ER in Taiwan: Searching for fertile ground

Abstract

Taiwan’s National Development Council recently announced plans for the country to become bilingual by the year 2030. However, the Council did not lay out a clear road map for how this major accomplishment is to be achieved, and the curriculum presently in place does not seem to meet the challenge. This article will review the current status of English education in Taiwan as well as extensive reading’s under-utilized role in the present curriculum. It will then look at how ER is currently being implemented at one major university on the island and will conclude by arguing that, regardless of the kinds of curricular changes the Ministry of Education decides to adopt, extensive reading deserves an intrinsic role in the new design.