education system in malaysia essay

Education in Malaysia pp 155–173 Cite as

Reflections on the State and Future of Malaysia’s Education

• Ibrahim Bajunid 6 ,
• Ghauth Jasmon 7 ,
• Edmund Terence Gomez 8 ,
• Hwa Yue-Yi 9 ,
• Edmond Yap 10 ,
• Dzameer Dzulkifli 11 ,
• Roselina Johari Md. Khir 8 ,
• Meng Yew Tee 12 ,
• Lorraine Pe Symaco 12 &
• Moses Samuel 12  
• First Online: 12 July 2017

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Part of the book series: Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Issues, Concerns and Prospects ((EDAP,volume 39))

This chapter attempts to capture the landscape of Malaysian education through brief essays by individuals who have been involved with education in the country at various levels. Ibrahim Bajunid and Ghauth Jasmon are known leaders in higher education. Terence Gomez and Hwa Yue-Yi are most concerned about policy issues, albeit from very different lenses – Terence as a seasoned political economist, and Yue-Yi as a budding analyst who has spent time as a teacher in Malaysia’s classrooms. Edmond Yap and Dzameer Dzulkifli bring in their perspective from the front lines, as their respective non-governmental organizations (NGOs) try to chip away at the persisting challenges within the Malaysian education system. Roselina Johari Md. Khir takes a look at Malaysia’s education horizon as an educator-playwright-actor. They were asked to reflect about the state of Malaysia’s education and where it is heading in the future. The final chapter presents their essays, followed by a discussion of their reflections in light of Malaysia’s stated vision for its educational system.

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Acknowledgment

Insights and selections of reflections from this chapter came in part from projects funded by the University of Malaya Research Grant (UMRG) RP004-13SBS, the Equitable Society Research Cluster and the University of Malaya Rakan Penyelidikan Grant CG035-2013.

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Axiata Foundation, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Ibrahim Bajunid

Sunway University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia

Ghauth Jasmon

University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Edmund Terence Gomez & Roselina Johari Md. Khir

Penang Institute, George Town, Malaysia

EduNation Malaysia, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia

Teach for Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Dzameer Dzulkifli

Faculty of Education, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Meng Yew Tee, Lorraine Pe Symaco & Moses Samuel

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Correspondence to Ibrahim Bajunid .

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Moses Samuel

Meng Yew Tee

Lorraine Pe Symaco

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Bajunid, I. et al. (2017). Reflections on the State and Future of Malaysia’s Education. In: Samuel, M., Tee, M., Symaco, L. (eds) Education in Malaysia. Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, vol 39. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4427-4_10

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4427-4_10

Published : 12 July 2017

Publisher Name : Springer, Singapore

Print ISBN : 978-981-10-4426-7

Online ISBN : 978-981-10-4427-4

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Education system in Malaysia – Dialectic Essay

Introduction

The education system in Malaysia is varied due to differences in funding and religion between schools, colleges and such. The other primary difference is culture, where you may see schools with a Malaysian culture alongside schools with an Australian, British, Chinese, French, Canadian and German culture. In the western world there tends to be more female students in higher education than male, as female students are doing better, on average, in education than male students are.

In Malaysia, the trend is in the other direction with the UNDP (United Nations Development Program) saying that not enough female students are in compulsory and higher education. There is a 2:1 ratio of boys to girls in polytechnics and at public higher learning institutions.

Main argument My argument is that there are more males in both compulsory and higher education because there are more job opportunities for men in Malaysia than there are for women.

From a parents perspective, it is better to invest household resources in the child that is most likely to start working after school and college and earning a decent amount to bring into the household. Though the parents may be sure of their female child’s academic prowess, they cannot be sure that the female student will be able to use her qualifications as readily as a male student will. Definitive counter argument

The real reason that female students are less prevalent in both compulsory school and higher education is because females and women in general have no respect in Malaysia. They are seen as second-class citizens and are viewed as lesser people. They are seen as dumber and less assertive than men. They are seen as less driven and less ambitious.

It is true that this feeling may mean that a lot of women cannot get jobs at a decent level and cannot use their qualifications to their best possible use, but the job market is not where the problem starts, the problem starts with the attitude people have towards women in Malaysia. If attitudes were to change, then the entire problem would go away.

The females would have more respect in class and so would want to go to school, the male students would see women being respected and would respect them after school, and women would get jobs so that their parents feel that them getting an education is worth it.

Novel argument

It is clearly because the female students do not like the school uniforms that they do not go to school as much as male students. In 1970, all school uniforms were made compulsory. Male students have to wear the same thing, but female students may wear what the school culture and religion demands. Clearly, there are plenty of school that demands ugly uniforms from women, which is why fewer women go to school and higher education. Conclusion

There appears to be no definitive answer. It is clear that women do not get the respect they deserve in Malaysia, and that women also do not get as many employment opportunities. It seems that both are fundamental problems and that if even one of those problems were solved, then there would be a dramatic increase in the number of female students in compulsory school and higher education.

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