Typhoon Bavi disrupts exams; principal suggests data-backed rescheduling

Taiwan's college entrance exams, known as the fenke kaoshi, have been postponed due to the approach of Typhoon Bavi. The exams, originally scheduled for July 11-12, will now take place on July 13-14. This shift necessitates a cascade of rescheduled events, including university application submissions and the final announcement of results.

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From the data, between 2011 and 2021, only one day of natural disaster-related school closures fell in the first week of July, while 21 days occurred between July 8 and July 31. If we want to exclude weather factors, moving the date to the original July 1, 2, 3 seems to be a more scientific choice!

Wang Yan-huang, principal of Changhua Senior High School, proposed an alternative date for the exams, suggesting that holding them in the first week of July would be a more "scientific" choice. He based this recommendation on an analysis of natural disaster-related school closures from 2011 to 2021. His data indicated that while only one day of closures fell in the first week of July, 21 days occurred between July 8 and July 31.

Wang also pointed out that many high school seniors have already secured university admission through early or alternative admission tracks. Consequently, the number of students participating in the fenke kaoshi is relatively small. He further noted that rescheduling the exams to July 11-12 created administrative burdens for high schools, which were simultaneously handling new student registrations. This dual demand strained administrative staff and made it difficult to find teachers willing to take on administrative roles.

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The numbers speak for themselves. Taiwan's summers face typhoon challenges, but data shows the probability of typhoon-related holidays is lower in the first week of July, while it's higher from the second week to the end of July.

Emphasizing the need for data-driven decisions, Wang stated that Taiwan's summers are prone to typhoons. His analysis suggests a lower probability of typhoon-related disruptions in the first week of July compared to the period from the second week to the end of the month. He recalled that in earlier eras, university entrance exams were consistently held on July 1, 2, and 3, and were rarely affected by weather, except during the pandemic. Therefore, he argued, relying on data and scientific evidence should guide the scheduling of these crucial exams.

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In earlier times, university entrance exams were held on July 1, 2, and 3, and except for minor impacts during the pandemic, they were almost always held on schedule. Therefore, letting the numbers speak and science guide us should be the best principle for arranging the fenke kaoshi exam dates.