免學費政策與高等教育公平：美國和日本的經驗與啟示

Tuition-free Policy and Educational Equity: Experience and Lessons from the United States and Japan

追求公平向來是絕大多數國家高等教育政策的重要目標，就實際運用的政策工具觀之，則可發現近年已有部份國家陸續推動免學費政策。然而大學免學費就是解決公平問題的萬靈丹嗎？誰才是免費高等教育的最大受益者？高等教育普及化後，經濟弱勢學生真的有更多機會跨進大學名校的窄門嗎？這些問題都值得探究。基於此，本文透過參考先進國家大學免學費政策的推動經驗，試圖釐清免學費和教育公平之間的關係。為達研究目的，首先以美國和日本為對象，說明兩國近年大學免學費政策的內容，其次分析免學費政策推動後所引發的爭議和挑戰，再次就臺灣公私立大學收費情形與教育公平現況進行檢視，最後則綜合前述討論，針對臺灣高等教育公平問題提出因應策略供參考。

"The pursuit of equity has always been a focus in the implementation of higher education policies of most countries. Concerning policy tools, many countries have implemented tuition-free policies in universities in recent years. However, is the waiving of university tuition a panacea for addressing equity in higher education? Especially after higher education becomes more widespread, will economically disadvantaged students have more opportunities to pass through the narrow gates of the top institutions. These questions are of great interest. Therefore, this study attempts to elucidate the relationship between the tuition-free policies of universities and equity in higher education by considering debates on university tuition policies in the United States and Japan. To achieve this goal, we first present the recent changes in university tuition policies in the United States and Japan. Second, we analyze the controversies and challenges caused by these tuition waiver policies, and once again examine the tuition structure and equity at public and private universities in Taiwan. Finally, we propose the following two countermeasures for reference in response to current issues regarding educational equity in in Taiwan."