Yes Dr M, less emphasis on religion in schools, please

Dr Mahathir Mohamad is right. National schools had become "religious schools" and many must be glad that the prime minister intends to correct the situation.

Mahathir certainly hit the right note, as many groups had expressed concerns on this ‘religious’ overindulgence in the current school syllabus.

Speaking at a dinner for Sultan Abdul Hamid College alumni members in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, the prime minister said that "someone changed the curriculum in the school, and now the national school has become a religious school.

"They are all learning about the religion of Islam and not learning anything else. And as a result, the graduates or the people who are passing in the school are not very conversant in things that are useful for them to get jobs, but they are very good ulama," he said.

Two things are interesting to note in this part of the prime minister’s speech.

One, Mahathir mentioned that "someone" changed the curriculum. Apparently, the prime minister did not agree with the "someone" whom he did not name.

Call that his trademark flair if you will. Mahathir does have the habit of not naming those he criticises publicly, unless he finds it absolutely necessary to do so.

What must be asked is whether that “someone” was the education minister during Mahathir’s first tenure as prime minister.

Who's responsible?

It would not be way off to conclude that that surely could not have taken place during that time, for Mahathir would not have allowed it. Then again, you never know.

However, if the curriculum was indeed changed then, Mahathir should be held equally responsible for what he now concedes is not right.

As I Googled for the list of education ministers over the years, I chanced upon this letter published in Malaysiakini in 2002. This missive, written 16 years ago, was able to shed some light on what has actually gone wrong with the curriculum in national schools today.

The writer starts by posing one important question which is still being asked today: “How can Malaysia produce competent graduates when we have such a fickle education system that changes with the whims and fancies of whoever is appointed education minister?”

“Consider all the changes, political and otherwise, that our politician-education ministers have willed according to their own agenda” and he listed the policy changes made by previous education ministers, including Mahathir himself, Anwar Ibrahim, Najib Abdul Razak and Musa Mohamad.

Of particular interest in the context of this article is the writer’s take on Anwar “who in 1988 as education minister decided that Bahasa Malaysia which followed the Johor-Riau pronunciation was not 'nationalistic' enough, and ordered it to be replaced by Bahasa Baku (standard phonetic Malay).

“It was also during his time that religious studies were given priority and students were made to take the subject,” he wrote.

Did we hit the bullseye here?

Mahathir, as the prime minister, must have given space to his cabinet members to define policies as they thought best in their respective ministries.

After all, he was also a former education minister. The letter writer said that “Mahathir emulated Abdul Razak Hussein in his nationalistic fervour and went one step further by ordering a change in the medium of instruction for all subjects from English to Malay.” Wrong move by Mahathir too.

This was in the 1970s, and on Friday, Mahathir wenat back on his previous stance by declaring that “it does not make us less Malaysian to master the English language, but it is something we should be proud of.”

Past flaws

There is not much point in lamenting on the flaws of our education system in the past. Although some academicians have argued that education policies must be constantly evolving, it is vital that we set some concrete proposals in place particularly those relating to language and religion.

So let’s dissect the second part of Mahathir’s speech on Friday – that learning religion alone will lead to difficulty in finding gainful employment.

Mahathir is right again. How many religious scholars do we really need in this country?

There is no doubt that learning religions is important and useful. It is even intellectually exciting because it provides access to the mystery of the other.

Religious studies also provide our students the opportunity to understand, with depth and nuance, the many beliefs and rituals that move persons to appreciate the alternative world of the religious reality. It’s good to learn about or even believe in the existence of a greater being.

But coming down to earth and reality, I think I must state clearly that the reality in our education system of the past is that moral studies has done a better job in shaping our students into sound, morally upright and responsible adults. There was no need for religious studies then.

Moral lessons in schools will do just fine in the promotion of the spiritual, social and cultural development of our students.

Lest we forget, we send our children to school because we know the importance of education and gaining knowledge to improve their lives and that of others too.

Whoever is the education minister must be clear about something. They must put their political and religious leanings aside when formulating education policies in future.

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FRANCIS PAUL SIAH heads the Movement for Change, Sarawak (MoCS) and can be reached at sirsiah@gmail.com. - Mkini