Many Malays learning Mandarin in Kelantan

 

(ST) - Proportionately more Malays study Chinese in this state than in others

IN A recent two-hour class in one of Kelantan's religious schools, female students in veils and loose-fitting baju kurungs - traditional Malay wear - learn how to read and speak in Mandarin and write in Chinese.

Their teacher is Mr Wang Yin Kang, a Chinese-Muslim teacher from Yunnan, China.

Some of his students in the Tarbiyah Mardhiyah Religious Secondary School, which means "Upbringing that pleases Allah" in Arabic, are also members of the Chinese Language society, where they take up drama classes and carry out dialogues in Mandarin, supervised by Mr Wang.

There is a famous saying in Islam: "Seek knowledge even as far as China." It appears that Malay-Muslims in Kelantan are, as closely as possible, trying to do just that.

Kelantan is the most Malay state in the country, yet there are proportionately more Malays studying Chinese here than in other states.

It is common to find Malays enrolling their children in Chinese-language schools or attending Chinese-language classes offered in religious schools.

The state government under Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) funds Mandarin classes in schools. It even sent three Malay-Muslim teaching college graduates to study Mandarin in Guangzhou, China in 2009 and has hired a few teachers from China to conduct Mandarin classes.

Many Kelantanese take the lead from their revered former menteri besar, said Mr Hu Pang Chaw, chairman of the PAS Supporters Congress, the party's non-Muslim wing.

"The Kelantanese see the party's spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat as the prime example of someone who encourages the younger generation to take up the Chinese language, as five of his grandchildren attend Chinese schools," he said.

Located in the north-east of Peninsular Malaysia bordering Thailand and looking out to the South China Sea, Kelantan's population is 95 per cent ethnic Malay. Chinese, Thais and Indians make up the rest of the state's population of 1.6 million.

All around Malaysia, more parents are sending their children to Chinese schools and Chinese tuition classes. But in Kelantan, the concentration of Malay students in these schools is much higher.

Statistics on Malays' enrolment in Chinese vernacular schools funded by the government are not publicly released.

But according to Mr Hu, between 20 per cent and 50 per cent of the student population in Kelantan's 15 Chinese vernacular primary schools and two secondary schools are Malay. In a Chinese primary school in Rantau Panjang on the outskirts of Kelantan, two- thirds of the students are Malays.

In other parts of Malaysia, there is an average of about 10 per cent Malay students in Chinese schools.

Kelantan has more than 400 primary and secondary schools that use Malay as the medium of instruction there. On top of that, there are about 80 religious schools scattered across the state.

Tarbiyah Mardhiyah Religious Secondary School is one of the six state government-funded schools that offer Mandarin classes on weekends.

Mr Wang, 51, who teaches Mandarin to 160 students weekly, has spent the past 18 years living in Kelantan after finishing his diploma in Arabic studies here. He stayed behind after government officers offered him a position to teach Mandarin and the Arabic language in several religious schools.

Mr Wang was initially surprised that Malay students would want to take Mandarin classes.

"But I soon realised that it is because students believe that it will enhance their job prospects, especially given that China is a fast-growing country and its investments are everywhere," he told The Straits Times.

Ms Heng Buai Chin, a researcher who has done studies on this phenomenon, said the government's move to encourage Malay students in Chinese vernacular schools promotes integration among students of various races.

"Malay-Muslim students in Chinese vernacular schools also tend to be more open to accepting the Chinese culture such as watching Chinese movies, and count and think in Chinese," she said.

Wan Ashikin Ismail, a Form 5 student in a Chinese vernacular school, concurs. She said her best friends in school are Chinese and they converse mainly in Mandarin.

"I am not treated any differently by students or teachers and I am constantly motivated to excel in studies," said the petite 16-year-old, who aspires to be a novelist one day, writing stories in Mandarin.