Taiwan higher education at the crossroads: its implication for China

Abstract

This paper examines issues resulting from the debate on the university as a public good or a private commodity by drawing case studies from Taiwan and China. Owing to similar cultural influences, Taiwan and China can serve as good examples for comparison; they are countries that have undergone a drastic university restructuring process with respect to origin of policy change, reform initiatives, outcomes, and future challenges. The author concludes that the results of transforming universities based on market economies have engendered mixed feelings because most universities have been driven from public good to private commodity standards. The current debate in both countries also holds some commonality among neighbouring countries.

Keywords:

• China
• Taiwan
• higher education
• public good
• private commodity
• reform