Learning democracy through games in Taiwanese schools

Taiwan’s secondary schools come top of global rankings in civic education, leaving Swiss schools in the dust. What makes Taiwan different? Check out our selection of newsletters. Subscribe here. The voices and shouts of Class 805 can already be heard in the corridor of Sanmin Junior High School. Through open doors, a room full of 14-year-old students can be seen tapping their tablets in concentration. Welcome to democracy class. Their task is to identify the most important political players in national politics. In addition to faces and slogans, the teacher, Yi Ting Jhang, presents well-known symbols and pieces of music associated with different Taiwanese political camps on a screen at the front of the class. “I know him,” a pupil, Jia-Ruei, shouts out to the class. “My parents are voting for him.” “No way,” says the pupil next to her, Yan-Cheng Hou. “I’d never vote for that guy.” “After the politicians, now let’s take a look at the policies,” Jhang says, and presents the various ...