has been increasingly put forth as one potential factor contributing to the socioeconomic achievement gap. Despite this, few studies have investigated cross-national differences in teacher sorting, and none have examined it within-countries over time. International large-scale assessments in education are uniquely positioned to answer such questions due to their longitudinal nature at the system level. This study uses six waves of data from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) from 1999 to 2019 for 32 education systems. We compare differences in grade 8 mathematics teacher qualifications for each country at each time point, across top and bottom groups on the student socioeconomic spectrum. Results show that on the whole many countries display negligible gaps in access to teacher quality, with some key exceptions. With respect to inequity in novice teacher sorting, the problem is most prevalent in low- and middle- income education systems (i.e. in Turkey, Morocco, Tunisia and Indonesia). Inequity in sorting based on mathematics education is less common, with no clear pattern in regards to level of economic development (i.e. in Chile, Australia, New Zealand, and Chinese Taipei). Socio-economic inequality in teacher sorting has also remained broadly stable over time. Based on experience and mathematics education, less than a handful of systems show systematic upward trends in teacher sorting inequity (i.e. in Chile, Morocco, Singapore, and New Zealand). Given the increasing focus on inequity in access to teacher competence, these results have economic and policy implications for tackling the socioeconomic achievement gap.

Disease surveillance in England and Wales, June 2022.

Disease surveillance in England and Wales, June 2022.

Factors affecting adolescents' science career expectations in Asian and Western top-performing educational systems

In the digital era, the supply of science workforce determines the growth of an economic system. We compared the impacts of potential factors (gender, socioeconomic status, science achievement, motivations, and epistemic beliefs) on adolescents' science career expectations, and examined whether there were commonalities and differences across academically top-performing economies. Specifically, we contrasted Asian economies [Beijing-Shanghai-Jiangsu-Guangdong (BSJG)—China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Macao, Singapore] against high-achieving or large Western countries with many science-job seekers (Australia, Canada, Estonia, Finland, New Zealand, UK, USA) using the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2015 data set. Results showed: (a) Although not all Western countries excelled in science achievement in this comparison group, generally they (except Finland and Estonia) had higher instrumental motivation; and attracted more girls, students weak in science, and even low in science enjoyment to join science careers. (b) Singapore was outstanding in having many students attracted to science careers as in the Western economies and had excellent science achievement. (c) Many of the other Asian economies were strong in science, but had relatively low enjoyment, instrumental motivation, and epistemic belief in science; and had fewer adolescents attracted to science careers. Relations between students' characteristics and their career expectations in Science and Engineering, Health Service, and Information and Communications Technology categories were also examined.

Global trends in the education system of high-ranking countries according to PISA-2018

Problem and aim. The modern education system is a complex of developed social institutions that form a system of connections and social norms that correspond to promising tasks focused on personal development and socialization. The PISA program evaluates the educational achievements of students and thereby identifies and interprets new global trends in the field of education. The aim of the article is to study the global trends in the education system of the high-ranking countries according to the PISA-2018. Materials and research methods. Empirical research has three stages. The first stage is the actualization of materials generated according to the Report PISA-2018 from three groups of ratings: TOP-10 OECD countries, TOP-10 OECD partner countries and an integral TOP-10 of all participating countries. The second stage is the study of the TOP-10 of all participating countries, where the focus is shifted to a specific group of indicators that identify global trends: globalization, practice-oriented learning, digitalization, individual educational track, sustainable development, social climate and emotional intelligence. At the third stage, a comparative analysis of global trend indicators was carried out. The empirical study included descriptive statistics (range of variation, standard deviation and coefficient of variation) to assess the homogeneity of the group of countries identified by the authors and the degree of difference between them. Research results. TOP-10 countries of the world with the best education systems according to PISA-2018 were selected, and those that maximally reveal the global trends in education systems in the high-ranking countries were identified. The highest indicators were found: practical orientation of education in Estonia – 100%; having digital devices at home in Finland – 82.6%; individual educational track (teacher's agreement with the student's opinion) in Chinese Taipei – 82.4%; emotional intelligence and a sense of belonging to school in Korea – 78.7%; social climate and parental participation in school activities in China (Beijing – Shanghai – Jiangsu – Guangdong) – 52.3%. Discussion and conclusion. The infiltration of global trends in the educational activities of a modern school makes it competitive in the context of global digitalization and strengthens the position of the entire country in the PISA ratings. All countries of the world recognizing the high role of education in the development of their country are introducing new digital technologies and improving existing ones. As a result, a picture emerges in which the leading countries of the world set global trends for digitalization and globalization of education, and other countries are implementing them.

Comparison of primary gas flow standard spanning the range from 2 mL/min to 10 L/min

Main textThe CCM.FF-K6.2017 comparison was organised for the purpose of determination of the degree of equivalence of the national standards for low-pressure gas flow measurement over the range 2 mL/min to 10 L/min. Four molbloc-L flow elements and a molbox1+ were used as the transfer standards.Ten laboratories from three RMOs participated between August 2017 and January 2020 - EURAMET: INRIM (Italy); LNE (France); PTB (Germany); METAS (Switzerland); CMI (Czech Republic); SIM: NIST (USA); APMP: NMIJ/AIST (Japan); KRISS (Korea); NMIA (Australia); CMS (Chinese Taipei). The measurements were provided at prescribed reference pressure and temperature conditions. All results were used in the determination of the key comparison reference value (KCRV) and the uncertainty of the KCRV. The reference value was determined at each flow separately following the procedure presented by M G Cox [1]. The degree of equivalence with the KCRV was calculated for each flow and laboratory. This KCRV can now be used in further regional comparisons.To reach the main text of this paper, click on Final Report. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database https://www.bipm.org/kcdb/.The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCM, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).

Final report "Key comparison CCM.FF-K1.2015 - water flow: 30 m3/h ... 200 m3/h"

Main textThe objective of the Key Comparison CCM.FF-K1.2015 for water flow measurement was to support and prove the Calibration and Measurement Capabilities (CMC) of the participating NMIs of Japan (AIST), Mexico (CENAM), Chinese Taipei (ITRI), Korea (KRISS), P.R. China (NIM), Germany (PTB), USA (NIST), Sweden (RISE), UK (NEL), Turkey (TUBITAK UME) and Netherlands (VSL). The comparison was organized as a round robin, started in December 2015 at PTB and finished in April 2018, also at PTB. As pilot laboratory, the national metrology institute of Germany (PTB) organised the comparison. A combined setup of a turbine meter and Coriolis meter was used as a transfer standard (TS), which was provided by the pilot laboratory. The nominal calibration conditions of the KC were defined within the flow range between 30 m3/h and 200 m3/h, 20 °C fluid temperature and 3 bar line pressure.A special focus of the comparison was to estimate the uncertainties of the transfer standard (u TS). Both transfer meters were subjected to extensive characterization measurements at pilot laboratory, with the following investigated parameters: fluid temperature, line pressure, repeatability, flow stability, meter sensitivity to varying inflow conditions and hysteresis effects.For turbine meter, all labs passed the E N criteria of ≤ 1.20. The calibrations of the turbine meter were strongly affected by the presence of the large values for u TS with > 0.12 % k =1) which were mainly caused by the meter sensitivity to disturbed inflow conditions. This effect led to inconclusive calibration results for all laboratories. The evaluation criteria u comp/u base exceeded the critical value of 2.00. Finally, the turbine meter was not suitable for a confirmation of all submitted CMC values.For Coriolis meter, all labs passed the E N criteria of ≤ 1.20. In contrast to turbine meter, the evaluation criteria u comp/u base exceeded the critical value of 2.00 for one laboratory, only. The maximum uncertainty u TS of Coriolis meter was estimated with 0.022 % (k =1).In summary, the comparison was successfully finished for a confirmation of the submitted CMC values, related to mass calibrations. For volume related CMCs this comparison was not suitable.To reach the main text of this paper, click on Final Report. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database https://www.bipm.org/kcdb/.The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCM, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).

China Turns to School Reform to Control the Myopia Epidemic: A Narrative Review.

Myopia is now a major public health issue in parts of East and Southeast Asia, including mainland China. In this region, around 80% of students completing 12 years of school education are now myopic, and from 10% to 20% have high myopia in excess of -6D. Interventions to prevent the onset of myopia based on increasing time outdoors have now been implemented at a system-wide scale in Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) and Singapore with some success, but the prevalence of myopia still remains high by international standards. In mainland China, until recently, myopia prevention was largely based on eye exercises, but these have not been sufficient to prevent an epidemic. Control of myopia progression with atropine eye drops has been widely practiced in Singapore and Taiwan, with recent practice concentrating on low-dose concentrations. Orthokeratology has also been widely used across the region. Recent research has produced both contact and spectacle lenses that slow myopia progression by imposing myopic defocus. The new approaches to myopia control are ready for systematic use, which may be facilitated by system-wide screening and referral. In recent years, renewed emphasis has been placed on the prevention of myopia in mainland China by China's President Xi Jinping. In addition to making use of all the measures outlined above, China now seems to be aiming for major reforms to schooling, reducing educational pressures, particularly in the early school years, freeing more time for outdoor play and learning. These new initiatives may be crucial to myopia prevention and control.

Formative assessment, growth mindset, and achievement: examining their relations in the East and the West

ABSTRACT Both formative assessment and growth mindset scholars aim to understand how to enhance achievement. While research on formative assessment focuses on external teaching practices, work on growth mindset emphasises internal psychological processes. This study examined the interplay between three formative assessment strategies (i.e. sharing learning progressions, providing feedback, and instructional adjustments) and growth mindset in predicting reading achievement using the PISA2018 data. We focused specifically on samples from the West (the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand) and the East (Mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, Chinese Taipei, Japan and Korea) which comprised of 109,204 15-year old students. The results showed that formative assessment strategies were positively, albeit weakly, related to a growth mindset in the East, but not in the West. In contrast, growth mindset was positively related to reading achievement only in the West, but not in the East. The impacts of different formative assessment strategies on reading achievement demonstrated cross-cultural variability, but the strongest positive predictor was instructional adjustments. These findings highlight the potential synergy between formative assessment and growth mindset in enhancing academic achievement as well as the importance of cultural contexts in understanding their roles in student learning.

The Covid-19 pandemic and Asian Football Confederation match officials

An essential requirement of sport, and especially elite professional sport, are umpires, judges, referees, and other adjudicators of the rules of the games. Yet studies of match officials, in the social sciences especially, have only relatively recently begun to gain traction. This article traces the challenges and opportunities association football match officials (referees and assistant referees) in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) faced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and early 2021. It provides an overview of the strategies and actions that the AFC took, primarily drawing on analysis of ethnographic observations, documentary evidence and notes from the research diary of an AFC elite referee with the Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA). The article identifies key aspects of pandemic-related developments and indicates how these may have altered future processes of training and development of referees in the AFC for good. The article thus offers a distinctive contribution to the development of referee studies focussing as it does on the experiences of match officials outside of Europe.

Income Adjustments for Cross-Border Bilateral or Multilateral Advance Pricing Arrangements

In line with international tax trends, a new decree announced by the Ministry of Finance of Chinese Taipei grants flexibility for income adjustments for cross-border bilateral or multilateral advance pricing arrangements.

Should it be “Chinese Taipei” or “Taiwan”? A strategic relations analysis of name rectification referendum for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games

This paper aims to analyse how the actors and context interacted in the case of a name rectification referendum for the Olympic team of the Republic of China (Taiwan/ROC) based on a strategic relations approach. Through an analysis of supplemental documents and in-depth interviews involving actors and their strategic actions at different levels, three stages/junctures in relation to this case are addressed. The first is a critical event - the referendum proposal submission process. The second is a critical process - the referendum proposal establishment process. The third is a critical outcome - the failure of the referendum. From these three interlinked discussions, this study shows the strategic historical contexts among the stakeholders, which are used to interpret the strategic calculation. The case itself portrays how the outcome of every stage becomes the subsequent strategic knowledge and contexts and can transform into another selective context in relevant cases.

Application of an innovative alignment optimisation method to a cross-cultural mean comparison of teacher self-efficacy: A cross-country study

Teacher self-efficacy is a crucial personal characteristic that is important not only for teachers’ well-being but also for the overall teaching and learning. However, the difficulty to ascertain scalar invariance in the measurement of the construct has beset previous attempts of cross-cultural comparisons. This study implements an alignment optimisation method to compare and rank mean teacher self-efficacy of over 150,000 teachers across 48 countries and economies that participated in the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) that was conducted 2018. The findings show that Columbia, Portugal, United Arab Emirates, Hungary, and South Africa have teachers with the highest mean self-efficacy. On the flip side, Czech Republic, Estonia, Chinese Taipei, Norway, and Japan have teachers with the least mean self-efficacy. Additionally, the findings provide a framework for direct comparisons between countries based on the mean teacher self-efficacy. The researcher believes that policymakers, research and development centres, and other education stakeholders will take a cue from the findings of the present study to identify and investigate countries with high self-efficacy teachers for improved teacher self-efficacy in own country.

Multiple Criteria Decision-Making for Developing an International Game Participation Strategy: A Novel Application of the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) Two-Stage Efficiency Process

Background: This study aims to develop an efficient future game participation strategy for teenaged athletes based on an analysis of the 2019 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour game expenditure efficiency and prize-winning efficiency. Methods: In this research, Chinese Taipei (TPE) players served as the main research subjects. The input and output categories were determined through a literature analysis. A two-stage efficiency process of data envelopment analysis (DEA) and Boston consulting group (BCG) matrix were applied in this study to facilitate the calculation. Results: Based on a slack variable analysis, local travel expenses are the key elements impacting efficiency. The game recommendation order was based on a BCG matrix. The top seven recommended games were the Japan Open, Czech Open, Australian Open, Bulgarian Open, Austrian Open, China Open, and German Open. Conclusion: The results of this current study provide efficient game participation recommendations for teenaged athletes. Long-term follow-up records of game participation information should be developed to provide teenaged athletes with a precise efficiency analysis.

ADVANTAGES AND DISAD GES AND DISADVANTAGES OF THE HO GES OF THE HOTEL INDUSTR TEL INDUSTRY IN HAINAN ISLAND (CHINA)

Introduction. A country located in Central and East Asia. It is one of the most populous and largest countries in the world. To the east, the Pacific Ocean is bordered by the Yellow, Shanghai China and South China Seas. The area is 9.6 million. km². Population 1 billion. 394 mln. person The capital city - Beijing is administratively divided into 23 provinces (including Chinese Taipei), 5 autonomous regions and 4 cities subordinate to the center (Beijing, Shanghai, Tenzin, Chunxin). Hainan is the smallest and southern province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. The Hainan Island, the largest and most populous island under the PRC administration, makes up the majority (97 %) of the province.

“These People Never Give Up”: American Debates on the Return of the People’s Republic of China to the Olympic Movement

Abstract On January 1, 1979, the United States and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) exchanged diplomatic recognition. This action coincided with the withdrawal of American support for the Taiwan-based Republic of China (ROC) and provided the PRC ammunition in its attempts to rejoin the Olympic Movement. In opposition to his government’s policy, Julian K. Roosevelt, an American member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), pushed for a different outcome. He called upon the IOC to maintain the status quo and allow the Republic of China Olympic Committee (ROCOC) to continue using its name, flag, and anthem. Only ten months after the United States recognized the PRC, however, the IOC published the Nagoya Resolution, which forced the ROCOC to change its name and compete as Chinese Taipei. Roosevelt’s hopes were dashed. This incident, barely acknowledged in academic scholarship, highlights the symbiotic relationship between sport and politics and provides an interesting and useful case study in how an IOC member directly contradicted their government’s foreign policy.

AFFECTIVE FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO SOUTHEAST ASIAN AND EAST ASIAN EIGHTH GRADERS’ SCIENCE ACHIEVEMENT IN TIMSS 2015

Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is an international comparative study that has been implemented by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) since 1995. This proposed study is aimed to identify the affective factors contributing to eighth graders' science achievement in TIMSS among Southeast Asian and East Asian countries. The freely-downloadable secondary data were analyzed using IEA's International Database (IDB) Analyzer (version 4.0) for TIMSS, a plug-in for SPSS. TIMSS uses an imputation methodology, involving plausible values, to report student performance. This study found that students' views on engaging teaching in science (BSBGESL) were negatively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students' science achievement in Thailand, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, and Hong Kong SAR. Students Like Learning Science (BSBGSLS) were positively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students' science achievement in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong SAR, and Chinese Taipei. Students Confident in Science (BSBGSCS) were positively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students' science achievement in Korea, Japan, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Singapore. Students Value Science (BSBGSVS) was positively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students' science achievement in Japan, Korea, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Singapore, and Malaysia. Based on the research findings, policy recommendations were made to the Malaysian Ministry of Education to boost Malaysian eighth graders' science performance in the forthcoming TIMSS studies. Keywords: TIMSS, comparative study, affective factors, science achievement

Relationship between principal leadership and students’ mathematics achievement: a comparative study between Germany and Chinese Taipei

ABSTRACT Previous studies differed largely in their findings concerning the relationship between principal leadership and students’ mathematics achievement because of the complexity of principal leadership. As Hallinger and Heck’s theoretical framework showed, principal leadership was comprised setting vision/goal, school management, and school climate maintenance. This paper used TIMSS 2011 data collected from 3,961 fourth-grade students and 197 school principals in Germany and 4,138 students and 150 school principals in Chinese Taipei from a comparative perspective to explore the conceptual constructs of principal leadership based on principals’ work time allocation via confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), the effect of principal leadership in general and its various dimensions on students’ mathematics achievement via multilevel structural equation modelling (MSEM), and the principal leadership styles via latent class analysis (LCA). In conclusion, principals in Germany and Chinese Taipei shared similar ideas about principal leadership in primary schooling. However, the effect of principal leadership in predicting students’ mathematics achievement differed largely between the two economies, which might be related to the differences in their principals’ leadership styles. Theoretically, future studies should pay more attention to the various dimensions of principal leadership than its effect in general in their exploration of students’ mathematics achievement.

Driver Countries in Global Banking Network.

We analyze the network of cross-border bank lending connections among countries from 1977 to 2018. The network includes core countries that lend money and peripheral countries that borrow money from core countries. In nowadays highly connected banking network, financial crisis that start from a country can spread to other countries very fast and cause global affects. We use principal component analysis (PCA) to find the influential lending (core) countries in this network over the years and clusters of borrowing (peripheral) countries related to these impactful core countries. We find three clusters of peripheral countries, with some constant and some changing members over time. This can be a sign of changes in the financial or political interactions among countries. The changes in the role of core countries and how these roles get affected by the important financial crisis in the past decades is investigated. Among 31 of core countries, 7 countries have a partially or constantly important role in the network including France, United Kingdom, United States, Japan, Germany, Chinese Taipei and Switzerland.

The Influence of School Entry Skills in Literacy and Numeracy on the Science Achievement of Fourth Grade Students and Schools in Asian Regions

This study examined the associations between school entry skills and science achievement at both the student and school levels among fourth-grade students in South Korea, Singapore, Japan, Chinese Taipei, and Hong Kong. Data of the five Asian regions in the 2015 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) were analysed. Variables included Interest, Self-concept, School entry skills - reported by parents, Cognitive activities, Parent attitudes toward mathematics and science, Home educational resources, and Gender, all at the student level, and Emphasis on academic success, Discipline problems, and School entry skills – reported by principals at the school level. Results of the multilevel path analysis indicated that School entry skills positively and directly influenced science achievement, and simultaneously mediated the influence from cognitive activities to science achievement at the student level. These findings were consistent among the five Asian regions. At the school level, it was found that compared to School entry skills, School emphasis on academic success was the stronger predictor of science achievement among students for most Asian regions. Implications for improving primary school students’ science learning are discussed.