M’sian education system needs overhaul, English back into syllabus, says Minos

Peter Minos

KUCHING (Feb 20): The Malaysian education system badly needs an overhaul if it were to be on par with Singapore and Japan, says Dato Peter Minos.

According to the Kota Samarahan Municipal Council chairman, the economic progress and success of both Japan and Singapore ‘far outstrip Malaysia’, largely due to the education, expertise and skills of their people.

“Sorry to say and from my own observation, many Malaysian university graduates cannot even write good letters in English, making mistakes all over.

“Many university grads always say ‘I do not know’ when asked about current affairs and issues and what matters in life, as if their acquired knowledge was truly limited, and the unwillingness to read and be aware of what real life was all about.

“It is as if our education system had produced many university graduates who had very little thinking and analytical abilities,” he remarked.

Minos said this in support of Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development Datuk Dr Annuar Rapa’ee, who did not agree with Minister of Education Fadhlina Sidek’s statement about Malaysia’s education curriculum being on par with Singapore and Japan.

Dr Annuar had, at a function in Sibu on Saturday, said that Malaysia’s education system needed to be more stable without having constant changes in policies with each new minister at the federal level, as these constant changes in policies would only confuse teachers and parents.

Malaysian education, he added, needed a system that could cut down on unnecessary subjects, and to focus more on core subjects such as Science and Information Technology, as well as knowledge on innovation, creativity and productivity.

“We also need to bring back English so that we can get involved and be connected with the global economy,” he stressed.

Minos, nonetheless, expressed confidence in the Sarawak government’s efforts to improve the competency level of its young people, of which he pointed out that some schools in Sarawak used English as a medium of instruction.

“Yayasan Sarawak also brings in foreign universities like Swinburne and Curtin, as well as setting up international schools and skill centres with its intention to produce young generation who can think, analyse, and be creative and productive.

“These initiatives matter as we cannot rely and put too much hope on the federal side on education, which is pretty out of sync and out-dated, and also controlled and manipulated by politics and politicians.

“Our future lies in the skills, knowledge and attitude of our young people. They are in fact our future captains of industries, leaders, administrators and so on,” he said.

Source: https://www.theborneopost.com/2023/02/20/msian-education-system-needs-overhaul-english-back-into-syllabus-says-minos/