As the new school year approaches, I've been reflecting on the differences between the education systems in Taiwan and Poland, especially as our son is about to start elementary school in Taiwan.
On August 24th (Saturday) we attended a parents' meeting at his school. It was a chance to meet his new teacher, bring in supplies, and learn about the school's procedures, like where to gather for pick-up—there are three gates to choose from. The meeting lasted about an hour and a half. While the parents were briefed on school renovations and upcoming plans, the kids stayed in the classroom. Unfortunately, our son didn't have any of his kindergarten friends in his new class. There are five classes in his grade, with each class having around 24-25 students.
The school year officially starts on August 30th, but for the first few days, school ends earlier, with pick-up at noon. A typical school day in Taiwan starts early - we need to arrive between 7:00 and 7:30 AM, with a 15-minute reading session before classes begin at 8:00 AM. Most days, school finishes at 12:20 PM, except on Tuesdays, when it extends until 3:30 PM. There's also an after-school daycare program available until 5:00 PM, though the exact cost hasn't been announced yet - it usually costs around NT$10,000 per semester, depending on the number of kids enrolled.
In addition to regular classes, the school offers various extracurricular activities, such as football, basketball, dance, karate, and ping pong. These classes come at an extra cost, typically NT$2,500 for 14 lessons. It can get quite expensive if you want your child to participate in a different activity each day.
Taiwanese students also face more exams and study more intensely than those in Poland. It's a different approach to education, and one that I'm still getting used to as we navigate this new chapter in our son's life. The school system here is more rigorous, but it also offers a lot of opportunities for growth and development.
Language education is another key difference. In Taiwan, children aren't allowed to learn English until the 3rd or 4th grade, whereas in Poland, English is now taught starting in kindergarten. Polish students typically are studying a foreign language in the 1st grade, usually English. This early exposure gives Polish children a better chance of becoming proficient in multiple languages. A second foreign language is added later on. I learned English and German, and some schools may offer other choices, such as French or Spanish. I've heard that in bigger cities, they now offer languages like Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, even in kindergartens, to include many foreign kids in the education. Due to the war, Ukrainian is probably also more common in Poland nowadays.
The school provides textbooks and some supplies, but we still had to buy items like crayons, pens, and the school uniform, which is only worn twice a week on exercise days. Another unique item the school requires is a special head cover, which doubles as a pillow for naps and can be used in case of an earthquake.
In terms of school supplies, in Poland, at least in the past, supplies like textbooks were not provided, and parents had to purchase them. While education in Poland is entirely free, in Taiwan, parents used to have to pay for a semester of schooling. However, this year, it seems that there is no tuition fee except for after-school programs, though we'll know more details later. Both countries offer subsidies for low-income families, ensuring that all children have access to education.
One of the most striking differences I've noticed between Taiwan and Poland is how children are picked up from school. In Taiwan, all kids are picked up at the school gate, either by their parents or by cram school teachers. Almost all kids attend some form of after-school class, whether at the school itself or at a cram school. This means that our son will also stay for these after-school sessions since I can't help him with his homework, and my husband works from home or returns late in the evening, often around 8 or 9 PM, and still has work to do.
In Taiwan, parents often work long hours, so it's common for grandparents to pick up the kids or for them to stay at cram schools until late in the evening, sometimes as late as 9 or 10 PM.
Due to busy work schedules, many events in Taiwan are held on Saturdays, sometimes even at night, so that parents can attend. In Poland, parent-teacher meetings typically took place between 2-3 PM, as schools usually closed by 4 PM at the latest. However, in Taiwan, at least in kindergarten, these meetings were organized after classes, around 7 PM. I’m not sure about elementary school yet, but it's unlikely to be during the day since most parents wouldn’t be able to attend. The annoying part is that speeches and other activities often occupy Saturdays. While this might not happen frequently, it still takes up your free time, as you end up spending half or even the whole day at school. It’s also hard for me to imagine...
In Poland, except for Christmas events, which were typically held in the evening, and a few make-up days on Saturdays with very low attendance, nothing happened after school or on weekends - at least not when I was going to school. Even now, seeing my niece and nephew, their classes are short, and their weekends are occupied with other activities that their parents organize for them.
In contrast, my memories of elementary school in Poland are quite different. Classes usually started around 8:00 AM or later, and in the first grade, school often finished around noon. We didn't have after-school care or many extracurricular activities to choose from, especially in smaller towns. In cities, there might have been more options, but I'm not very familiar with those. In Poland, one parent often works part-time or stays at home, especially when kids are younger. This makes it challenging for single parents, as school hours are shorter, and the lack of after-school care can be a problem.
Parents enter the school and pick us up there. We typically waited at the entrance after changing our shoes and taking our jackets in the winter. In Taiwan, there is no special room for changing clothes like we had, and kids don’t change shoes in class but walk in with their outdoor shoes. Additionally, kids in Taiwan have to clean their classrooms and the school surroundings - something unimaginable in Poland!
Poland doesn’t have school uniforms in public schools. There was a time, around when I was 14 years old, when the government decided that we should wear uniforms in schools. It didn’t last long, only about a year, because the students were against it. After all, we weren’t little kids anymore; we were at an age where we wanted to express our individuality and have our own style. It felt really terrible, like a lack of freedom. The uniforms disappeared soon enough and were never brought back. In Taiwan, however, it's quite common to see kids in uniforms, specific to each school.
We really had plenty of freedom in school. We could dye our hair, and nobody cared much about our hairstyles. Later on, there was also less concern about our clothes - some might say that not everything was very school-appropriate, but nobody really got into trouble because of it.
The first time I dyed my hair was in late elementary school. It was a kind of cherry color, as it was popular at the time, and both my mother and aunt were dyeing their hair. I did it during the summer holidays, but the color didn’t fade out by the time school started. The teachers didn’t have a problem with it. It was also common back then to lighten our hair to make it blonder and brighter. After that, I also often had purple shades in my hair, as it was a common color to find in dye. I like pink, but it’s not as easy to achieve on hair as purple.
Another aspect that stands out is the physical condition of the schools. I've noticed that schools in Taiwan appear more poorly maintained compared to those in Poland. The walls are often dirty and seem never to be repainted. In Poland, schools are more tidy and are repainted every 1-2 years. This difference extends to houses in Taiwan as well, where people often don’t repaint for 30-40 years, resulting in a more worn and aged appearance.
Overall, the differences between the two systems reflect broader cultural and societal values. While the Taiwanese system is more rigorous and exam-focused, the Polish system offers a more relaxed approach with earlier language education and a greater emphasis on maintaining the physical environment of schools. As we adapt to the Taiwanese way of doing things, I'm hopeful that our son will find his own path to success in this new environment.
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