Release Date 28 March 2022     Mandarin

Right now, there is a talent shortage in plenty of industries. The dire demand provides students of technical universities and vocational colleges unprecedented opportunities.

 

The Education Ministry’s Department of Technical and Vocational Education (DTVE), which has been working on improving TVE for years, caught the trend and held three exhibitions in Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung this March.

 

Three exhibitions in the National Science and Technology Museum (NSTM), National Library of Public Information (NLPI), and Taipei City Arts Promotion Office (TAPO) were all open on March 26.

 

The exhibition in NSTM was organized by NKUST and the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology (NPUST), and themed about “Fun in Jobs: Reimagining Your Future (技職大玩Job，探索Fun無限).” The exhibitions aimed to promote the image of vocational education and tell the public, especially parents, the value of vocational education.

 

Also, the exhibits linked the Education Ministry’s K-12 Education Administration (K12EA), local high schools, and universities altogether to set up booths, which help parents and students of the 2019 curriculum guidelines understand what their future careers would look like after taking majors in colleges and universities.

 

At the opening ceremony, a team led by Electrical Engineering Department Professor Tu, Kuo-Yang, Autonomous Intelligent Robotics Systems Laboratory (全自主智慧機器人系統實驗室), displayed an automated robot arm for picking and placing in logistics warehouses in the opening ceremony.

 

Prof. Tu stated that the growing e-commerce market in the recent decade forced the logistics industry to speed up its development of autonomous technology for goods storage and delivery. Companies like Amazon.com Inc have invested resources to develop the best solutions. As Amazon has rolled out automated machines that pack orders, other new automated machines used to streamline the logistic work won’t be far.

 

“A whole robotics system is a combination of professional design and knowledge from mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science. The research and development of the adult-sized humanoid robot includes the positioning of object spatial orientation for real-time motion planning and grasp force control,” says Prof. Tu.

 

“Vocational education, once viewed as low-tech, burnished its formerly ‘dirty’ image and served as an incubator to cultivate professional talents for high-tech industries.”

 

DTVE Director Yang, Yu-Huei (楊玉惠) commented that “Vocational education, once viewed as low-tech, burnished its formerly ‘dirty’ image and served as an incubator to cultivate professional talents for high-tech industries.” Additionally, she used the automated robot presented in the former show as an example and pointed out that the level of automation was the key to deciding the competitiveness in the sector.

 

“The design of these areas is meant to help students understand their aptitude to find suitable academic and career paths for themselves.”

 

“NKUST and NPUST have arranged five interactive areas, such as Aptitude Test Area (性向分析區), Technical and Vocational Potential Area (技職優勢區), Experience All Area (學群體驗區), Learning By Doing Area (做中學區), Professionals-To-Be Area (職人認證區), and Job VR Experience Area (職業VR體驗區). The design of these areas is meant to help students understand their aptitude to find suitable academic and career paths for themselves,” says President Yang, Ching-Yu.

 

The Experience All Area covers 7 subject groups, including aquaculture, electrical & electronic engineering, mechanical engineering, civil & construction engineering, chemical and materials engineering, design, and aquaculture. It provides interactive devices to introduce related majors and subjects in technical universities and vocational colleges.

 

As Taiwanese manufacturers have transitioned from labor-intensive into knowledge-intensive, whether they will stay on the top tier of a sector domestic or abroad depends on their technology, innovation, and talent pool.

 

The exhibit “Fun in Jobs: Reimagining Your Future” is open on the 4th floor of the NSTM as a permanent exhibition from March 27, 2022, to March 30, 2025.

 

Further Reading

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The Education Ministry’s Department of Technical and Vocational Education (DTVE)

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Fun in Jobs: Reimagining Your Future

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Translated/Edited by Jess Lin