Features of the Program on Bilingual Education of Shih Chien University

Shih Chien University continually strives to become a leading university in the field of life sciences, with a long-standing commitment to deepening our roots in Asia and broadening our vision in multilingual teaching. Currently, we’re participating in the BEST Program (Program on Bilingual Education for Students in College) of Ministry of Education, focusing on internationalizing education through bilingual instruction. We organize various activities to enhance the competencies of both faculty and students, encourage cross-cultural cooperation, and foster interdisciplinary collaboration with partner universities. Additionally, we share bilingual teaching resources with many senior high schools in Taiwan, aiming to cultivate students' professional skills and equip them with international competitiveness and cross-disciplinary expertise. Our initiatives include: 

1. Integrating teaching and administrative resources on campus to establish a comprehensive bilingual teaching communication and coordination platform: The Vice President of International Affairs is appointed as the director of the bilingual project, responsible for setting up a bilingual office. This office will coordinate resources within the school, partner universities, and partner senior high schools in Taiwan to draft strategies for bilingual teaching.
2. English Medium Instruction (EMI) skill training: We encourage our teachers to enhance their EMI teaching capabilities and acquire related credentials. We also stipulate incentives for each department and college to open EMI courses, and increase more opportunities for students to take specialized elective courses. 
3. Strengthening students’ basic English skills and fostering their interest in EMI courses: Students can improve their basic English skills by taking the “English courses for Freshmen Year”. Each college will provide elective EMI courses in general education to attract more students to enroll in EMI courses.
4. Implementing a “Co-Creation and Co-Learning” project: We will invite teachers from both partner universities and our school to jointly design EMI courses. This will provide opportunities for students from both partner universities and our school to engage in mutual learning and discussion.

Highlights of our achievement in 2022

1. Intensive summer training camps: Our school held an EMI training camp that lasts for 2-3 weeks for the freshmen to prepare for bilingual courses in the future. In 2022, we opened two EMI preparation courses. One was the "International English Training Course," aimed at strengthening students' basic English skills, the other was "English Communication and Expression," with the goal of enhancing students' oral communication abilities.  
2. Connecting English learning resources with our partner universities: In order to provide a diversified course selection, cultivate students' professional knowledge and skills, our Office of International Affairs invited teachers from our partner universities of different colleges to carry out intensive EMI courses. These courses cover areas of humanities, management, and design. In 2022, our “Asia Summer University” offered 4 curriculums and provided opportunities for students across all departments in Taipei campus to take EMI courses in general education.
3. Each college opens at least one EMI courses in general education: In 2022, we opened 9 EMI courses in general education, with a total of 424 students attended EMI courses. Additionally, we had the opportunity to invite professors from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to open a collaborative learning course titled " Building an AgeTech City: Services, Community, and Technology" during the summer vacation. 
4. Empowerment training for teachers: In 2022, our school offered 8 batches of EMI teaching workshops in the first and second semesters, which were open to all teachers for free. Additionally, we selected 5 teachers to participate in the EMI Teaching Resources Center at National Taiwan Normal University's OXFORD EMI Training. We also encouraged teachers to utilize the Grammarly English editing software provided by the National Taiwan University Bilingual Education Center. As of the end of the semesters, a total of 23 teachers have used this teaching resource.
5. Establishing a “Bilingual Seed Teacher Training Project”: In 2022, we continued our collaboration with Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland, UK, to hold the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education Teaching program. The 3 assistant professors selected in 2021 had commenced EMI courses in their respective colleges, covering areas such as management, design, culture, and creativity. In 2022, we designated another 3 assistant professors from the colleges of human ecology, design, and international programs as "Bilingual Seed Teachers" for comprehensive EMI teaching training in the United Kingdom.
6. Empowerment training for students: In 2022, in addition to continuing the training of EMI TAs' English communication and expression skills through the Studio Classroom, we had 13 students participate in the "EMI TA Professional Competency Development Program" organized by the EMI Teaching Resources Center at National Taiwan Normal University. Additionally, 3 other students attended EMI TA training at the National Taiwan University Bilingual Education Center. In 2022, a total of 22 EMI TAs were trained. Moreover, our school offered EMI TAs opportunities for international teaching internships, aiming to enhance students' professional skills, cross-cultural communication, and leadership qualities, while also promoting educational exchanges between overseas schools and our school. In 2022, 5 EMI TAs were sent to Japan, including Hosei University, Yokohama Chuka Gakuin, and Seijo High School, to conduct practical exercises in English teaching with a focus on Taiwanese culture.