Archive for category Education
Improve Our Schools, Not Tinker With Examinations
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, Education on Monday, 6 September 2010
In about two weeks nearly half a million Malaysian school children will be sitting for their UPSR, the national examination taken at the end of Year Six. Today there is raging debate on abolishing this as well as the PMR (taken at Year Nine) examination. A decision is expected within weeks. There is however, minimal discussion on the timing of these examinations, administered as they are so early in the school year.
This year UPSR will be on September 20th, with PMR two weeks later. From then till the year-end holidays in late November, there will be no effective teaching or learning at these schools. With the examinations out of the way, the entire school – students and staff – will already be in holiday mode. The staff will effectively be makan gaji buta (paid but not working).
Come January when these students begin their classes, they would have already suffered through considerable attrition in their learning skills as a result of the three-month hiatus. The first few weeks if not months would be diverted to re-learning lessons of the preceding grade.
Read the rest of this entry »
Why Police investigating Wee Meng Chee for sedition when there is nothing seditious in his latest 3-minute rap against the Kulai secondary school principal for making racist slurs against students?
It has been reported that the police went to the Muar house of young Malaysian rapper Wee Meng Chee 15 minutes before midnight on the eve of the 53rd National Day, leading to the following posting on Wee’s Facebook:
“3 POLICE CARS FINALLY CAME TO MY MUAR HOME TO ARREST ME***** this happened 15 minutes before our 53rd National Day Celebration, YES, I’m still here but for how long more, I don’t know … my beloved MALAYSIA, where is our justice system?! (THIS IS NOT A JOKE)”.
This message has attracted more than 4,500 comments in 15 hours.
Johor Criminal Investigation Department chief Datuk Amer Awal has denied any police plan to arrest Wee, saying that they are still investigating Wee’s case.
The Federal CID chief Datuk Seri Bakri Zinin has however confirmed that Wee was being investigated under the Sedition Act
The question is why the Police is investigating Wee for sedition when there is nothing seditious in his latest 3-minute rap against the Kulai secondary school principal for making racist slurs against students while the school principal is still scot-free for her seditious racism? Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s eight-year consecutive omission from World’s Top 500 Universities Ranking 2010
For the eighth year in succession, Malaysia has been left out of the World’s Top 500 Universities ranking in the Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s “Academic Ranking of World Universities ARWU 2010” released yesterday.
This is the latest proof that the long-talked about higher education reform based on meritocracy and academic excellence is not making much headway.
It underlines the economic and nation-building crisis confronting Malaysia and the warning of the New Economic Model (NEM) that the “human capital situation in Malaysia is reaching a critical stage” because “We are not developing talent and what we have is leaving”.
Read the rest of this entry »
Enough is enough of Little Napoleons
By Thomas Lee
It surely comes as a big surprise that less than two weeks after the cabinet lifted the iniquitous illegal curb on non-Muslim religious clubs and societies that a Little Napoleon school head should unilaterally reject the application to set up a Chinese society in his school.
The Sin Chew Daily reported that parents of a school in Petaling Jaya are upset that its school head has rejected the application to set up a Chinese society in school.
A parent was quoted by the Sin Chew Daily that he had been fighting for the establishment of a Chinese society in his son’s school since February this year, but the school head did not give his approval even though there are Chinese language teachers willing to supervise the proposed society.
The Education Ministry has on 4 August 2010 revoked a decade-old directive compelling those who want to form non-Muslim clubs or societies in schools to first obtain its permission.
The federal government decision to revoke the directive came about following the public disclosure of several sham treatments of non-Muslim religious clubs and societies in several schools.
Read the rest of this entry »
Is this Muhyiddin’s 1Malaysia?
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Education, Muhyiddin Yassin on Wednesday, 4 August 2010
Pakatan elected reps kept out of S’gor schools
Christine Chan
Malaysiakini
Aug 4, 10
A circular that allows specified BN leaders to attend events organised by Selangor schools but keeps out those from Pakatan Rakyat, has been criticised as an example of double standards.
The circular dated Feb 16, 2009 states that the education minister has appointed 57 leaders from Selangor Umno, MCA, MIC and Gerakan to represent him at these events in the state.
Signed by the principal secretary to the minister, the circular was sent to the director of the Selangor Education Department.
It also states that the BN representatives have each been issued a certificate of appointment, copies of which were attached to the circular with a full list of names and posts held in the respective political parties.
When contacted, Hannah Yeoh, the DAP state assemblyperson for Subang Jaya said that – by implication – school authorities have to get the minister’s permission to invite Pakatan representatives.
“(When the schools ask for permission), it is never given,” she claimed. Read the rest of this entry »
Discipline the Little Napoleans
Posted by Kit in Education, nation building, Religion on Monday, 26 July 2010
By Thomas Lee
MySinchew
26.7.10
It is indeed a relief that Deputy Prime Minister cum Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has given an assurance that non-Mulsim religious clubs or societies are not banned in schools.
Muhyiddin has pledged that school clubs and societies related to non-Muslim activities that have been in operation for decades need not be disbanded.
He said the Education Ministry has not issued any directive for such clubs or societies to close.
If such is the case, then disciplinary action must be taken against the officials of the Selangor Education Department and certain school heads who have been flexing their muscles to curb religious activities by the non-Muslim students in the schools.
The recent case of the Klang High School being ordered to close its non-Muslim religious clubs is not an isolate case. Read the rest of this entry »
Scrap the 10-yr-old Education Ministry circular restricting formation of non-Muslim religious societies in schools – against 1Malaysia and NEM to educate a critical and creative generation of Malaysians
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Education, nation building on Monday, 26 July 2010
The 10-year-old Education Ministry circular restricting the formation of non-Muslim religious societies in schools is the best example of Little Napoleons running riot in the civil service working against the national interests of educating a critical and creative generation of Malaysians and harnessing the multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural assets of plural Malaysia.
What is the use of boasting about Malaysia as a model of ethnic, cultural, religious and biological diversity and Malaysia’s rich and unique cultural heritage when restrictions continue to be in place affecting the formation of non-Muslim societies in schools?
The Cabinet on Wednesday should scrap the 10-year-old Education Ministry circular restricting the formation of non-Muslim religious societies in schools as it is against Prime Minister’s 1Malaysia slogan and policy and the New Economic Model objective to educate a critical, creative and innovative generation of Malaysians.
The Education Ministry circular dated 16th December 2000 stated that non-Muslim religious societies formed before 2000 need not have to be registered but remain as status quo. Those set up from 2000 onwards need approval by the registrar, which is the state education department director.
For ten years, the circular was used by Biro Tatanegara-trained Little Napoleons in the Education Ministry to discourage, hamper or downright disallow the formation of non-Muslim religious societies. Read the rest of this entry »
Let’s make Malaysia Boleh a reality
By Lim Mun Fah | The Malaysian Insider
I was away from the country when the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP) was unveiled. On my return, I took some time to study the document.
At the first look, the 10MP seems like an excellently packaged master plan with an ambitious magnificent vision for the nation.
An in-depth study of the documents, however, uncovered some fundamental flaws, the most glaring, perhaps, is the conspicuous retention and reiteration of certain racially exclusive policies and programmes.
Another unfortunate weakness is surely the lack of a determined and expeditious practical attempt to liberalise and promote a more open education environment, particularly for Chinese education.
The proposed move to gradually end the overseas scholarship scheme is a regrettable myopic policy, lacking foresight and pragmatic insight.
Read the rest of this entry »
The Colour of Scholarships
By Azira Aziz
Considering the function of academic scholarships and thereto just who should be entitled to scholarships.
When Najib proposed to open scholarship opportunities to all top scorers, particularly 9A’s and above, I saluted the move and thought nothing more of the matter. A politician buckling to popular tit-bits is nothing new and at least he’s heading in the right direction. However, it irked me as the usual Malay-rights groups, the Perkasa-led Malay Consultative Council (MPM) responded to it with “constructive” criticisms, claiming that it should reflect 67% composition of the Malay community in Malaysia.
My response to this is this: firstly, Professor Datuk Dr Kamarudin Kachar, not all 67% are Malaysian Malays. Some of them are actually assimilated Indonesians whose parents holds red MyKads. Many Malaysians are denied opportunities on the fallacy that they are of the wrong ethnicity and that they are less likely to be “loyal” to Malaysia. Instead, as long as you are a “Malay,” “imported” or not, you are entitled to a scholarship, and admittance to heavily subsidised boarding schools.
Read the rest of this entry »
Why have non-muslims religious societies in Klang High School been dissolved?
MCCBCHST MEDIA STATEMENT
The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism & Taoism (MCCBCHST) notes the report on page 8 of The Sun (12 July 2010) that in Klang High School “… the Kelab Agama Hindu, Kelab Agama Buddha and the Christian Union have to be dissolved immediately” and that an announcement to this effect was made at the school assembly last week.”
There are very serious implications of such an action and therefore MCCBCHST seeks immediate confirmation from the Selangor Education Department whether this has indeed transpired and if so, a prompt explanation should be given to parents and the Malaysian public at large as to the reason/s for such a directive. If in fact such a directive had indeed been given, MCCBCHST would like to express its disappointment that there was no prior consultation with it over such a serious matter as this.
Owing to the gravity of such an issue, the Ministry of Education too cannot remain silent.
Read the rest of this entry »
Some thoughts/Q regarding JPA scholarship policy
by Mary Mag
Letters
Just wanted to share some of my thoughts/questions regarding the JPA scholarships policy.
I believe it is important to recognize and reward merit and tap young potential , so it is important to continue with ‘merit scholarships’.
But the government must clearly differentiate between ‘merit scholarships’ (that must be based solely on merit criteria) and others based on ethnic or socio-economic considerations.
At the moment, there is no clear demarcation and there is still a lack of transparency regarding many aspects. As taxpayers, we have the right to know all the information.
Regarding JPA overseas scholarships for SPM high achievers, the practice now is to send them to UiTM or slelected private colleges for ‘preparatory/foundation’ courses. A few questions arise:
Read the rest of this entry »
Making Monsters Out Of Our Students – The “Lucifer Effect” On Our Campuses
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, Crime, Education on Monday, 5 July 2010
By M. Bakri Musa
I commend Defense Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for his swift action in reassigning the commandant of the Royal Military College (RMC) over the death of one of its students, Naim Mustaqim, during a ragging incident. Earlier, the college had expelled the alleged abusers. Likewise, I praise Higher Education Minister Khaled Nordin in issuing a stern warning of his “zero tolerance” for ragging in our public universities.
Ragging is now entrenched in our universities and residential schools, creating monsters out of these students, the “Lucifer Effect” being operative (more on that later). The ensuing scars and damages are consequential, both physical and psychological. A few like Naim get killed.
Ragging is one of those unsavory “traditions” of the colonial British that Third World natives have picked up with a vengeance. We denigrate everything associated with the colonials but somehow when it comes to ragging, we have no qualms in quickly adopting it. We have bested the Indians and Sri Lankans in the savagery of our hazing rituals.
Read the rest of this entry »
DAP: MP allocations better spent on scholarships
Posted by Kit in DAP, Education, Finance, Good Governance on Saturday, 3 July 2010
Malaysiakini
Humayun Kabir
Jul 3, 10
The DAP has slammed the additional project allocations to parliamentary constituencies totalling RM111 million, saying the money would be better spent on more scholarships to deserving students, our future assets.
Party supremo Lim Kit Siang lashed out at the BN government for squandering precious public funds for their personal political agenda instead of helping needy students.
He said more non-Malay students who deserve scholarships are not getting the opportunities, describing Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s 1Malaysia policy as hypocritical.
Lim praised party national vice chief M Kula Segaran – who is helping Indians secure Public Services Department (PSD) scholarships – for championing the rights of his community. Read the rest of this entry »
First, DPM Muhyiddin should tell us what is going wrong in our education system?
by N K Khoo
Many Malaysia generations are made guinea pigs by our flip-flopping
education policies after independence such as teaching medium from
English to Malay, 3M, bahasa Malaysia to bahasa Melayu, teaching maths
and science in English and vice versa, SRP to UPSR, grading system,
etc.
The trend is when a new education minister clinches to this important
post, they will propose new policies hastily. No doubt change is
constant for us to keep abreast the outside world. But we have to know
the problem first before proposing a change of policy or solution.
I have a question to DPM Muhyiddin and his Education Ministry, what
are the actual problems in our education system before you simply
throw a proposal (a bomb!) to public members. Read the rest of this entry »
Two parliamentary questions on Najib’s three strategic initiatives to transform Malaysia but which have run aground
In the forthcoming parliamentary meeting beginning on Monday, I have given notice to pose two questions to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak on his three strategic initiatives to transform Malaysia but which have run aground because of strong opposition mostly from Umno and its outsourced organizations like Perkasa.
These three initiatives of Najib are his three strategic pillars which make up his roadmap to achieving Vision 2020 – an high-income advanced nation with inclusiveness and sustainability by 2020:
-
1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now;
-
Government Transformation Programme; and
-
New Economic Model.
My two questions are to ask the Prime Minister:
-
how many Ministers in his Cabinet, naming them, regard himself/herself as Malaysian first, race second in keeping with 1Malaysia policy; and
Educational absurdity in Hulu Selangor
Posted by Kit in Azly Rahman, Education, Election, Najib Razak on Thursday, 27 May 2010
by Azly Rahman
“If we win this by-election, you can come to Kuala Lumpur the next day to look for me. I will write a personal letter to approve the money and it will be transferred to the school board’s account. If we lose, don’t have to come.” – Najib Abdul Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia
If these words quoted in Lim Kit Siang’s blog were uttered and they were true, we have reached the highest level of idiocy in charting the future of Malaysian education. How much shame must we parade in our desperation to win this or that election that is a theater of the absurd anyway?
The essential question is, how dare we use education – the only means for social and economic progress for ALL races – to bribe voters!
We hear all too often now that education is being prostitutionalized in the name of political gains. That gentle profession and a noble enterprise, from the Latin educare (drawing out the potentials) have been overused in election campaigns. From rice to roads, credit cards to cruises, youth facilities to new universities – all these have been used as political baits throughout our history. Read the rest of this entry »
Quality, Quantity, and Equity in Malaysian Education #3
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, Education on Tuesday, 25 May 2010
M. Bakri Musa
May 23rd, 2010
[Last of Three Parts]
[Part One discusses the crucial role of workers’ cognitive abilities (language skills, mathematical competency, and science literacy) rather than years of formal schooling in determining and contributing to a country’s economic development. The second part addresses issues of quality, quantity and equity in Malaysian education. In this last part, I recap the experiences elsewhere and the lessons we could usefully learn.]
Clinical Trials in Educational Initiatives
In addressing the issue of equity, we should not be content only with providing what we perceive to be “equal opportunities.” For if the results do not improve equity despite our intervention, then we must have the humility to examine our premise and be prepared to accept that what we thought of as “equal opportunities” are anything but that.
We may think that by making schools “free” we have leveled the playing friend and provided for “equal opportunity,” but if the results do not improve, then we must be prepared to re-examine our premise. It could be that the major constraint is not tuition fees but transportation and other costs. That was certainly the case when I was growing up. Thus to effectively level the playing field we should provide for transportation, especially for those living far away. American schools provide not only free transportation but also textbooks, another major cost item in education. For children of the poor, these schools also provide hot meals. Thus providing a truly “equal opportunity” entails spending more on the poor.
In educating children, we have to be aware of the Matthew effect, or accumulated advantage. This refers to the biblical verse, “For those who have, more will be given … ” (Matthew 25:29). When we provide “equal opportunity” to children on their first day of school, those who are already prepared (as having been to preschool or have parents with superior education) will gain considerably more than those who are not so advantaged, and this gap only widens with time. To effectively overcome this entails giving more to the disadvantaged, for if you continue with your “equal opportunity” you are effectively giving less to the disadvantaged.
The other pertinent observation is that the earlier this added help is given, the cheaper and more effective it would be. Meaning, it would be much cheaper and more effective to give extra help at the preschool than at first year in school; at primary than at secondary school, and at school than at university. James Heckman, the 2000 Nobel Laureate in Economics, have written persuasively on the economic advantages of these early interventions, quite apart from the moral arguments. Read the rest of this entry »
Call on Najib to suspend UUCA for five years to demonstrate he has the political will to implement NEM priority to “retain and attract talent”
Congratulations to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak that Malaysia has broken into the top 10 list of the world’s most competitive countries, taking the 10th spot on the Switzerland-based IMD’s World Competitiveness Yearbook for 2010 – up from 18th placing last year.
Malaysia, however, has still a long way to go if we are to break away from the decade-long economic stagnation, escape from the middle-income trap and take our rightful place in the international community of nations, catching up with nations which have overtaken us economically although we were ahead of them when we achieved Merdeka 53 years ago – like South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
For a start, has the Najib premiership the political will to break the logjam of resistance by vested groups represented by former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and various interest groups which have been outsourced by Umno to champion rightwing, extremist and racist views like Perkasa and Gertak?
As a test whether Najib has the political leadership and will to implement New Economic Model (NEM) reforms, I call on him to suspend for five years the Universities and University Colleges Act which acts like a suffocating blanket stifling creativity, innovation and excellence among university lecturers and students, reducing the public universities into second class universities not only in the world but also in the country.
Read the rest of this entry »
Quality, Quantity, and Equity in Malaysian Education #2
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, Education on Monday, 17 May 2010
By M. Bakri Musa
[Second of Three Parts]
[In Part One I discuss the crucial role of workers’ cognitive abilities (language skills, mathematical competency, and science literacy) rather than years of formal schooling in determining and contributing to a country’s economic development. In this second part, I address quality, quantity and equity in Malaysian education.]
Trinity of Quality, Quantity, and Equity
The UN lauds Malaysia for meeting – indeed exceeding – the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education. I caution against taking too seriously such praises. The UN works from the base of such countries as Afghanistan and Sub Sahara Africa; they should not be our reference point.
The dilemma of quality versus quantity is old and familiar. Retired Malaysians wistfully remember the old colonial English schools. Yes, they were good, and when you scored an “A” then, you knew that you were on par with those students in London and elsewhere who also scored an “A.” It was essentially the same examination. There was pride of achievement in that.
Read the rest of this entry »
Latest QS Asian University Rankings 2010 a sorry tale of unchecked drop/decline of the standards/international standing of Malaysian public universities.
Posted by Kit in Education, Election, nation building, Sarawak on Friday, 14 May 2010
The country’s premier institution of higher education, Universiti Malaya, has dropped two places to 41 this year from 39 last year, while Universiti Sains Malaysia which was granted Apex status in 2008 only managed to maintain its ranking at 69 – just like Universiti Teknologi Malaysia at 82.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, however, took a tumble from 51 to be placed 58, with Universiti Putra Malaysia improving its ranking from 90 to 77.
The continued drop of ranking of Malaysian Universities in Asia is part of the larger disease of Malaysia becoming the “sick man of South-East Asia” – resulting in a decade of economic stagnation and national decline in all aspects of national life, whether educational excellence, good governance, institutional professionalism, human rights or environmental protection.
This is why the New Economic Model (NEM) crafted by a panel of local and foreign experts have sound the warning: “We must act now before our position deteriorates any further”. Read the rest of this entry »
-
You are currently browsing the archives for the Education category.
