National Dong Hwa University Hua-Shih College of Education (; HSCE or Hua-Shih) is a teacher-education and education-research school of National Dong Hwa University in Hualian, Taiwan. HSCE is closely associated with the historical teacher's education tradition referred to as âÂÂHua-Shihâ (), which was Taiwan's first normal school after World War II and one of nine exclusive schools dedicated to early childhood and primary education since 1940s.
Hua-Shih's PhD program has 2nd largest Indonesian graduates among all PhD programs in Taiwan and was the first institution in Taiwan to offer MEd and PhD in Multicultural Education. The college become one of eight colleges at NDHU in 2008. Nowadays, Hua-Shih offers over 20 programs- BEd, MEd, MSc, PhD in Curriculum and Instruction, Early Childhood Education, Educational Administration, Special Education, Physical Education and Kinesiology, Multicultural Education, and Science Education.
The origins of Hua-Shih can be traced to 27 October 1947, when Taiwan Provincial Hualien Normal School () was established in Hualien City as one of the principal postwar institutions for training elementary-school teachers in eastern Taiwan. In 1949 it established an affiliated primary school as a practicum base for student teachers, reinforcing its role in the formation of elementary education in eastern Taiwan.
The institution's early development was repeatedly shaped by natural disasters. The 1951 Hualien earthquake severely damaged most of the campus, and Typhoon Winnie in 1958 destroyed the school buildings again, leading to plans for relocation. A new site at Meilun was approved in 1959, and the school completed its move there in September 1960, providing the physical base for later expansion.
In July 1964 the school was reorganized as Taiwan Provincial Hualien Teachers' College (), marking its transition from a normal-school model to a higher teacher-training institution. Night courses introduced in 1965 enabled in-service teachers to continue their professional training, and a further reorganization in 1987 as National Hualien Teachers' College () created departments in primary education, language education, mathematics and science education, social education, and early childhood education. In 1988, Hua-Shih also established an extension division for elementary-school teachers and substitute teachers, which the university credits with helping relieve teacher shortages in eastern Taiwan.
Although the name National Hualien University of Education () was adopted only in 2005, the academic profile later associated with its College of Education was largely shaped during the 1990s and early 2000s. In August 1993, the institution established the Graduate Institute of Elementary Education (later renamed Graduate Institute of Compulsory Education), described by the university as the first graduate institute in the history of both Hua-Shih and later National Dong Hwa University.
This expansion of graduate education continued with the establishment of the Graduate Institute of Multicultural Education in 1996, as the first graduate institute in Taiwan devoted to multicultural education; Graduate Institute of Science Education in 1997; and eastern Taiwan's first master's program in special education teaching in 1999. Together, these units broadened the institution from a teacher-training school into a research-oriented centre for curriculum studies, science pedagogy, multicultural education, and inclusive education.
The College of Education was formally established on 1 August 2005, when National Hualien Teachers' College was upgraded to National Hualien University of Education. The new college symbolized the institution's transition from a single-purpose teacher-training environment to a broader educational setting oriented toward graduate study, research, and the cultivation of diverse education-related professions.
On 1 August 2008, National Hualien University of Education was merged into National Dong Hwa University, and the College of Education thereafter became part of the reorganized university under the name Hua-Shih College of Education in memory of its 60-year dedication to Taiwan's teacher's education. The merger placed the former Hua-Shih institution within a comprehensive university structure and shifted its setting from a purely teacher-training environment to a broader context for preparing a wider range of education-related professionals.
After 2008, Hua-Shih's departments and graduate institutes were progressively integrated. The former Department of Elementary Education, already reorganized as the Department of Curriculum Design and Human Potentials Development, was merged with the Graduate Institute of Elementary Education in 2008, the Graduate Institute of Education (Originally founded by NDHU College of Humanities and Social Sciences in 1994) in 2009, and the Graduate Institutes of Multicultural Education and Graduate Institutes of Science Education in 2010, creating a more consolidated academic structure within Hua-Shih. In September 2011, following a three-year post-merger integration process, Hua-Shih moved from the historic Meilun campus to the university's larger Shoufeng main campus.
As part of National Dong Hwa University, Hua-Shih College of Education retained its traditional strengths in teacher education while expanding its regional and academic reach. The legacy of its earlier innovations remained visible in areas such as special education, science education, and multicultural education, the latter of which was the first academic program in Taiwan founded specifically on the principle of multicultural education.
Hua-Shih College of Education has gone through over 80 years for Teacher education and Educational research since its foundation as Hualian Normal School. In 2026, Hua-Shih was ranked 4th in Taiwan (72th in Asia) for Education and Training by QS World University Rankings by Sublects, whose Academic Reputation was ranked 3rd in Taiwan (43th in Asia).
The Doctoral programs (PhD) at NDHU Hua-Shih College of Education are intended for students who plan scholarly careers involving research, teaching, and educational leadership. Major PhD programs include:
Hua-Shih offers Master of Education (M.Ed.) programs across multiple fields:
Hua-Shih offers Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) programs in five departments:
A professional post-baccalaureate program is also provided for early childhood education: