Kaohsiung Mayor Announces NT$300 Million Education Package With Three New Initiatives

Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai announced three new educational support measures, aiming to optimize the learning environment and support teachers. These initiatives, which will be implemented starting in the 2025 academic year, include full lunch subsidies for teachers in public junior and elementary schools, reduced teaching hours for elementary school administrative team leaders, and a one-class reduction for junior high Chinese language teachers.

The city is investing an additional NT$300 million annually in education. This builds upon the existing policy of providing free lunches for all public and private junior and elementary school students from the 2025 academic year. The new measures aim to alleviate the burden on families, support frontline educators, and reduce administrative workloads.

Specifically, the lunch subsidy for teachers will cost approximately NT$110 million annually, benefiting around 7,900 teachers. To ease the increasing administrative burden in schools, elementary school administrative team leaders will have their teaching hours adjusted. Schools with fewer than 24 classes will have 12 teaching hours per week, those with 25 to 60 classes will have 9 hours, and schools with over 61 classes will have 6 hours. This change is expected to cost about NT$72 million annually and aims to allow administrative teachers more time for school management, curriculum development, and student care.

Furthermore, to improve students' reading and writing skills, in line with the adjustment of the essay component in the Kaohsiung area's joint entrance examination in 2026, junior high Chinese language teachers will have their weekly teaching load reduced from 12 to 11 classes. This adjustment, which aligns with the standards in most other major Taiwanese cities, is intended to provide teachers with more time for lesson preparation and class management. The city views education as its most crucial investment, emphasizing the need for collaboration between families, schools, and the government to foster children's growth.

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Education is the city's most important investment. Children's growth requires the joint efforts of families, schools, and the government, and frontline teachers are the most crucial key to educational success.