Exploring English Education in Taiwan: Perceptions and Insights of Foreign English Teachers

Background: In 2018, Taiwan launched its Bilingual 2030 policy to become a bilingual Mandarin-and-English nation. To help support this goal, the island's Ministry of Education and private educational companies actively recruited foreign English teachers to work across various K–12 settings. These teachers offered an important perspective on the island’s evolving English education landscape, yet there is very little research exploring their experiences in depth. Purpose: This study gathered insights from foreign English teachers in Taiwan to examine their perceptions of current practices, policies, and systemic structures in English education. It aimed to explore how their lived experiences aligned with or diverged from the goals of Taiwan’s Bilingual 2030 policy. Method: Using a basic qualitative design with a phenomenological lens, this study conducted one individual semi-structured interview with each of the eight foreign English teachers from different school settings across Taiwan. Thematic analysis was used to identify patterns and meanings across their experiences. Results: Three key themes emerged: (1) systemic gaps in policy and curriculum implementation, (2) superficial hiring practices, and (3) lack of support for culturally relevant teaching. The teachers’ experiences revealed practices in instruction, curriculum, and institutional support that did not fully align with the policy’s goals. Conclusion: The findings revealed a disconnect between Taiwan’s bilingual policy aspirations and the current conditions under which foreign teachers are expected to teach. Supporting change will require greater curricular accountability across school types, equity-based hiring reforms, and sustained cross-cultural collaboration within schools. This study contributes to broader conversations on global language policy, English teaching, and culturally sustaining pedagogy in international education.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Education

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Professional Leadership, Education

Grantor

University of Houston

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Padgett, Marlena L.

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Hutchison, Laveria

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Thomas, Dustine
• Chung, Sheng Kuan
• Stubbs, Sunny

• Educational leadership

Language dc:language.iso

English

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10657/20676

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:uh-ir.tdl.org:10657/20676