LETTER | With the fall of the once mighty and (perceived) invincible BN on May 9, 2018, Malaysia is now sailing in uncharted waters. With the new administration wasting no time in bringing about much-needed change to the failing nation, Malaysia appears to be in good hands, at least for now. As Nelson Mandela once said,"Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world".

Hence, it would be the onus of the Education Ministry led by Dr Mazlee Malik to ensure that the next generation of Malaysia is well equipped to face an ever-changing world to face a variety of challenges.

The mess left by the previous administration makes this an uphill task. Outdated syllabuses mismanaged funding and a lack of interracial interaction, understanding and unity are just one of the numerous holes that need plugging in the sinking ship of the Malaysian education system.

Hence, this writer recommends certain measures that the education ministry can take to create a new education system that would benefit Malaysia and propel it to the same level as developed countries.

1. Discuss with Dong Jiao Zong (Association of Chinese Independent schools) on the possibility of a gradual merger and/or nationalisation of Chinese vernacular schools. Such schools have (particularly in recent years) drawn many of Malaysian Chinese away from government schools. While students of such schools received arguably better education and are connected to their ethnic roots, the ultimate products of such schools are Chinese with little command of Malay and English and with little experience interacting with those of other races.

With the UEC slowly being removed and such schools coming under the ministry's arm, this will prevent the existence of Chinese enclaves, and ensure the largest minority in Malaysia do not remain apart from society. This allows for a greater form of national unity. Successful elements of the UEC (such as Maths and Chinese language) can be incorporated into the new educational system.

2. The Tamil vernacular schools pose a similar problem. Separating children from other races at such a prime age hinders interracial relations and disadvantages such students at the secondary school level where the Malay proficiency gap cannot be bridged easily. The writer suggests that all vernacular language schools are abolished and a system similar to the “mother tongue system” in Singapore be introduced in the new stream of "Bangsa Malaysia" schools. Such a system entails lessons being stipulated in the curriculum and timetable for students to learn their ethnic language and culture (Mandarin, Tamil, Iban, Kadazan, Punjabi) or Jawi script for ethnic Malays.

The learning of their ethnic script should be made compulsory till SPM level to ensure that students gain an acceptable level of proficiency. In cases where the particular ethnic language cannot be provided, such students can be granted free time or the option to choose any other available ethnic language that they want to learn. This removes the notion of schools being associated with any particular language or race.

3. The syllabuses of Bahasa Melayu (Bahasa Malaysia) and English should be updated and made compulsory for all students to study at all levels (including STPM). The syllabuses should no longer be rooted on memorising or mere conversational skills and should instead ensure that students truly master these two languages. Language for impact, grammar, comprehension, summary, application of ideas and essay writing (argumentative, expository) must be included in this new syllabuses.

Oral presentation and conversations should not be left out and should be made compulsory for all Malaysian students. Inspiration and insights can be drawn from the O-Level and A-Level examinations of the UK and Singapore and modified to suit the Malaysian context.

4. The ministry can also apply a similar principle to all the subjects taught in schools. Subjects taught in schools should be anchored on applicability and its usefulness in the students' further study and eventual entry to the workforce. As such, the writer recommends that all multiple choice questions be removed from all examinable subjects by the level of SPM. This prevents students from brute memorising content and ensure that they truly master and understand whatever that they are learning.

Team-based projects and extended research experiments should be encouraged and included in the assessment criteria for all subjects. This removes the emphasis on written exams and allows students to experience working collaboratively and applying what they learn in real life situations.

5. On the question of the language of instruction for non-language subjects, English should be enforced as the language of instruction and learning of Mathematics and Science without the option to learn it in BM. While unpopular, this will allow Malaysian students to be able to keep up with latest scientific and technological developments without the hassle of translation. Humanities subjects can continue to be taught in BM, but greater flexibility for English terminology (such as economic jargon and geographical terms) can be considered.

6. The technical education route in Malaysia is underdeveloped and has great gold mines of benefits ready to be reaped. The government can take inspiration from technical schools in Switzerland and Singapore where students who do not excel in the academic route are allowed to remain in school and acquire technical certificates and diplomas that allow them to find technical-based jobs. Apart from the economic benefits, this reduces the number of school drop-outs and social ills such as Mat Rempit and unemployed youths selling pirated DVDs. Such technical colleges and polytechnics can start admitting students at PT3/PMR/SPR and SPM level.

7. Co-curricular activities in Malaysia are in dire need of updating and improvement. Instead of juggling three activities (uniformed groups, societies and sports not to mention houses), students should be allowed to focus on one to two activities. This allows students to have a more in-depth experience of the activities that they are participating in as compared to "touch and go" experiences. Co-curricular activities should also impart valuable and useful skills to students that allow them to become competent contributors to society as well as character development and citizenship. For example, uniformed groups should not be limited to "kawad kaki" and should educate students on important skills such as first aid.

8. Malaysia is a multi-racial country even though Islam is enshrined as the national religion. Governments schools (not including the sekolah agama) should hence ensure that Islamic influence in their schools is moderated and not excessive. A basic or layman understanding of the various religions in Malaysia can be taught during Pendidikan Sivik dan Kewarganegaraan to foster greater understanding.

The “surau” in schools can be maintained with religious teachers still present. Prayers and Quran recitations can be kept to a moderate level and not to a level where non-Muslims feel threatened. This might help to draw back the confidence of the non-Muslim minorities in the public education system.

Given the colossal debt that Malaysia is currently shouldering, such policies may be impossible to implement and are such mere concepts or ideas. Nevertheless, the writer still brings forth his ideas in order to do his part as a citizen of Malaysia.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.