The National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Center (Craft Center) actively promotes equal access to craft culture and brings craft education into schools. This summer, the Craft Center launched the "Craft into Schools: Creative Arts Program" at 30 schools across northern, central, southern, and eastern Taiwan, and offshore islands, offering diverse and engaging hands-on craft activities to enrich students' summer holidays. Craft Center Director Chen Dian-li stated that this initiative aims to pass down craft culture and introduce abundant craft knowledge into schools, stimulating students' creativity and aesthetic appreciation of crafts through hands-on experiences.
The courses span schools across Taiwan. For example, Ruifang Industrial High School in New Taipei City invited artisan Liao Wei-chi to teach "The Spark of Gold: Contemporary Jewelry and Tableware Design in Metalworking," allowing students to craft their unique metalwork creations. Jiou-an Elementary School in Douliu City, Yunlin County, collaborated with artisans Pan Chiung-hui and Lin Yu-tzu to offer the "Green through Needle Felting" course, where students learned needle felting techniques through a multisensory experience, creating therapeutic handmade items.
New Taipei City Ruifang Industrial High School invited craftsman Liao Wei-chi to teach on the topic "Shining Gold - Contemporary Jewelry and Tableware Design and Craftsmanship." (Photo / Courtesy of Ministry of Culture)
In addition, Zhujiao Junior High School in Tainan promoted the "Brightening Rural Areas: Bamboo Dream Fulfilled" program, where artisans Chuang Ming-hsien and Wang Tsung-ya guided students in creating lanterns, broadening their learning horizons and exploring their developmental potential. At Daoxiang Elementary School in Hualien County, the course "Everyday Small Creations: Wooden Crafts" invited artisan Hu Nuobao to teach woodworking techniques, allowing students to create crafts such as bamboo dragonflies, portable chopsticks, and bamboo wind chimes, applying craft skills to daily life.
Zhujiao Junior High School in Tainan City is promoting the "Illuminate the Countryside: Realizing Bamboo Dreams" program. Through hands-on experience in making lanterns, students explore their learning interests and strengths while considering potential future development. (Photo / Courtesy of Ministry of Culture)
Through the "Craft into Schools: Creative Arts Program," the Craft Center helps students experience the charm of crafts within their schools, combining learning and hands-on practice to nurture future craft talents. The Craft Center expressed its commitment to continuing cross-disciplinary collaboration, closely connecting with the education system to create craft courses that meet the unique needs of schools, providing students with enriching learning experiences.
