Shen unveils Taipei education platform, Chiang defends free lunches

Taipei, Oct. 2 (CNA) Democratic Progressive Party Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen (沈伯洋) proposed smaller classes and reduced teacher workload Friday, while Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) defended free school lunches in response to Shen's proposal to allow optional parental top-up payments.

Speaking at DPP headquarters, Shen outlined four priorities: reducing teacher workload, improving parent-teacher relations, strengthening preschool education and expanding special education support.

He proposed reducing elementary school classes to 24 pupils and junior high classes to 25 by the 2028-2029 academic year, while maintaining teacher numbers as enrollment falls.

Shen also advocated opening more permanent teaching positions and piloting co-homeroom teachers and administrative assistants in elementary schools.

On school lunches, he proposed adjusting funding in line with inflation and retaining optional parental top-up payments, saying meal quality should not be constrained by a fixed spending ceiling.

Responding separately, Chiang said free lunches reduce the financial burden on families and prevent children from feeling differences in household income at the dining table.

He called on Shen to clarify his position, saying the challenger had spoken both of retaining parental payments and continuing free meals.

School lunch safety has also drawn scrutiny following a suspected food poisoning incident at Chengyuan High School and reports of students falling ill at Minzu Elementary School.

DPP City Councilor Hsu Shu-hua (許淑華) said Thursday that the number of affected Chengyuan students had risen from 87 to 96.

Separately, responding to Hsu's questions about which schools had received squid supplied for school lunches, Chiang said officials are currently tracking its distribution and no other schools had reported similar food safety incidents.

Regarding Minzu Elementary School, he said preliminary medical assessments have not ruled out norovirus, noting that one affected student was vegetarian. The city has submitted samples for testing and is awaiting results.