Issues in Malaysian Education

Due to the multiracial composition of the population of Malaysia, many somewhat controversial issues have cropped up in Malaysian education.

Gender issues and education

In 2004 the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) representative Dr. Richard Leete stated that Malaysia's ranking in the UNDP gender index was not "as high as it should be". His exact quote was "I don't know Malaysia's present ranking (in the UNDP's gender index) offhand but I know it is not as high as it should be because of this unusual problem. Boys are dropping out of secondary and tertiary education, with females outnumbering the males with a high margin". Leete seemed to indicate this was a uniquely Malaysian situation.

However, former Higher Education Minister Datuk Dr Shafie Salleh replied that "It happens in other countries too. It's a global phenomena". He then quoted statistics that for the 2004 session, enrolments of boys in all Malaysian polytechnics stood at 34,324 as against 24,601 for girls. For the enrolments in the 34 community colleges 5,041 were boys and 3,010 were girls. Shafie said of the 45,856 places offered at the public higher learning institutes 15,796 places were given to boys and 30,060 to girls. In virtually all developed countries that both females and males enter university in approximately equal ratios, thus the 2:1 ratio in Malaysia is seen as rather peculiar when placed in a global context.

Malaysian polytechnics and community colleges are not degree producing institutions and none have post-graduate programmes. Most are vocational or technical institutions.

This imbalance is corrected once the respective genders leave the educational system. Associate Professor in Universiti Utara Malaysia, Nik Kamariah Nik Mat and Puan Filzah Md Isa stated that "Only about five percent of women are working in management and professional positions in this country" [ [http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news.php?id=99557 Phantom Women Graduates: Where are They?] ] .

Language issues

The issue of language and schools is a key issue for many political groups in Malaysia. UMNO championed the cause of Malay usage in schools but private schools using the Chinese and Tamil language are allowed. These schools are referred to as "vernacular schools" as opposed to the "government schools" where Malay is the medium of instruction. Officially, Chinese- and Tamil-medium schools are called national-type schools (sekolah jenis kebangsaan) whereas Malay-medium schools are known as national schools (sekolah kebangsaan). Up until 1981 in Peninsular Malaysia (and some years later in Sarawak), there were also English-medium schools, and these would have also come under the label ‘national-type schools’. Many well-known schools in the urban areas would have been former English-medium schools, including - in Kuala Lumpur - Bukit Bintang Girls’ School, Bukit Nanas Convent, Methodist Boys’ School, Methodist Girls’ School, Peel Road Convent, Pudu English Secondary School, St John’s Institution, St Mary’s School and Victoria Institution. The majority of these schools were set up by Christian (Catholic, Methodist, Anglican, Brethren) missions. This is also true of schools in Ipoh, Malacca, Penang, Petaling Jaya and Seremban.

Following the severe race riots in Kuala Lumpur in May 1969, English-medium schools were phased out from January 1970, so that by 1982 these became Malay-medium schools (‘national schools’).

The existence of vernacular schools is used by non-Malays components of the ruling Barisan Nasional to indicate that their culture and identity have not been infringed upon by the Malay people. This is often a key issue as it is considered important by many. Dong Jiao Zhong (the association of Chinese vernacular school boards and teachers) and other such organisations still shape much of the views of the Chinese educated community, which is a key electoral constituency.

In 2002, the government announced that from 2003 onwards, the teaching of Science and Mathematics would be done in English, in order to ensure that Malaysia will not be left behind in a world that was rapidly becoming globalised. This paved the way for the establishment of mixed-medium education.

In 2004, the prime minister announced that only two percent of Chinese students attended government schools. Opposition figure, Lim Guan Eng also came out in saying that 60,000 non-Chinese students attended Chinese vernacular schools.

The next day, the prime minister made a statement in a written reply to a parliamentary question by Dr Tan Kee Kwong (another representative from the same coalition) that the policy of allowing vernacular schools may have to be re-examined. His specific statement was "various measures have to be taken to tackle this issue including a review of the education system which allows for different streams to be implemented in this country" [ [http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/30623 PM sends ‘shockwaves’ on education reforms ] ] . He was speaking on the issue of racial polarisation in schools.

Dr Wee Ka Siong of MCA (the main Chinese component party in the ruling coalition of Barisan Nasional) responded that it was shocking and "We can't draw a conclusion to say that the government is going to abolish the vernacular schools although (the statement) was hinting at that, because the premier said that the government will review the system".

Chong Eng deputy secretary-general of the DAP (opposition party) stated "We unite as citizens, we don't betray the country, we defend the sovereignty of the country and all these have nothing to do with what school we came from".

On April 2005, in an attempt to make national schools more competitive and the first choice of non-Malay students, the government announced that all national schools will begin teaching Chinese and Tamil, not as mother tongue course but as elective course.

Racial Quotas in Universities

In 2004, a new Ministry - the Ministry of Higher Education - was formed. The then minister, Dr. Shafie Salleh, stated at the United Malays National Organisation 2004 general assembly, "As the Higher Education Minister, I will ensure the quota of Malay students' entry into universities is always higher" [ [http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news.php?id=94883 Malaysian National News Agency :: BERNAMA ] ] .

Some, such as prominent opposition figure Lim Guan Eng, have alleged that this quote may be taken out of context, stating that Shafie was instead guaranteeing that the number of Bumiputra students admitted to public universities would increase every year [ [http://dapmalaysia.org/english/lge/lge011.htm Will qualified non-bumi students be sacrificed by Shafie for his defeat in UMNO? ] ] . He has also stated that "Education is looked at from a racial perspective and not on the basis of educational needs."

Racial quotas, a highly politicised and controversial issue in Malaysia, exist for university admission. In 2002 the government announced a reduction of reliance on racial quotas, instead leaning more towards meritocracy. However, in 2004, 128 students who obtained 5As in the STPM (the best possible grade for university application) were denied their first choice of course which was medicine. This is part of an ongoing issue, where the only thing these students had in common was that they were non-Malay or non-Bumiputra. All students managed to successfully gain offers to private institutions but some did not pursue a medical education due to lack of funds and financial support.

Racial Polarisation in Schools

Due to the existence of vernacular schools, there exist worries that students are not interacting enough with those of other races. In an interview, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Rais Yatim said that "Instead of sharing a common experience, we see polarisation of the races. No shared experience. This because there are Chinese schools and Tamil schools. And Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) today is not what was envisaged long ago as a place our children learn and grow up together." When asked why this was so, Rais stated that in national schools, there is " [t] oo much religion, too much Islam. They became frightened. That is the big impediment to the races studying together under one roof." He then recommended "Have religious classes by all means. But keep away Islam from other aspects of life in the school. No doa (Muslim prayers) at the assembly, no doa in the classroom except during religious classes."

Sociologist Dr Syed Farid Alatas pointed out "We do not live according to the three principles for harmonious relations – recognising the multi-cultural origins of civilisation, inter-religious encounters and showing respect and understanding the point of the other," "We have little appreciation for each other’s religion and culture." "Our education system does not inculcate these attitudes in us but instead tends to polarise us. We have little appreciation for each other’s religion and culture. In China, there is a strong interaction between Islam and Chinese culture." He also said "Dialogue is a matter of national integration but the Malaysian education system does not inculcate the three pre-requisites for inter-religious cooperation and relations, " [http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/7/5/nation/21747726&sec=nation]

The tuition phenomenon

Initially, tuition was introduced as support classes for weaker students. Tuition itself does not expand on the students' knowledge, but builds on what the student is supposed to know. However, due to the exam-orientated culture in Malaysia, good students who do not require support (usually students from urban areas) also go for tuition. The intention is to boost their grades, however, it is unknown whether this has any effect as there have been students which excel even without tuition classes [ [http://www.thestar.com.my/services/printerfriendly.asp%3Ffile%3D/2005/11/13/nation/12583937.asp%26sec%3Dnation&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1 Teenager writes first science book] ] . Due to this, tuition centres have become prevalent in the urban areas of Malaysia. These tuition centres generally charge highly for their services. In December 24 2006, The New Straits Times reported that the tuition industry had risen to 4 billion MYR [ [http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Wednesday/Letters/20051228092503/Article/indexb_html&hl=en&gl=uk&ct=clnk&cd=2&client=firefox-a] ] .

Teachers who teach tuition classes are usually school teachers looking for a source of supplementary income. However, since tuition centres are private companies compared to government schools, the pay is generally better Fact|date=April 2008. This has the effect of making some school teachers focus less on their teaching in school, and more on teaching in tuition classes. Indeed, some teachers insist that students in their school classes go to their tuition classes in order to be taught the syllabus completely. Fact|date=April 2008

String of As

On July 2008, Regent of Perak Raja Nazrin Shah said that getting a string of As is meaningless if students fail to understand, appreciate and practice good values, and describing that excellent results as mere pakaian luaran (external appearance), there would be uneven development of human capital if students failed to inculcate good morals. "This will lead to society and the country to suffer". He also said that people with good moral values always hold firm to life principles especially in defending truth and justice. Students should be taught not to lie or rely on leaked examination papers just to obtain higher grades. He noted that while positions and posts could give one power, one would be judged by the people. "There are many people who obtained positions and posts but there are not many who die with a good name" [http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/7/13/nation/21813611&sec=nation]

ee also

* Obscurantism

References

See also

*Education in Malaysia