GITS at Chang Jung Christian University is offering graduate courses on Taiwan Studies in English. In the winter term 2010/11, GITS is offering a course Introduction to Taiwan Studies which is aimed specifically at Chinese language students.(For example, students at the Chinese language center at Chenggong University Tainan and Zhongshan University, Kaohsiung. Our staff would be more than happy to go to these universities and inform interested students directly.) These students, however, must have obtained a first university degree in- or outside Taiwan. The course will be taught by Yoshi Amae and Jens Damm.
In addition, all English language courses, which are part of the regular MA program in Taiwan Studies, can be taken as separate courses.
Social Development in Contemporary Taiwan (Jens Damm)
This course aims to provide students with a broad knowledge base on Taiwan's modern history, contemporary society and cultural developments. An understanding of Taiwan's recent history and societal/cultural development will, in particular, facilitate a better understanding and comprehension of Taiwan's embeddedness within East Asia and Southeast Asia and the interactions between the countries concerned. After a brief introduction to Taiwan's recent historical background (focusing on social history), there will be a series of in-depth units on ethnicity, gender, class, religion, family, literature, language mass media, new communication and information technologies, migrants and education in contemporary Taiwan.
Cultural Anthropology: Media Anthropology in Taiwan
This course aims to provide students with a broad knowledge base on 1) major concepts of cultural anthropology and 2) on a critical analysis of contemporary Taiwan dealing with the relations between the (new) media, social developments and dynamics, and cultural interactions from a cross-cultural anthropological viewpoint. The course aims to increase a critical awareness of the multifaceted factors which influence the (new) media and (memory) production. In particular, it will be asked how the (new) media (and the underlying technologies) affect the representation and reproduction of various cultures/ethnicities and how mass media representations contribute to national identities and transnational identities (here: examples of Aborigines, Hakka, Sinification, de-Sinification).
From the end of 2010, Chang Jung University will be directly connected by train from Tainan TRA Station and Tainan HSR Station.
If you later decide to enroll in the program, the credits gained from the courses previously taken would be recognized and counted toward your graduation. In addition, you will receive a written certificate in English about the courses; thus, many universities abroad should be willing to recognize these courses (e.g. Taiwan Studies, China Studies, East Asian History, Political Science with a an area focus etc).
