DengKong Elemetary School

School Introduction

The Origin of School Name

Dengkong Elementary School is located in Dengkong Li of Tamsui Town. In this area there is a national 3rd grade historical site--Dengkong Temple (also called Yinshan Temple or Tingzhou Assembly Hall (汀州會館). It’s one of the most well preserved historical temples in Taiwan. All of its building materials were transported from Tangshan in the Mainland. The worshipped deity is Dingkuan Ancient Buddhist Saint. Taiwanese pronunciation of “Dinguan” and “Dengkong” are the same, so the deity is also called Dengkong Buddhist Saint. At first, during the period of preliminary planning, the school name was Fongwen, following the naming of Jheng De Junior High School, that is, choosing one of the words from the names of then magistrate Lin Fong Zheng and town administrator Li Wen De and combining them to form the name. However, when the school name was to be decided, all local gentries invited to the naming discussion considered that it was more proper to apply the name of the school district, Dengkong Li, as the school name. Thus, the final decision of school name is “Dengkong Elementary School.”

School Anthem

Melodic, dulcet, and lively are features of Dengkong’s anthem. For all the members of Dengkong, living along the foot of Guanyin Mountain , the easy-read lyrics (written by the first principal Wang Zhong Hsin) and simple, flowing melody (composed by professor Yang Zhao Zhen) make it fun to sing. With this lovely song, one could never forget Tamsui, Dengkong and one’s alma mater.

The Meaning of School Emblem

Emblem is a sign of symbolic meaning, such as a national emblem symbolizing a country and a school emblem symbolizing a school. Dengkong’s school emblem was designed and selected through a process, in which a call for emblem designs was issued to the Fine Art and Crafts Education Department of Hsinchu Teachers College. Principal Wang selected among many design drafts and suggested adjustment. Director Zhang Bao Tsuan completed the final drafting. With the Chinese characters being installed on it, the school emblem was made complete.

On its green background, Dengkong’s emblem has 5 white circles projecting toward the center. The underpart is the Chinese characters of 鄧公 (Dengkong) in orange color. The whole picture looks like a booming tree, hinting the growth and strengthening of young buds and the mission of gardeners in which all the teachers assiduously, warm-heartedly engage themselves.

Geography

Dengkong Elementary School is located near Tamsui River. Its campus covers 23,474 km2. Established since 1989 the school is already 13 years old.

Thanks to Denkong’s nearness to the estuary of Tamsui River, the natural environment has provided teachers and students chances to observe biological diversity and ecological scenes, with the aid of Mangrove Conservation Area and Mangrove Swamp Exhibition Center. The practical experience and contact with nature promote Dengkong’s environmental education. Besides, cultural and historical legacies are also rich in nearby areas. Tamsui has seen a hundred years of cultural development and community transformation, and time has enriched its cultural landscape. Shell Warehouse(殼牌倉庫) and historical streets near the river estuary not only went down through ages but also became renewed. They keep close relationship with communities and schools. Danshui MRT station is only 400 meters away from Dengkong, which makes traffic easy. The academically reputable Tamkang University is also a neighbor of Dengkong, distanced only 500 meters away. Another historical site in the neighborhood is Yinshan Temple, distanced only 200 meters away. It has become students’ resource to learn regional history and culture, and a perfect place for outdoor educational activities. All of these carry positive cultural influence for Dengkong’s teachers and students.

Geography

Dengkong Elementary School is located near Tamsui River. Its campus covers 23,474 km2. Established since 1989 the school is already 13 years old.

Thanks to Denkong’s nearness to the estuary of Tamsui River, the natural environment has provided teachers and students chances to observe biological diversity and ecological scenes, with the aid of Mangrove Conservation Area and Mangrove Swamp Exhibition Center. The practical experience and contact with nature promote Dengkong’s environmental education. Besides, cultural and historical legacies are also rich in nearby areas. Tamsui has seen a hundred years of cultural development and community transformation, and time has enriched its cultural landscape. Shell Warehouse(殼牌倉庫) and historical streets near the river estuary not only went down through ages but also became renewed. They keep close relationship with communities and schools. Danshui MRT station is only 400 meters away from Dengkong, which makes traffic easy. The academically reputable Tamkang University is also a neighbor of Dengkong, distanced only 500 meters away. Another historical site in the neighborhood is Yinshan Temple, distanced only 200 meters away. It has become students’ resource to learn regional history and culture, and a perfect place for outdoor educational activities. All of these carry positive cultural influence for Dengkong’s teachers and students.

Past Events

1988：

On the site where FongwenElemantarySchool was appointed to be built, according to Tamsui urban plan, the 12th elementary school of the town is established to solve the educational problem in Tamsui.

August 1 1989：

Education Department of Taiwan Provence Government issued permit for the official establishment of “Dengkong Elementary School of Tamsui Town in New Taipei County.” WANG,ZHONG-HSIN, (王忠信校長) became the appointed principal.(the 1th principal.)

January 13 1990：

The ceremony for construction of the new school dormitory was held.

August 1991：

Dengkong was officially opened for students’ enrolling. On August 29, Dengkong proceeded students’ transference from TamsuiElementary School. In the academic year 1991, classes were formally held.