Education Malaysian Style

Types of Schools in Malaysia
There are 2 main categories of schools in Malaysia: 'national type' (whose language of instruction is mainly Malay) or vernacular (whose main language of instruction is Chinese or Indian). Because of 'political' reason and Chinese or Indian being the language of instruction, most vernacular schools did not have Malay headmasters.

Malay Progression or Educational Regression?
From age 7 (1969) to 11 (1973), I studied in a 'national type' primary school (Pasar Road Primary School). When I started there, the headmaster was an Indian. By time I left it was a Malay. Same with my secondary school (Datok Lokman) - Chinese headmaster soon gave way to a Malay. By time I got to form 6 in VI (supposedly one of the top secondary schools in Malaysia) in 1980, it was already run by a Malay. This phenomenon was widespread in the national type schools by 1980. If the large scale promotion of Malays to such important roles as headmasters was based on merit, then in a short time the Malays have made significant progress indeed. But if that was the case, why is it that the NEP is still required today - 22 years later?

The real answer may lie in PM Mahathir's public explanation in 2000 as to why there was increasing number of non-Chinese sending their children to Chinese schools. According to him it was not because they wanted their children to learn Chinese but the teachers were more dedicated. Therefore parents that want their children to do well (in real terms I guess) in education send them to the Chinese schools.

For Students or Teachers?
Directly opposite my old primary school was a Chinese primary school (Chin Woo Chinese Primary). During my 1st year at Pasar Road School, it had a brand new 4-storey building. Throughout my years there, Chin Woo only had a 2-storey building. When I visited the place a few years back there were noticeable changes in both schools. Chin Woo had a new 4-storey classroom block in place of the 2-storey block it had. The new addition to Pasar Road School was a teacher's recreational centre!

Enterpreneurship or Mismanagement of Teachers?
During my days in secondary school we had a few school teachers (characters) that I remembered well. The year I was in Form 1 was the year when Malaysia hosted the Hockey World Cup, and there was a Sikh teacher in charge of physical education who took the opportunity to sell us hockey sticks he sourced from his brother’s sports shop. He sold them to us on installment basis, and we would pay him a dollar a week until we pay it off.

I also found that a Science teacher of ours who was also the discipline master of the school had his own shoe shop which he goes to run after school.

In Form 2 or 3, we had an ‘Industrial Arts’ teacher who sub-contracted door/window grille works that he farmed out to us students who did it as a source of pocket money. It involved essentially soldering of iron pipes to make grilles. I and some classmates joined in act but were not properly trained nor briefed on how to do soldering and the risk associated with it. As I was new I had to look directly at the spots that I was soldering instead of doing it behind the dark-gass shield. I paid dearly for that. After a day of doing that, my eyes were so strained that I had to sleep immediately after I got home. When I awoke, my eyes were oozing tears and ‘puss’, and was so painful that I could not open them hours!

Reserve or Deserve?
When I was in form 5 (17 years old), we sat for our MCE or 'O' level examination. The school had just published the results of a ‘trial exam’ and we were anxiously reviewing our results and counting the number of points we got. In real-life the points would determine whether we got to go on to form 6 (HSC or 'A' level) and then to university. So it was quite an important matter for all of us - at least that was what I thought. As me and a few friends were anxiously counting our points, a Malay schoolmate rode up to us in his bicycle wearing a grin on his face. He must have noticed our anxiety. His comment to us was this: you all (non Malays) have to worry about the number of distinctions and this points thing before you can go to the next grade and enter university. I on the other hand don't have to worry about them. I only have to pass my exams and I will get a place!

I was quite surprised to hear that. I did not know about the New Economic Policy well then. Although I knew that a quota was reserved for Malays in university and at work, I did not think of it the way this boy did! That was a day of reckoning for me and I could never forget that day. He must have been taught by someone (his parents probably) that there was no need for him to perform any better than just pass exams, and a place will be reserved for him in the university and presumably everything after that. And if every Malay kid thinks the way he did at that age they would probably never find the need to work hard for the rest of their lives!


The above is an example of how a system whose intention was to uplift a whole race but compromises on time tested considerations like meritocracy and quality actually resulted in the very opposite of what was intended.

No Money to Share a Football?

In my secondary school days - when I was between 13 and 17 years old - there was a group of school mates that I played with everyday. We must have been the most playful lot in school for we played before school starts, during recess and after school ends. And the games we played each year varied according to the 'flavour' of that year. In form 1 (13 years old) it was hockey because Malaysia was the organiser of the hockey world cup. An Indian teacher must have made quite some money selling hockey sticks to the kids in school - cost about 18 dollars a stick then. As we grew older and when the school started to provide the balls it was volleyball and basketball. But football was the perennial favorite of all the boys. When we were younger and before the school started to allow us to borrow balls from the school we played real football only during physical education classes because we could not afford to buy a ball. At other times we only played a football 'variant' - kicking bottle caps on the cement floor of the school's basketball court. Our school shoes wear out really fast then because of the constant scratching against the cement floor!

When we were in form 3 someone suggested that we pool some money together to buy a soccer ball. Although each of us had to only contribute about 2 or 3 dollars, it was still a big sum for most of us. So when a Malay friend of ours (named Rashid) told us that he could not afford to pay for his share, we sympathised with him and I went round asking the other boys to chip in and pay for his share. I was quite happy that we managed to do that and Rashid got to play without paying anything. I was however shocked speechless a few weeks later when I saw Rashid coming to one of our games in a nice looking track suit (matching yellow color Adidas pants and top). It was the 1970s and no one else in school other than the sportsmen representing the school got to wear something like that. And that's partly subsidised by the school. Although I knew it was expensive I did not know exactly how much. So I asked him how much it cost him. He sheepishly told me that it was 30 odd dollars and his father bought it for him. I thought to myself that this is the same guy who told us a few weeks ago that he could not afford the couple of dollars to share a ball. I then realised that it was all a lie to get someone else to pay for him. How silly of me to have paid for part of his share when I myself could not afford that nice track suit he was wearing.

I never did own a track suit until I came to Singapore for university studies - with money my elder sister gave me from her savings. (She started working a couple of years back and gave me about $1,000 when I left for Singapore for university. It was not enough to last me the 3 years and I was relieved I got a $11,000 study loan from the Kuok Foundation a couple of months later.)

Priest-Nun Leviticus

(This joke inspired my little contribution at bottom)

Subject: Priest n Nun joke

A priest was driving along and saw a nun by the side of the road. He stopped and offered her a lift which she accepted. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing the habit to open and reveal a leg. The priest looks and nearly has an accident, and after changing gear lets his hand slide up her leg. She immediately says, "Father, remember Psalm 129".

The priest apologizes profusely and removes his hand but is unable to remove his eyes from her leg. Further on when he changes gear and has ogled at her leg for the zillionth time, he lets the hand slide up the leg again. The nun once again says, "Father, remember Psalm 129". Once again the priest apologizes, "Sorry sister but you know the flesh is weak".

Arriving at the convent the nun gets out and the priest goes on his way. Once he arrives at his church he rushes to the Bible and looks up Psalm 129 - it said: "GO FORTH AND SEEK, FURTHER UP YOU WILL FIND GLORY."

MORAL OF THE STORY:
YOU SHOULD ALWAYS BE WELL INFORMED IN YOUR JOB OR YOU MIGHT MISS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY.



CCK:
Have to say nun-type was quite creative coming up with first chronicle.....but alas got nun of the fun she want.

So mark the second chronicle:

Revelation for nun-type:
getta to john and not beat around the book.
Just let priest-type's hand runneth over your cup
while nun-type offereth constant confessions (feedback).

Did not help that nun-type used quotation
that's nevereth in the said psalm.
Luckily for nun-types with lesser psalm collections,
there are hymms that don't give a luke
what says the psalm,
and are endoweth with johns
that giveth what nun-types needeth without psalm aids.

So genesis the world as numbers come forth
and sought, and found glory further north.
And causeth the exodus of the likes of
matthew, daniel, samuel, esther and george.
While other nun and priet-types play judges in spite
and use only their palms for leviticus.

Psalm good?
nun the less, priest the lord!

Organic Fools

One weekend when my sister & family from Batu Pahat was visiting, they brought along some home-grown vegetables for us. On learning that the vegetables we were having for dinner were 'organic', another relative in Singapore expressed interest in getting some in the future as she also 'believed' in the benefits of organic food.

So months later when we visited my sister, we brought back some of those vegetables and my mom gave some of them to this other relative who upon seeing that there were holes on the vegetables exclaimed 'ee! how come got holes one?'.

I did not know what to say but wondered on what basis this fella expected the vegetables grown without the 'protection' of insecticides to be 'hole-free'. It is like expecting the insects not to touch those vegetables and to leave them exclusively only to humans!

Only fools think that nature is made only for man, and they can have exclusive right to nature's offerings ......