PAGE: Idea of having single stream schools unrealistic

KUALA LUMPUR: A suggestion by an academician to have a single stream education system is “unrealistic”, says Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE) chairperson Noor Azimah Rahim.

“I think his suggestion is downright unrealistic. Imagine telling Chinese schools to close. There would be civil war,” Noor Azimah said.

“They have done well for themselves. In fact, I think Chinese schools are attracting more Malays than national schools are attracting the Chinese.”

Teo Kok Seong, who is a Principal Fellow at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Institute of Ethnic Studies, had on Tuesday suggested a single stream education system, to replace national schools, vernacular schools and religious schools.

He said this system, which he proposed be called Sekolah Kebangsaan 1 Malaysia, be implemented to combat racism in the country.

He suggested that such a stream incorporate academics, spiritual studies and ethnic studies in its curriculum

When asked about whether racism was an issue in schools, Noor Azimah disagreed, saying that it was only something played up by politicians to “divide and rule”.

“We believe that our strength lies in our diversity, and the education system should reflect that.

“Why should we impose a certain way of education on people when we ourselves are made up of all kinds of everything?” Noor Azimah said.

“The question here is not turning the system into one, but enhancing what we have.

“We should capitalise on our strengths. By imposing one system, you’re only capitalising on your weaknesses.”

Uplifting the national language in the education system was not a zero-sum game, she added.

“Why would we want to stop children from being multilingual? That’ll be an asset to any country,” Noor Azimah said.

“I think it’s all about uplifting the national language, but it doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game.”

Noor Azimah claimed that monolingual countries looked up to Malaysia’s diversity and “wish they were multilingual”.

“Look at the universities around the world. A lot of them are offering – in Japan, France, Germany – courses in English at undergraduate and graduate levels.

“In Japan, we have students doing Master’s in English. Why suppress (our languages)? I don’t understand,” she told FMT.

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