education for unity in malaya : an evaluation of the education...

PERPUSTAKAAN NEGARA MALAYSIA

EDUCATION FOR UNITY

IN MALAYA

An Evaluation of the Educational System of Malaya with Special Reference to the Need for Unity

in its Plural Society

By

HO SENG ONG M.A. (Lond.) ED.D. (Denver)

Educational Secretary, Methodist Schools, Malaya, and Principal, Anglo-Chinese School, Penang

Issued under the auspices of the MALAYAl'IJ EDUCATOR and P ublished by the Malayan Teachers' Union,

2 Mandalay Road, Penang, Malaya.


TABLE OF -CONTENTS CHAPTER

I INTRODUCTION

What is wrong \vith Malaya

Shortcomings of Malayan _education

The statement of the problem

The limit..'l.tions of the study

Definitions of terms

The methods employed

Sources of materials

The importance of the stud~r

Its otganization

II THE MALAYA~~ SETTING

~he Geography of ~Ialaya

World and regional relations

Its economic development

The plural communities

Politics and Policy

The Aborigines

The M.alays

The Chinese

'fhe Indians

The Eurasians

The Europeans

The Others

Summary

III nn·; MALAYAN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

A short historical survey

Types of schools _

The Vernacular Schools

The Malay Schools

.PAGE

1

2

4

7

9

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10

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15

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21

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27

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45

47

47


CHApTER

The Chinese Schools

The Indian schools"

The English S~hod1s''-' : ' ;,'

Types of ' sCh~~is

'3

..... :-0

.. '.; Boys and girls schools

. '.~. ' .

", RAGE

GO

63

6G

70

Primary and sec-:mdary schools " 75 - .;

Vocational schools .. : ; .... -. ~. ." .;.:::.:'

Post-secondary cd~lcatjon

Teacher-training

Summary

..... .' .~ . ' ~. ', ' : .. .... !" ~

• ' ,' ,' - /. - ~' .J . ~ .. ::: ~

78

78

81

82

IV DOES THE MALAYAN " . r:DUCATION~ ~ POLICY AND PRACTICE MEET THE 'NEED FOli' UNITY ,. 8-i

Malaya's major proh'leit; .. ·,·, .- 85

The pre-1942 educational 'polic'y' .-. ~: . , 85

Malay schools and Mal~y interests ,: .: :- 88

The lack of a Malayan 'OUtl~OK in tiie Chinese and Indian schools '. '. , 89

English schools and Malaya~ .. i~terests ' 90

Sir Richard Winstedt's recent views ,,' 92

Replies to the questionnaicre . :from, former Malayan educators " 96

The new educational policy 100

Important changes 103

The extension of English instruction in the Primary schools 104

Restrictions on EngHsh education: no't justified 105

History repeats itself lOG

The Singapore amendment 108

What former Malayan educators think of the new policy 110


xii CHAPTER PAGE

IV (Continued)

Post-Primary schools in the new educational setup.. 114

Other features 117

Summary 118

V A PROPOSED PL.~~ OF EDUCATION FOR UNITY IN THE :MALAYAN PLURAL SOCIETY 120

GC'Ileral principles 121

Free primary schools 124

Post-primary schools 125

Post-secondary education, including teacher-training institutions 126

Further education 129

Stages in the development of the policy 129

Co-operation of voluntary agencies 131

Finance 131

Summary 133

VI SOl\IE IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROPOSED PLAN OF EDUCATION 135

The goal of Malayan unity 136

Education for social cohesion 140

The choice of English as the lingua franca 146

The place of the D1<?ther tongue and bilingualism 148

Additional ,"iews from replies to the questionnaire .. 154

Summary 157

VII SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDA-TIONS 159

VlII RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 164

NOTES ON REFERENCES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPENDIX

169

178

201


xili

LIST OF TABLES

TABLE

I The Population according to the Main Racial Divisions in the Federation and Singapore, 1931

PAGE

and 1947 25

II Percentage of Population Enrolled in all Schools by Races «

111 Malay Schools-Number of Pupils 47

IV Malay Schools-Scholars by Schools Years 48

V Chinese Schools-Number of Pupils 54

VI Chinese Schools-Scholars by School Years 55

VII Chinese Schools-Students in the Post-Primary School 55

VIII Chinese Schools-Type of Management, Number of Schools, Teachers and Pupils 56

IX Indian Schools-Number of Pupils 60

X Indian Schools-Scholars by School Years 60

XI Indian Schools-Type of Management, Number of Schools, Teachers and Pupils in the Federation 61

XII Indian Schools-Type of Management, Number of Schools, Teachers and Pupils in Singapore 61

XIII English Schools-Number of Students, (Primary and Post-Primary) 64

XIV English Schools-Type of Management, Number of Schools, Teachers and Pupils 65

XV English Schools-Racial Distribution of Students 66

XVI Post Secondary, Teacher Training Institutions, Vocational Schools and Number of Students .. .79


xiv

LIST OF FIGURES FigUl'es

1. Malaya-pre-1942 and Post-War Political Units

2 Racial Distribution in the Federation, the Colony of

Singapore, and a ll Malaya

:~ Increase in Population of the Major Racia l Groups in the

F ederation, 1921-1947

4 Increasc in Population of the Majol' Racial Groups in I

Malaya, 1921-1947

5 Increase in Population of the Major Racial Groups in

(j

7

8

9

J.O

Singapore, 1921-1947

The Educational Systcm of Malaya, 1947

Number of Pupils in t.he Federation Schools, 1950

Number of Pupils in the Singapore Schools, 1950

The Federation English Schools (1947 and

Goyel'nmcnt, Aidcd and Privatc, Boys and

Separately ShO\nl

Thc F deration English Schools (1947 and

Govcnmlellt, Aided and Private-all pupils

11 Sillgapore English Schools (1947 and 1950)

GoYcl'nmcnt, Aided and Private-all pupils

1950)

Girls

1950)

Page

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26

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69

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"

'CHAPTER J

INTRODUCTION

•

y 00 teachers render to this republic' the prime, the vital " service of amalgmnatmg into one homogeneous body ·the children ' of those who are bom here and of those who · come here from so many different lands abroad. You ' furnish a common training and common ideals for the

. -children Of all the mixed peoples who are here -being fUSed into one nationality. -

~Theodore- Rooseveltl

While it is true that, prior to the outbreak of the Pacific War in 1941, Malaya had "not risen to the dignity of a Problem"£ because it was blessed with economic-prol'lperity and ' peaceam~ng

1. .' Theodore -Rooseveft, -in address before the ' National Education Association meeting, .19.05, Quoted ' in Expressions on Education by Build"rs of American Democracy, Bulletin,. 1940, No. 10, p. 45._

2. Lennox A. Mills, British Rule in Eastern Asia, p. 1.


its mixed population, it is equally true that the country today reveals "in most acute forms the problem of plural societies,"3 not to mention the many difficulties arising from the disastrous consequences of the Japanese occupation period. Many writers and speakers have correctly diagnosed the country's ills; a few excerpts will help to focus attention on th~ major needs of the post-war Malaya.

What is wrong with Malaya? Dr. Rupert Emerson of Harvard who has shown much interest in Malayan affairs, especially the political aspects of the British rule, has recently offered this criticism: "Malaya is the example par excellence of Furnivall's plural society, and that exceedingly little has been done under British rule to bridge the gap between the races and classes."4 Virginia Thompson sees, in the inglorious defence of Malaya, the failure on the part of the British to weld the Malayan peoples into a nation for she says, "The single tie that bound Malaya together was the economic motivation of all her r esidents except the Malay component . .. .. . this common economic factor had not provided a national life in the real sense of the word."5

On the other side of the Atlantic the English themselves expressed the same c~emnation. The writer in "The Observer" makes this pronouncement: "We must builQ Malaya into a nation. Hitherto we have done nothing quite so positive; . . . . .. What we have not done is to try to break down "plural" communities into a single community with a conscious sense of national unity."6 The influential Association of British Malaya in London went on record to t his effect: "The Malayan mainland should be constituted into one political and economic entity and t hat the domiciled inhabitants of Malaya must assume a greatly

11. 7. 3. Marjorie Nicholson, Self-Government and the Communal Problem,

4. Rupert Emerson, Pacific Affairs, 19: 433. December, 1946. 5. Virginia Thompson, Postmortem on Malaya, p. 15. 6. "Talks on the Future in British Malaya," Crown Colonist, 12: 276,

May. 1942.


3

increased share in the government -and administration 'Of the .country. ' ...... Every effort must. be ~ade to develop a sense of pan-Malayan . citizenship on tp.e partof.··aU domici1~ races."? His Majesty's Government, usually silent on the .larger question of policy, referred to the divided and separatist features of t~e pre-war system of government ' in ~Ialayaand the "need -:.to promote the sense of unity and common citizenship .... Our policy will call for a constitutional union of Malaya and for the institution of a Malayan citizenship which will give equal citizenghip rights ·to those who can claim Malaya' to be their homeland."8.

Not all these criticisms have emanated from outside of Malaya. Dr. Victor Purcell who returned to Malaya after the liberation to head the Department of Chinese Affairs has given his opinion that the country ought to be developed "on a basis of unity rather than diversity, ·to move more rapidly to the development of that strength, self-reliance, and c~mmon purpose for the promotion of self-government through nationwide institutions in which the whole community can participate."9 Gerald Hawkins of the Malayan Civil Service and closely associated with the local peoples (Co-operative and Welfare Departments) has indicated the same failings of the past! Till the Japanese occupation, he writes, "there was harmony but not much unity .... many regarded Malaya not as the object of their loyalties but as the source of their royaltles."lo Mr. Tan Cheng Lock, now Sir Tan Cheng Lock, and for 'many years the distinguished leader of the Chinese, has reiterated the urgent need to develop .the s-ense of Pan-Malayan citizenship among all communities; he puts this tersely-we n~ed "a united Malaya within the British

7. "Reconstruction of Malaya," Crown Colonist, 13: 690, October, 1943. 8. Sir Harold Macmichael, Report on a Mission to Malaya, p. 3.

Quotes statement made by the Secretary of State f\)r the Colonies to Parliament on 10th October, 1946.

9. Victor Purcell, "The Proposed New: Constitution", Pacific Affairs, 19: 30, March, 1946 .

.10. Gerald Hawkins, "Marking Time in Malaya" International Affairs, 24: 78, January, 1948.


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