The Taoyuan City Department of Environmental Protection (TYDEP) is leading the nation in launching the "Taoyuan City School Environmental Education Award Program for Schools at All Levels," with the standout winners announced on January 5. This year, 97 schools participated in the award program, each with its own highlights and features. After a careful review and selection process by the jury committee, 42 outstanding schools have been unveiled, including 1 High Distinction Award, 9 Excellence Awards, 21 First Class Awards in the elementary school group, 1 High Distinction Award, 6 Excellence Awards and 4 First Class Awards in the junior high school group. The schools that receive the High Distinction Award will each receive an award of NT$30,000 and will be given priority to participate in the National Environmental Education Award selection process.
The TYDEP noted that the incentive award program was developed to encourage teachers and students in the city's elementary and junior high schools to learn through experiential environmental education, to increase the use of 31 environmental education facility sites in Taoyuan, and to bring environmental educators to the campus. The High Distinction Award in the elementary school category goes to "Xinjie Elementary School;" the Excellence Award winners are Meihua Elementary School, Daye Elementary School, Futai Elementary School, Beishi Elementary School, Nanmei Elementary School, Daan Elementary School, Qianlong Elementary School, Yang Ming Elementary School and Sanguang Elementary School. The High Distinction Award winner, "Xinjie Elementary School," promotes environmental education curriculum by level and has developed the "Localization Curriculum - Renhai Temple" with the theme of "Folk Beliefs and Temple Festivals" for implementation in the city's fourth grade social education field.
The High Distinction Award in the junior high school category is given to "Da You Junior High School;" while the Excellence Awards are awarded to Ping Hsing Junior High School, Shih Men Junior High School, Taoyuan Special Education School, Dong Xing Junior High School, Chuwei Junior High School and Long Xing Junior High School. "Da You Junior High School" has been recognized for combining the surrounding facilities (Hutou Mountain, Taoyuan Confucius Temple, Taolin Railway, etc.) to conduct island-hopping environmental education field learning and for establishing an environmental education club ~ Hu Pei Club. The school places great emphasis on environmental issues, and its faculty and students are enthusiastic about promoting environmental education and are very supportive of various environmental education activities.
TYDEP Director-General Chen Shih-Wei noted that through experiential contextual teaching, the concept of sustainability is integrated into daily life to promote environmental education, and encourage schools to create a quality learning environment and environmental education features in line with Goal No. 4 of the UN SDGs (ensure inclusive and equitable quality education, and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all) with quality education, creating a win-win situation for both diversified development of teaching and environmental sustainability. In the future, the city will continue to implement environmental education through practical actions, so that Taoyuan can continue to move towards a better and more sustainable city. For related information, please visit the Taoyuan City Environmental Education Website.