News

International Cultural Festival Sets Sail for Diverse Cultures

After being postponed by the pandemic for two years, the three universities of the NTU System, National Taiwan Normal University, National Taiwan University, and National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, recommenced the jointly-organized International Cultural Festival on 28 March 2023. The two-day event comprised of up to booths showcasing up to 14 different cultures, including those of Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, Macau, etc. The booths not only sold dishes from distinctive cuisines but also artisan crafts; several of them displayed traditional clothes and cultural elements and offered hands-on activities for participants to explore individual cultures.

An Accomplice to Alzheimer's Disease: Protein TDP-43

Of all patients with dementia across the globe, approximately 60-70% are confirmed cases of Alzheimer’s disease, the vast majority of which are seniors over the age of 65. New studies have suggested that around 30-57% of Alzheimer's patients were found to have abnormal levels of protein TDP-43 inclusions, which presents faster disease progression and greater brain atrophy. To this day, treatments for Alzheimer’s disease continue to be limited. Therefore, in order to develop better treatment strategies and gain a further understanding of the disease, the importance of TDP-43 must not be overlooked.

Helping Taiwanese Children Cultivate Strong Emotional Skills

Emotional intelligence forms the foundation for a happy life, and is an important aspect of lifelong education. The preschool years are a particularly crucial period for the development of a child’s emotional abilities, and as research has consistently shown, family environment has a strong influence on their cultivation. How can parents and caregivers ensure that their homes are conducive to nurturing emotional development? Below, members of the “Kids in Taiwan: National Longitudinal Study of Child Development and Care” research team, led by Professor Chien-ju Chang of the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at National Taiwan Normal University, will share some insights on the development process of preschool children’s emotional abilities, as well as some of the key factors involved in cultivating emotional intelligence. The researchers encourage parents to pay attention to their children’s social-emotional skills, and urge relevant government departments to cooperate to prioritize parenting education.

International Forum on Language Issues in English-Medium Instruction

The International Forum on Language issues in English-Medium Instruction will be held on April 22-23, 2023. The two-day event is organized by the Department of English, College of Liberal Arts, and Office of Bilingual Education, National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU), and co-organized by the Office of Research and Development, NTNU and the National Science and Technology Council. International scholars from cross-nations and disciplines will be presenting their research as well as discussing pertinent issues and challenges regarding the theme of EMI.

NTNU and Japanese Scholars Co-organize Emerging Technology Workshops

Department of Technology Application and Human Resource Development and office of International Affairs from National Taiwan Normal University (henceforth referred to as the Dept. of TAHRD) conducted a Virtual Worlds teaching workshop on February 4, 2023 in cooperation with Prof. Irina Kuznetcova from Akita University, Japan. The workshop was organized by Yi-Yao Hsu, a senior from the Dept. of TAHRD, and assistant, Chia-Ju Chou, and was a continuation of the ICT workshop previously held by the Dept. of TAHRD for the School of Teacher Education. In this 5-hour workshop, participants learned practical applications of Unity, a game development engine along with the theoretical foundations of integrating virtual worlds created in Unity in teaching. Participants were tasked with designing a lesson plan integrating pedagogical theories and technology. Yi-Yao Hsu and Prof. Kuznetcova noted that the workshop was quite challenging because most of the participants had no experience with Unity.