STEMMING THE BRAIN DRAIN.
Holders of the Unified Examination Certificate practically have a passport to study anywhere in the world.
THE bell rings and two little girls run out of a classroom, holding hands and giggling. One is wearing a baju kurung and tudung while the other is in a dark blue pinafore.
Maizatul Mior Adiie Nurul Aswad and Chan Xue Lee, both 10, are Year Four pupils of SJKC Sin Min in Tronoh Mines New Village, Kampar, Perak.
It’s recess time, and joining them at the canteen table are Xue Lee’s sister, Xue Yee, nine; brother Wei Xiang, eight; and the siblings’ mother, Lee Lai Cheng.
And they are all talking in Chinese, fluently – sounding better at it than Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who has been making it a point to speak in Chinese during his trips to China in recent years!
An AFP report in October 2014 quoted Zuckerberg as saying: “I want to study the Chinese culture. Studying the language helps me study the culture. So I’m trying to learn the language. Also, I like a challenge.”
The report on a Q&A session in Chinese at Tsinghua University said Zuckerberg charmed his audience of Chinese and international students when he began the halfhour session by saying “Hello, everyone” in Chinese.
Yes, having a command of different languages, especially Chinese, is an invaluable skill these days.
Back in January 2011, United States President Barack Obama’s daughter Sasha, who was nine then, was proud to have the opportunity to test her Chinese skills on then China president Hu Jintao, who was on a state visit to the United States.
According to Reuters, Obama pointed out to his Chinese counterpart at a state dinner in Washington DC that his daughter “is a very young girl but her class is studying Chinese”.
Closer to home, Malaysians are indeed blessed to have the chance to study and master three major languages: Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and English.
MCA leaders have been pointing out how this can help this multiethnic country to tap world markets, especially in China, Indonesia and India. In fact, Malaysia has been China’s largest Asean trading partner and its third largest trading partner in Asia after Japan and South Korea.
And on Thursday, Education Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said Bahasa Melayu-Indonesia is among the top 10 most widely used languages in the world.
While the development of Chinese education in the country has been politicised at times, the good news is that it has also made some good progress of late.
Chinese education has been a priority for MCA since the party’s inception in 1949. And current party president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai has stated in no uncertain terms that the party will always protect Chinese education.
While some extremists may make racist remarks about such a stand, the enrolment of non-Chinese pupils in Chinese primary schools, or SJKCs, is on the rise.
In 2010, non-Chinese pupils comprised 11.8% of total enrolment in the country’s SJKCs, accounting for 72,443 of 612,064 pupils. The figure shot up to 15.3% in 2014, or 87,463 of 571,315 pupils.
Parents consider many different criteria when deciding on which schools to send their children to, so the fact that more and more non-Chinese parents are choosing Chinese primary schools is encouraging.
MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong says this goes to show that Malaysians are increasingly aware of the importance of the Chinese language.
He also points out that by mastering Chinese, English and Bahasa Malaysia, Malaysians will have a strong footing on the world’s stage.
There are 1,296 Chinese primary schools and 61 Chinese independent schools in the country. With an enrolment of 84,363 this year, the independent schools that offer the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) reported the highest enrolment since 1973.
MCA Youth chief Chong Sin Woon highlights the fact that the UEC, which is on par with the STPM, is recognised by education institutions worldwide, including top-notch universities.
According to the influential Chinese education body, Dong Zong (United School Committees Associations of Malaysia), the UEC is recognised by over 800 universities worldwide, including the National University of Singapore, California Institute of Technology, and the universities of Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge, Toronto, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Peking and Kyoto.
Chong, who is also Deputy Education Minister, says there have been major breakthroughs recently in getting the Higher Education Ministry here to recognise the UEC.
And the fact that the Dong Zong has recently accepted an SPM credit in Bahasa Malaysia as one of the conditions for recognition is extremely important.
“We have come to the point of discussing and ironing out the technicalities involved,” he says.
While recognition for the UEC is the last stop, Chong notes that the certificate is already recognised by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency and that UEC holders can also apply for PTPTN (Perbadanan Tabung Pendidikan Tinggi Nasional) study loans.
UEC’s image is unmistakably Chinese but many of its holders actually sat for the SPM at the same time.
According to Chong, not many people may be aware of it but many of the independent schools, like the Chong Hwa Independent School, practise a dual system and prepare their students for the UEC and SPM simultaneously.
To many Chinese, education is always close to the heart and an asset so they have no problems accumulating knowledge or meeting educational requirements. To them, sitting for two major examinations is not an issue at all.
Getting the UEC recognised by local public universities – for many Malaysians, they are still the most affordable option – is a pragmatic move, as it can help to stem the brain drain.
As it is now, bright UEC holders in particular, almost have a “passport” to tertiary education in any part of the world. Why should Malaysia lose them?
The three good friends in SJKC Sin Min have different ambitions and may or may not attend the same school after sitting for the UPSR examination.
Maizatul says in fluent Chinese “Wo yao zuo yi sheng (My ambition is to be a doctor)”.
Xue Lee says “Wo yao juo ge xing (My ambition is to be a singer)”, while Xue Yee says “Wo yao zuo shou yi (My ambition is to be a veterinarian)”.
They also rank Chinese as among their three favourite subjects.
Well, the three youngsters may even become UEC holders later, and if so, it would be another good chapter in their lives if they could be admitted to a local public university to realise their ambitions.
The party (MCA) will always protect Chinese education. liow Tiong lai Malaysian ns are increasin ngly aware off the import ance of the ChineseC languag ge. WeeW Ka SiongS there have been major breakthroughsh recently inn getting the UEC recognised by the Higher Education Ministry. Chong Sin Woon