A Report on the State of Higher Education in Malaysia

This report is based on an article written by Dato' Dr. Sharom Ahmat, the Interim Vice-
Chancellor of Albuhary International !ni"ersity #http$%%aiu.edu.my& entitled The
'ducation Issue - The State of (i)her 'ducation in *alaysia. The article was published
in +,-, #http$%%www.pro.ectmalaysia.or)&. It )i"es us an insi)ht about the current
situation of hi)her education in *alaysia issues hi)hli)htin) its basic ob.ecti"es, the
issues faced and the strate)ic plannin) in order to achie"e the fully-de"eloped country
status.
The main idea is that too much emphasi/es are )i"en to the 0uantitati"e policies
compared to the 0ualitati"e policies of the hi)her education in *alaysia that lead to
e"erlastin) issues on the 0uality of the education system itself as well as the national
unity throu)h education. The writer mentioned about the issues of mediocrity that result
to hi)h rate of unemployed )raduates, e"en hi)her number of those under employed and
polari/ation amon) the races in this multi-racial country. The e1amples )i"en of the
implied 0uantitati"e indicators as reported in the 2inth *alaysia 3lan are as follows$
#i& The number of new uni"ersities, uni"ersity colle)es, branch campuses,
polytechnics and community colle)es increase )reatly. In +,,4 there were 5-
such public institutions and an incredulous 446 in the pri"ate sector. This )a"e
the indication that - hi)her education institution is for e"ery 7+,78, people.
Accordin) to the writer, considerin) *alaysia as a de"eloped nation, this ratio
is hi)her than that of the most de"eloped nation.
#ii& The number of student enrolment too had increased from 457,7+- in +,,- to
59-,86: in +,,4 and is e1pected to reach -,9+8,97, in +,-,. ;ased on the
fi)ure, the writer is of the opinion that an a"era)e increase of +9.+< annually
is 0uantitati"ely is another surprisin) achie"ement of this country.
=n the unemployment issue, apart from the writer>s critics the *inistry of (i)her
'ducation has its e1planation whereby ?!nemployment amon) new )raduates is a
phenomenon that can be found in many countries and it could be caused by se"eral
factors such as the slowin) rate of economic )rowth, une1pected shifts in demand from
one industry to another, and mismatches between maret re0uirements and the )raduates
that ('Is produce. '"en thou)h it is inaccurate to apportion complete blame on ('Is,
this matter is e1amined at len)th by this 3lan. To impro"e employability aspects amon)st
our )raduates, a )reater role is bein) ased of our ('Is. 'mphasis has been placed on the
often-cited lac of lan)ua)e fluency and critical thinin) on the part of )raduates across
the board@ #*inistry of (i)her 'ducation *alaysia, +,,5&.
The writer further 0uestions on any e1istence of the 0ualitati"e indicators in the said plan.
Thus he su))ested that *alaysia need )o bac to basics and start afresh in formulatin)
policy and plannin) in hi)her education. It is of importance to deliberate and debate the
fundamental purpose of education, and then to translate them into practice to produce the
desired results.
Similarly ;ai) #+,--& supports this statement by sayin) that education, lie democracy,
free marets, freedom of the press, and Auni"ersal human ri)htsA is one of those sub.ects
whose "irtue is considered self-e"ident. So is the superiority of the industrially ad"anced
countries in attainin) them. Conse0uently, any paca)e that arri"es with one of these
ma)ic labels on it, automatically 0ualifies for the A)reen channelA at our entry ports. 2o
0uestions ased. This uncritical acceptance has se"erely crippled our discussion of all
these "ital topics. Bor e1ample in education most of our discussion centers around
literacy statistics and the need to ha"e so many )raduates, masters, 3hDs, and so many
professionals, en)ineers, doctors, etc. in a )i"en country based on the standards in the
industrially ad"anced countries. The central issue of curriculum and e"en more
fundamental issue of the purpose of education normally do not attract our attention #;ai),
+,--&.
The writer mentions that the purpose of education is seen as the pro"ider of 0ualified
worforce for the machinery of production and consumers of products in order to pro"ide
for the economic prosperity of the country and personally to be able to earn a respectable
li"in). =n the other hand he said that o"er-linin) education with financial )oals can turn
out to be problematic in the lon) run. In addition, education needs to be more, as it needs
also to ser"e human society. Sharin) of common )oals, beliefs, outloo and "alues
pro"ide the framewor which binds its members to)ether, without which a human society
cannot continue to e1ist. Burthermore, the society must ensure that the common )round
will continue to hold from )eneration to )eneration #Ahmat, +,-,&.
Another purpose of education is to produce citi/ens and leaders who can ensure the
smooth operation of that society - now and into the future. *an-made problems such as
corruption, in.ustice, oppression, po"erty are primarily, directly or indirectly can be
traced bac to the education system that produces the people who brin) about the
problem. The e1amples )i"en by the writer of such problems are as follows$
#i& Culers who sell out to forei)n powers and sub.u)ate their own people.
#ii& ;ureaucrats who enforce laws without .ustice
#iii& Denerals who wa)e war on their own people
#i"& ;usinessmen who e1ploit and cheat.
#"& 3oliticians who abuse their power and enrich themsel"es.
;ai) #+,--& is in a)reement with the writer on this matter and adds another e1ample.
#"i& Eournalists who lie, sensationali/e, and promote indecencies.
Accordin) to the writer, this is what happens when the education system is de"oid of
proper moral trainin). The society becomes sic because the education system is sic and
this is the real crisis in education. 2urturin) the human bein) throu)h moral trainin) must
always be an ine1tricable part of education, reflected by teachin) across disciplines and
by e1ampleF not merely by introducin) an add-on course on moral education tau)ht
without con"iction, let alone passion. The teacher is not .ust a professional but also a
mentor and a moral )uide.
The writer hi)hli)hted one fundamental purpose of education is to foster an academic
community in which learnin) and scholarship can flourish with a resolute commitment to
the principle of searchin) and upholdin) truth. Bor this to happen, the uni"ersity must
allow for freedom of speech and freedom of scholarship - albeit with responsibility. This
entails the ri)ht to raise what may be considered to be deeply disturbin) 0uestions and the
ri)ht to challen)e what may be deemed to be cherished beliefs of society at lar)e and of
course, of the uni"ersity itself. It is this ri)ht to critical teachin) and research which the
uni"ersity has a duty abo"e all to be concerned, for there is no other institution in any
liberal democratic society, which is the custodian of this "ery precious yet "ulnerable
ri)ht. The uni"ersity must therefore be committed to the principle of respect for
intellectual inte)rity, freedom of en0uiry and rational discourse. Indeed the uni"ersity
needs to stand up and defend these attributes each time any of them is attaced. And the
state should in fact see this as critical to the lon) term well bein) of the nation.
=nce this is in place, we can then deal with issues relatin) to curriculum, teachin) and
learnin), scholarship and research, staff and students, leadership and mana)ement, and
contributions to state and society. And in so doin), ne"er to lose si)ht of the first principle
of a uni"ersity which is the pursuit of e1cellence. Bor e1cellence is absolutely critical
since uni"ersities e1ist to conser"e, create, re-create and communicate information,
nowled)e, sills and ideas and their practical application at the most ad"anced le"el
possible for society. Indeed uni"ersities are the only institutions that can do this on a
sustained scale for they are uni0uely desi)ned to carry out this role.
In *alaysia, adherence to the principles and "alues discussed abo"e is difficult to say the
least. The proliferation of public uni"ersities and the seemin)ly o"erni)ht con"ersion of
!ni"ersity Colle)es and Teachers Trainin) Colle)es into full fled)ed uni"ersities can
only result in worsenin) the problem of mediocrity in total antithesis to the need for
e1cellence. Some Vice-Chancellors will tell you that each time a new uni"ersity is
created, e1istin) uni"ersities lose )ood academic staff, and worse, e"en the mediocre and
the dead-wood )et hi)her positions in order to mae up the numbers.
Ghat is so tra)ic is that our )o"ernment has been more than )enerous in allocatin) lar)e
amounts of money to the hi)her education sector, but the outcomes do not commensurate
with the input. The allocation for tertiary education in the 'i)ht *alaysia 3lan was -9.7
billion and under the 2inth 3lan there is a +,< increase to -8.- billion. Het in recent
years we face the embarrassin) deterioration in world ranin) of our uni"ersities. And
because the focus seems to be in increasin) enrolments and )raduates instead of
occupyin) oursel"es with impro"in) 0uality, we see inflation and erosion in the "alue of
the uni"ersity 0ualification.
The writer su))ests that a serious rethin and re-e1amination of the current status of
tertiary institutions is necessary in order to meet the e1pectations of )o"ernment, society
and the indi"idual. In this conte1t the 2ational (i)her 'ducation Strate)ic 3lan launched
by the 3rime *inister in Au)ust +,,5 is to be welcomed. This is in fact historic as for the
first time in the history of hi)her education in *alaysiaF we ha"e a comprehensi"e lon)
term plan. The 3lan is helpin) to create a hi)her education en"ironment that will foster
the de"elopment of academic and institutional e1cellence, thereby achie"in) for *alaysia
Aworld classA hi)her education and the Ahi)hest 0uality with first class mentalityA human
capital needed to turn *alaysia into a de"eloped nation.
Conse0uently, the *inistry of (i)her 'ducation *alaysia has outlined its focus on se"en
strate)ic thrusts in"o"in) widenin) access and enhancin) e0uity, impro"in) the 0uality of
teachin) and learnin), enhancin) research and inno"ation, stren)thenin) institutions of
hi)her education, intensifyin) Internationalisation, enculturation of lifelon) learnin) and
finally reinforcin) the (i)her 'ducation *inistry>s deli"ery system #*inistry of (i)her
'ducation *alaysia, +,,5&.
Accordin) to the writer, to translate these hi)hly desirable ob.ecti"es into reality, the plan
will undertae, amon)st others, the followin) strate)ic action initiati"es$
#i& Stren)thenin) of hi)her education institutions by attractin) and retainin) the best
academics that can contribute si)nificantly to ad"ances in research and train )raduates
who can apply their nowled)e in the world of wor. This is to be achie"ed by )i"in)
)reater autonomy to uni"ersities and by refinin) the role and e1pectations of the ;oard of
Directors, the Vice-Chancellor and Senior *ana)ement.
#ii& Creatin) an en"ironment that fosters a culture of e1cellence in order to attract the
most able to enter academia and ensure that academics are measured throu)h continued
demonstration of their passion for teachin) and research.
#iii& ;uildin) a critical mass of researchers, scientists and technolo)ists so that there will
be at least fi"e renowned Cesearch and De"elopment Centres of '1cellence.
#i"& 'stablishin) Ape1 !ni"ersities which will be characteri/ed by ha"in) the ;est
Ieaders, the ;est Baculty, the ;est Students and the ;est Bacilities.
#"& Transformin) the *inistry of (i)her 'ducation to effect a philosophical chan)e from
that of a Ce)ulator and 'nforcer to bein) a Bacilitator and 3artner.
The writer also laud the )o"ernment for these initiati"es, which the educationists and
others had been hopin) for thus lon). ;ut for all these to become reality, one pre-
condition must pre"ail - the political will to ensure its achie"ement. 3olitical will in this
conte1t implies$
#i& That uni"ersity will truly be )i"en autonomy to ensure e1cellence.
#ii& The 3lan describes the Vice-Chancellor as the ey leader to be drawn from the
Ahi)hest rans of professionals, who must possess credentials, a trac record and
command the respect of ey staeholdersA.
#iii& 3romotion of academics is to be based on their continued demonstration of passion
for teachin), research and the attributes of first class human capital.
#i"& Creatin) the ri)ht en"ironment for Cesearch and De"elopment.
#"& Ape1 !ni"ersities
#"i& Bor the ministry of (i)her 'ducation to be transformed in the manner en"isa)ed, it
must be staffed by the best leaders, mana)ers and administrators, people who can
command the respect of the hi)her education society.
In conclusion, I am of the opinion that *alaysia will be able to achie"e its "ision to mae
*alaysia a centre of hi)her educational e1cellence by the year +,+, #*inistry of (i)her
'ducation *alaysia, +,--&, as the )o"ernment has lon) term plan #0ualitati"e& and short
term plan #0uantitati"e& and constantly carried out the strate)ies planned into
enforcement. Gith a clear "ision that is understood by all, its mission to build and create
a hi)her education en"ironment that is conduci"e for the de"elopment of a superior
centre of nowled)e and to )enerate indi"iduals who are competent, inno"ati"e and of
noble character to ser"e the needs of the nation and the world will become a reality by the
year +,+,.
References
Ahmat, S. #+,-,&. The 'ducation Issue - The State of (i)her 'ducation in *alaysia.
Cetrie"ed Au)ust -,, +,--, from http$%%www.pro.ectmalaysia.or)%articles%the-education-
issue-the-state-of-hi)her-education-in-malaysia.html
Albuhary International !ni"ersity. #+,-,&. Cetrie"ed Au)ust -5, +,--, from
http$%%aiu.edu.my%sharom.html
;ai), J. #+,--& The Ceal 3urpose of 'ducation. Cetrie"ed Au)ust -5, +,--, from
http$%%www.albala)h.net%education%education+.shtml
*inistry of (i)her 'ducation *alaysia, #+,,5&. National Higher Education Action Plan,
2007-2010. Tri))erin) (i)her 'ducation Transformation. Cetrie"ed Au)ust -5, +,--,
from http$%%planipolis.iiep.unesco.or)%upload%*alaysia%*alaysia<+,(i)her< +,
education<+,action<+,plan<+,+,,5-+,-,.pdf
3urdue =nline Gritin) Iab, #+,--&. Sample APA Paper. Cetrie"ed Au)ust -5, +,--, from
http$%%owl.en)lish.purdue.edu%media%pdf%+,,6,+-+,-9,,:K48,.pdf
*inistry of (i)her 'ducation *alaysia, #+,--&. *alaysia Centre =f 'ducational
'1cellence. Cetrie"ed Au)ust -5, +,--, from http$%%www.mohe.)o".my%educationmsia%
inde1.phpLarticleMmohe