Open Letter to the Minister of Education
What happens to the student who in real life exhibited the perfect criteria for a future talent useful to this country?
By Parents of A
We have a system of education set by the Ministry of education. This covers from the primary, secondary and right up to the university curriculum.
The day a child is sent to school to do his first day in standard 1, all parents are excited to see their child set to receive the best education the county can provide. As parents we support them, we encourage them, we motivate them to study well so as to make a success of himself/herself in his/her career. This is what we call the learning process. Everyone wants the best for their child.
We encourage them to do well in academics, sports, personality development, intellectual development as well as in spiritual development. The academic development is left to the materials and systems developed by the system at large. Here in this case, it is the system drawn out by the people at the Ministry of education. The syllabus is structured accordingly right from Primary One to Form 5. Everyone takes it in confidence as this is what is best for our children here in Malaysia. This is what we call the acquisition of knowledge in bits and pieces starting from simple A,B,C right up to complex mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology etc. Yet, knowledge by itself may not be what we call intellectual development. Intellectual development involves the development of simple logic, thought processes and emotional balance. Here the child is taught the techniques of speech and speech development. More developmental aspects of speech are oratory and debating skills which invariably are based on being able to think out loud and clear.
Then again the emotional, intellectual and acquisition of knowledge itself would be incomplete without physical growth and development. The education curriculum in schools include the introduction of various sporting activities ranging from simple physical exercises to more conventional sporting activities like swimming, squash, table tennis, foot ball etc. Teachers play a major role in schools here. This is what we call personality development. Here again, schools introduce the students to music and handicraft as all this leads to personality development. The aspect of discipline is a paramount feature in all schools. Punctuality, the need to follow rules and regulations, respect for elders, parents and teachers is a matter of absolute priority and therefore schools maintain discipline teachers, prefects and punishments for lack of discipline.
Having said the above, now, what is it that we as parents look forward to in the final analysis. We would expect the creator of the system itself, the Ministry of Education in Malaysia to pursue the students who have become the flag carriers of what they have developed. But have they? Let me give you an example.
My son, and I name him as just A, finished his final school and sat for his SPM exams in 2009. Here is a short note of him. In his Standard 6 exam he scored all A’s except Bahasa Malayaia which he scored B. In his Form 3 he scored all A’s except BM which he scored B. In his Form 5 (SPM) he scored 9 A’s and B+ in his morals. He studied at the Kelana Jaya Secondary school and his primary at the Kampung Tunku Primary School. I wish to say here that the Kelana Jaya Secondary is an excellent school from what I know. The Principal and her team of teachers are incredibly dedicated. With all the current brickbats against teachers I found the teachers and the Principal of this school a breed of their own. Every teacher whom either my wife or I met turned out to be deeply committed to the betterment of the students. As far as our son A is concerned, we have found the teachers very caring and loving. It only reminded me of those good old days when I studied at a mission school where teachers were fully devoted to the students’ growth and development. I could see the hearts and minds of those teachers who taught our son filled with joy and happiness when the results were announced as if he was their own son. They were thrilled and congratulated him and my heart went out to them with a deep sense of pride and love. I truly wish every school has this same breed of teachers!!
Our son A was the winner of the VIJAYA SHANKAR PARAMSOTHY Trophy which was named after the son of an ex-schoolmate who perished at the World Trade Centre crash. This trophy is awarded to the top most student of the year. He had an excellent track record in school having been an active student in extra curricular activities be it debating, sports etc. He was also the Assistant Head Prefect of this school. He has an excellent persona in the sense he is well liked by every schoolmate and every teacher. He equally shows deep love for his schoolmates and teachers.
Having said the above, what distressed us most was that he was rejected by the PSD for his dentistry course of study. Is this how a child is appreciated at the end of the day after having been an outstanding student in school? What steps were taken to show deep appreciation for good students in this country? Or is the said ministry merely dependent on their computer to pick out some names based on some criteria. What happens to the student who in real life exhibited the perfect criteria for a future talent useful to this country? Let me add here we applied to TAR college for his A level admission and most surprisingly he was admitted with a full scholarship. If TAR college could identify a promising student irrespective of caste, creed or community, then what ails our own Government from doing the same?
Over now to the Minister of Education, Sir.
