Graduate Degree Program of Hakka Society and Culture

Introduction

The Graduate Program of Hakka Society and Culture was established in 2006, in view of the importance of native cultures in Taiwan and the popularity of in-service education and lifelong learning. The program was firstly made available to elementary and middle school teachers involved in local cultural education and later accept individuals who possess an interest in Hakka society and culture. The program is delivered by educators in a variety of disciplines including anthropology, sociology, history, literature and arts, and communications. More than 180 graduate theses on local communities, economics, religion, gender, literature, communications, language education, creative cultural industries, museum studies, and oral history have been completed since the inception of the program.  Students are also encouraged to take a creative way for this degree, such as making a picture book, giving a dance performance, designing a board game, making a documentary film, creating Hakka poems, writing an open textbook, etc.

Objectives

To cultivate interest in Hakka society and culture among research professionals;

To apply the theories of cultural anthropology, sociology and history, in accordance with the policy of cultural diversity, to the development of a new discourse on the essence of Hakka culture;

To examine the implications of Hakka culture according to contemporary academic theory through the guidance provided by past traditions;

To integrate theory with practice by jointly emphasizing theoretical study and field research, and to raise the professional standards of local teachers and those whose work relates to Hakka culture.