[新聞] Taiwan's English environment gets thumbs-up
The hotline for foreigners 0800-024-111.
which offers 24-hour toll-free service in Chinese,
English and Japanese.
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=821009&lang=eng_news
Survey of foreign residents shows room for improvement, but top
marks for friendliness
Dr. Frank Sung, center, of RDEC and Dr. Peter Lin, 3rd right, and
Wen Pin Lung, 2nd right, of Shih Hsin University with other
members of the survey team.
Provider The average level of satisfaction improved to 67.9 out of
a possible 100 points in a survey of white-collar foreigners in
Taiwan on their opinion of the English environment on the island.
The survey, carried out by Shih Hsin University on behalf of the
Research, Development and Evaluation Commission of the Executive
Yuan, canvassed more than a thousand samples to determine their
impression of the English they encounter in their everyday lives.
According to Professor Peter Lin and Consultant Wen Pin Lung of
Shih Hsin, the survey covered seven areas and revealed that the
highest level of satisfaction was in "Overall Satisfaction with
Taiwanese Friendly Attitudes towards Foreigner" at 87.0 and
"Overall Satisfaction with Social Cohesion" at 82.2., while the
other categories dealing with "Overall Government Performance",
"Bilingual Signage:, Bilingual Websites", "Emergency Assistance
Information" and "Service Facilities for Foreigners" all scored in
the 60s.
The survey showed that one area needing improvement is
insufficient labeling on imported items such as foodstuffs where
the country of origin is not indicated in English or where a
Chinese-language sticker has been pasted over the original English
label.
Based on the findings of the survey, RDEC recommends that a better
environment for learning English be created in Taiwan so that
local citizens will be better prepared to interact and communicate
with foreigners. Another step is to ensure that more government
employees are able to speak English as well as other non-Chinese
languages to provide more service windows to foreigners who deal
with government agencies. The survey revealed a need for closer
attention to English ability, signage, information and other
aspects in medical facilities throughout Taiwan as well as a need
for overall improvement in the English-language environment in
southern Taiwan
At the same time, the commission recommends the development of
more opportunities for foreigners to study Chinese and Taiwanese
even as the people of Taiwan seek to know more about foreign
cultures and people. Also needed are more bilingual websites and
more information on laws and regulations that may affect
foreigners in their daily lives in Taiwan.
Dr. Frank Sung, Chief Secretary of RDEC, emphasized that one of
the most important tools for foreigners in coping with language
problems and other issues is the hotline that has been set up to
handle calls from foreigners. The hotline scored high in the
survey at 71 points but many foreigners are still unaware of the
service, which offers 24-hour toll-free service in Chinese,
English and Japanese on 0800-024-111.
※ 編輯: hisunshine 來自: 118.166.11.204 (12/27 19:24)
※ 編輯: hisunshine 來自: 118.166.11.204 (12/27 19:25)
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12/28 02:55, , 1F
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