Network of Educational Television

Network of Educational Television

Country	Republic of China
Broadcast area	Taiwan
Headquarters	Taipei, Taiwan
Programming
Picture format	4:3 SDTV monochrome
Ownership
Owner	National Educational Archives (1962–1971) Chinese Television System (1971–present)
History
Launched	February 14, 1962
Closed	June 30, 1971
Availability
Terrestrial
VHF (Taipei)	Channel 11[1]

The Network of Educational Television (Chinese: 教育電視廣播電台, abbreviated as NETV) was the first television station in Taiwan under the National Education Archives of the Ministry of Education of the Republic of China. It was also a member of the Taiwan Public Radio and Television Group and the predecessor of China Television Corporation (CTV).

Educational Television was an experimental station with a limited viewing area, so it is not considered Taiwan's first television station by most histories of Taiwanese television. Strictly speaking, NETV was Taiwan's first non-commercial, purely educational experimental television station. It was later succeeded by the current CTS Main Channel.

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In 1956, during his tenure as Minister of Education, Zhang Qiyun initiated the establishment of an educational television station.

In 1958, a significant development occurred when Liu Xianyun, Director of the National Educational Archives, proposed using the seventh and eighth floors of a building in Taipei City to house the television station.

In August 1961, Minister of Education Huang Jilu proposed the establishment of an educational television station at the Yangmingshan Education Conference.^[2] The conference recommended that the station be established as soon as possible and requested the Executive Yuan to approve the plan for its construction.^[3]

November 1961 marked a crucial turning point when the Ministry of Education partnered with the Institute of Electronic Engineering at National Chiao Tung University to establish the television station. In the same month, as part of the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Society of Engineers,^[4] Taiwan's first experimental TV station was completed.^{[citation needed]} However, the installation process faced some challenges, including an incident in Hsinchu that caused a delay. Despite this, by 6 November 1961, preparations for installation and trial broadcasts were successfully completed.^{[citation needed]}

In December 1961, the Ministry of Education outlined a detailed phased development plan for the educational television station. Once approved by the Executive Yuan, the National Education Archives began preparations for its establishment.

On 1 January 1962, the Educational Television Preparatory Office was inaugurated. Key figures involved in this important phase included Liu Xianyun, Yu Runsheng, Wang Zhiheng, Li Hengyue, Li Baohe, Shen Xubu, Song Naihan, Yu Zuzhen, Yuan Jinxian, Zhang Naiwei, Fu Minzhong, Zhao Guanxian, Deng Changguo, and Liu Haochun.^[3] Consultants who played a vital role included Liu Jiajun, Lai Shunsheng, Long Mingdeng, Bu Lihui, Yin Zhiqiang, Wang Fuzhou, Li Jie, Li Ximou, Shen Jianhong, Zhou Tiangu, Zhou Hongtao, and Xu Nai. During this period, the Institute of Electronic Engineering at National Chiao Tung University managed the engineering department, while the private China Television Engineering Research Institute oversaw the program department. Technical support was provided by the Kuang-Chi Cultural and Educational Audiovisual Program Service Company. Funding was allocated by the Executive Yuan's US Aid Utilization Committee and the National Science Committee for Long-term Development.^[5]

As a significant step, on 14 February 1962, the Fourth National Education Conference was convened at the National Museum of Art.^[3] It marked the launch of the educational television and radio experimental station, which used a 100-watt television transmitter built by teachers and students at the Institute of Electronic Engineering at National Chiao Tung University. This experimental station covered approximately 10 kilometers^[3] and operated on channel 3. Its program schedule focused on comprehensiveness and enjoyment, with the primary objective of providing social education, while experimental teaching programs made up only 30%.

On 1 December 1963, the Educational Television and Broadcasting Experimental Station underwent a significant transformation. It was renamed the Network of Educational Television and upgraded to a 1000-watt television transmitter, once again built by the Institute of Electronic Engineering at National Chiao Tung University. The transmitting station was relocated to Yuanshan Mountain in Taipei City, extending its coverage to approximately 50 kilometers. The viewing areas included Yingge Town, Tamsui Town, Yangmingshan, Xizhi Town, Xindian Town, and Muzha, aiming to improve both audio and video clarity. Plans were also underway to establish eight additional relay stations across Taiwan, as well as one branch station each in Hualien County and Taitung County. Each relay station would be equipped with relay equipment to broadcast the main station's programs, while each branch station would use video equipment to relay these programs.

From 14 February 1962 to 30 June 1962, the Educational Television and Radio Experimental Station aired a two-hour program daily, starting at 19:30 and ending at 21:30. On 1 July 1962, the station expanded its daily programming to three hours, with broadcasts beginning at 19:00 and concluding at 22:00. Later, adjustments were made to accommodate an increase in school teaching experimental programs. As a result, NETV began airing teaching experimental programs from 13:30 to 14:30 daily, and general programs from 19:00 to 21:00.

In the spring of 1963, further advancements were made when NETV received subsidies from the National Science Committee for Long-term Development. It launched an experimental research project on television teaching in collaboration with National Chengchi University. Six elementary schools in Taipei City were selected for the experiment, including Dongmen Elementary School,^[6] Fuxing Elementary School,^[7] Beijing Normal University Affiliated Elementary School, Girls' Elementary School, the primary school affiliated with the Normal University, the National Language Elementary School, and the Political Science University Elementary School. As a result, the educational television broadcast experimental station began airing daily programs from Monday to Saturday at 12:50. Additionally, broadcasts were scheduled for 10:00 p.m., 12:50, and 16:40 every Sunday, following the introduction of additional TV series.^[8]

In the late 1960s, specifically in 1968, a proposal from Wang Sheng, Deputy Director of the General Political Operations Department of the Ministry of National Defense, paved the way for the creation of a third TV station. This led to negotiations between the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Education, which ultimately resulted in an agreement.^[8] On 6 December 1968, Minister of Defense Chiang Ching-kuo and Minister of Education Yan Zhenxing jointly approved the expansion of the educational television station into China Television. This decision was driven by several key factors:

1. The extension of the Republic of China's national education to nine years highlighted the issue of out-of-school youth. The Ministry of Education believed that by establishing a third TV station and creating a television network, it could effectively educate out-of-school youth through an air school.^[5]
2. The Republic of China's National Army had successfully implemented various educational and recreational initiatives, such as patriotic education, in-camp remedial education, reserve soldier education, and employment guidance for retired officers and soldiers. However, due to the dispersed locations of military units, finding teachers was challenging. Therefore, using television to unify teaching was seen as an effective solution.
3. The limited equipment and funds of the educational television and radio stations made it necessary to adapt and evolve in order to fulfill their mission effectively.^[9]

On 16 February 1970, the Executive Yuan made the momentous decision to invest NT$100 million in expanding the educational television and radio station into the China Culture Television Corporation, which was later renamed the Chinese Television System (CTS). In May 1970, during the 117th Executive Yuan meeting, the establishment of China Television Station^[10] received official approval. Finally, on 31 January 1971, CTS was officially launched. With the conclusion of the fifty-ninth school year on 30 June 1971, the educational television and radio station became part of history.

A typical NETV schedule from Monday to Saturday, starting 1 October 1968:^[8]

The Sunday schedule was as follows:^[8]