SHARED PROSPERITY IN EDUCATION
Education Ministry will realise vision for shared prosperity through education, says Dr M
THE policies and direction of the education system will be realigned to complement the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (SPV2030) blueprint, which is aimed at reducing the wealth gap and transforming Malaysia into a high-income nation.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, in his address as the acting education minister to the education community here yesterday, outlined the focus of the ministry for this year, which is to realise a vision for a shared prosperity through education.
Dr Mahathir said the ministry had the responsibility to lead and educate youth to produce the nation’s human capital.
“This means (by realising shared prosperity through education), people must be allowed to compete in life. But if they refuse to take the opportunity provided by the government, they will derail the vision.
“Those who do not take the opportunity through hard work will languish in poverty. Kekayaan tidak datang bergolek atau
melayang (wealth does not grow on trees),” Dr Mahathir said at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre.
Transformation in the education sector, Dr Mahathir said, should focus on preparing human capital that is skilful, productive and effective, as well as meet the demand of the new economic industry.
He proposed a new curriculum for Islamic Education that promoted Islamic values.
He said he had, on numerous occasions, stressed on the importance of good values and how they could guide people.
“We say Islam is not just a religion, but also a way of life. Therefore, we need to know what is the Islamic way of life.
“For example, does Islam promote war and killing (as a way of life).”
The ministry, he said, had prepared the Civic Education Mapping Details, which covered education areas such as Exemplary Modules curriculum, School Assembly Manual, Noble Values Practice, as well as the Civic Education Practice Manual.
At the higher education level, he said the importance of noble values was emphasised through the Service Learning Malaysia — University For Society (Sulam), which provides students with a learning experience through community problem-solving.
He spoke on the Sekolah Wawasan concept when he stressed on the importance of unity in nation-building to maintain the country’s stability and progress.
“Sekolah Wawasan was introduced to promote solidarity among the people, especially among Malays, Chinese and Indians, by putting three different schools in one location.
“The aim is to have schools from different languages (medium of instructions) on one campus to enable children (of various races) to mix with each other.”
Later, he said the Sekolah Wawasan was a concept that he had proposed during his previous tenure as prime minister.
“If we want them (children of various races) to come together, they (their schools) should be located on one campus. This applies to national schools (sekolah kebangsaan), as well as Chinese and Tamil (vernacular) schools.
“For certain events, such as the school morning assembly, they should not be conducted separately so that everybody will attend morning assembly together (on one campus).
“The same applies for events such as football tournaments. Instead of representing their schools, the students could represent a (bigger) entity that could be divided into groups like Group A, B and C.”
On reviving the teaching of Mathematics and Science in English (PPSMI), Dr Mahathir said a committee had been set up to oversee the matter.
“I realised there are news reports saying the government has decided to re-introduce PPSMI but, in actuality, we haven’t decided yet.
“I was only having a talk with the officers in the ministry about it. We are considering this because there are some who oppose it. We will decide based on the opinions of the majority of cabinet members.”
He welcomed opinions from the public and other stakeholders.
If PPSMI is revived, he said it would involve all schools, including vernacular schools.
This, he said, would ensure Malaysians could debate on matters concerning Science and Mathematics in English at the international level.
PPSMI was first introduced in 2003. It was fully implemented in secondary schools in 2007 and primary schools in 2008 before it was abolished in 2013.