Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School


Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School is a public high school for boys located in Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. The school was established in 1898 during the early years of Japanese rule. Originally named "No. 1 Taihoku High School", it was the first public high school in Taiwanese history. JGHS requires the highest scores on the national senior high school entrance exams. Its female counterpart is the Taipei First Girls' High School.

History

Jianguo High School was the first public high school in Taiwan. Except for a short period following the Chinese Civil War, the school has been an all-boys high school. The red brick building was built in 1909 during Japanese rule and is considered one of Taipei's historical buildings. Originally called Taipei First Boys School, it was renamed in 1946 so that the two names would spell out the phrase "successfully establish a country", thus naming them Jianguo High School and Chenggong High School. During Japanese rule, because Jianguo was reserved primarily for the Japanese while Taipei Second Boys School allowed entry for the Taiwanese. The two schools developed a competitive nature that persists to this day.

Overview

Students attending the school are widely recognized for their distinctive khaki uniforms and green bookbags. Only the top 1% of scorers on the Basic Competence Test for Junior High School Students receive admission. The school has graduated over 100,000 students in its history. For many international science and math competitions, students from Jianguo are chosen to represent Taiwan. As of 2007, students from Jianguo High School have won 46 gold, 63 silver and 21 bronze medals in International Mathematical Olympiad, International Physics Olympiad, International Chemistry Olympiad, International Olympiad in Informatics, and International Biology Olympiad. Since 2000, students from Jianguo have received 11 medals in the IMO/IPhO/IChO/IBO/IOI/IESO per year on average.

Notable alumni