Menstruation, an ancient physiological phenomenon that exists across species. You might have heard about it; you might have experienced it; you might want to avoid it; you might even hate it. Behind the biology of menstruation, there exists diverse context and multiple aspects of period issues that affects the survival, development, and progress of human beings.
Since September 2021, National Taiwan University (NTU) launched the general education course “Period: Theory, Thoughts, and Actions,” (Period Course hereafter), the first of its kind among higher education institutions in Asia. Period Course is a joint effort from NTU's School of Medicine and D-school involving multidisciplinary faculty members and “With Red”, a non-profit organization in Taiwan promoting period awareness. It covers interdisciplinary knowledge starting from the biology and medical science of periods to period poverty. It closely integrates the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of Quality Education (Goal 4) and Partnership For The Goals (Goal 17) to provide real-world responses and actions to address period issues relating to other SDGs such as No Poverty (Goal 1), Good Health and Well-being (Goal 3), Gender Equality (Goal 5). The vision of Period Course is to bring up actions towards ending period stigmatization and inequality via the power of education so that everyone could Speak about menstruation and period issues; Learn about emerging menstruation and period-related knowledge; Listen to individuals within different context facing period issues; Support individuals facing period-related difficulties.
In this lecture, the design of the NTU Period Course will be revealed to demonstrate how interdisciplinary education could bring forward significant transformation on an issue that has been regarded as social taboo.