Senator S Ramakrishnan said despite the massive spending, achieving quality in education and producing a skilled and talented workforce still remain elusive targets with Malaysian education planners seeming not to have any solution.
"It is for this reason, many Investors and FDIs are reluctant to invest locally due to poor quality of education, non -competitive and non-proactive workforce, policy inconsistencies and bureaucratic red tape."
He said the government spends about 20-21% of its budget allocation on education every year. Based on the United Nation human development report in 2009 Malaysia expended about 8.1% of GDP on education and ranked 10 in the world.
"The US spend about 5.7% and the UK 5.3%. Malaysian spending is relatively high compared to other countries and we should be having no problem with skill and talents to transform from a middle income to a high income economy, Ramakrishnan (right) added.Yesterday, Malaysiakini reported 70 % of the 2,128 secondary schools ranked by the Education Ministry scored less than 60 percent in the school ranking system under the Government Transformation Programme.
According to the School Improvement Programme report for 2010 obtained by Malaysiakini, out of 1,538 schools that scored less than 60 percent, 420 did not even score 50 percent with eight lower than 40 percent.
Eight hundred and twenty-eight of the 1,538 lower ranking schools are located in rural areas, defined as areas where agriculture make up more than 60 percent of economic activity.
Ramakrishnan asked: "What went wrong?" The answer, he said was in tremendous wastes of resources, when all the money spent did not yield the required results. The Malaysian government is turning the other way for an answer when the solution is right in front of them.
Education funds provide merry times
"The ministry and its policy makers spend billions and billions of ringgit on building and buying hardware like computers, laptops and other equipment. Hardware forms the major portion of ministry of education budget.
"Spending money on conferences, seminars and trainings was not focused on learning, unlearning or relearning but on food, expensive hotels and on sightseeing. Billions are also spent on religious education where the emphasis is on conforming to religious dos and don'ts.
"Unfortunately, skewed religious propaganda formed the substance of BTN courses. New national schools are built all over but the quality of teaching has deteriorated and the quality of school heads is deplorable. Once, Malaysia was noted for having great headmasters and exemplary teachers who became role models for students.
"The decline in education system started when our education policies and systems were meddled with racism, zealotry and politicized.
"The affirmative action plan initiated in 1970 to help the poor regardless of race had been hijacked by Umno to convert Malays into their ardent supporters and be their loyal voters. The Umno led government went on to replace loyal and well meaning civil servants with one race and one religious civil service.
"Dedicated and experienced civil servants, teachers, doctors and other professionals were not promoted and but their junior colleagues were. In this way the government was deprived of capable and experienced staff.
"Politicians failed to see that a multi racial country needs a multi racial civil service to cater for all the needs and requirement of the country and its people. This perverted mindset of educators could not make long term informed decisions.
"Besides, the religious leaders and politicians did not allow civil servants to mature and think independently. They were made to be grateful and obligated to the ruling Umno politicians. As a result process and policies brought about compliant and subservient bureaucrats, " he said.
Gov't's acrobatic adventures decried
Owing to the poor education system in schools Malaysian students were deprived of independent, critical and analytical thinking in English which is the international lingua franca, Ramakrishnan added.
The government, he said, could have continued with English medium schools but they closed them down and then realized the importance and started teaching mathematics and science in English which is again to be abandoned after 8 years.
"Such flip flops caused confusion and billions of ringgit went down the drain. Even educated Malays are looking down on our education system.
Ramakrishnan added if the education system was good in the Malay medium schools why are 70,000 Malays student in Chinese schools, there is higher Malay migration to western countries, more Malay parents send their children to private and international schools in foreign countries.
"This is a testimony of the education system that served nobody except Umno politicians. All measures to attract talents are pointing at the wrong direction. No talents are attracted by our education policies.
"Poor non Malay students with good grades can be awarded scholarships and university placements for courses that attract them. Malaysian talents are everywhere in Malaysia just that the Umnoputras can't see it," he added.
No comments:
Post a Comment