Re-Post:Education Black hole in Sabah

From my siter's website: http://dreamyborneo.blog.com/4049746/

Cheated of Future

Last Friday, a news report highlighted by The Breakfast Show on NTV7 caught my eye. The hosts were discussing a story my colleague Julia had written in the NST on the plight of Pilatus Sahajiman and Malccolm Edvin who were "talked out" of sitting for their Year 6 compulsory exams three years ago by their principal. Their parents are now claiming that they were called for a meeting with the principal, who was not named in the report.

The parents say the principal told them the boys were academically weak and that if they sit for the Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR), they would pull down the school's performance and "humiliate" the school as well. Pilatus' father accepted what the principal said, thinking that perhaps it was government policy. Pilatus went on to Form 1 but soon lost interest and now does odd jobs cleaning heavy machinery and washing tractors when he should actually be in Form 3. Malccolm has stayed on in school, but his father says the boy has low-self esteem because of what happened three years ago.

The parents have since, with the assistance of Inanam Assemblyman Johnny Goh, filed a complaint with the Sabah Education Department. According to the newspaper report, the department has promised that "investigations are under way."

I sincerely hope the Education Department and its director, who was just last week conferred with the second highest honour by the Head of State, will actually take action and not just offer lip service.

I also hope the department will go to the ground to gather feedback from parents, especially in rural areas, on problems they face in making sure their children get quality education. I remember visiting a rural school in northern Sabah on a Thursday ... and everyone had left for the weekend. It is no wonder that today we see hundreds of children (not immigrants) working at shops, car wash outlets and in restaurants. Two weeks ago, I bought vegetables from a boy opposite the secondary school I attended. The only reason I stopped to buy vege was because I wanted to speak to the boy. He shared that he is 11, from a northern district in Sabah, and doesnt go to school because his family has no money. Then I entered a nearby shop, and saw another boy about 11 as well, carrying a box of sundry items on his tiny frame. A few months back, a colleague and I stopped at a car wash outlet in Ranau, and there were 5 boys there aged 12-13. All of them come from the same village, and say they would rather work because their parents are just too poor.

Is it just poverty that is keeping these children out of school, or are those entrusted with the responsibility of encouraging these potential future leaders to stay in school turning them away? Caring society? I dont think so.

Ripping off Students?

I've just finished marking my post-graduate Macroeconomics for Managers course assignments. It can be a trying experience at times, when you come up with a paper with rubbish English, or one with incoherent arguments, or worse, both!! But it can also be a real pleasure when you see a great effort or a huge improvement from a student who was initially struggling.

It is a class almost UN in character, and I get very interesting questions, so I posed an open ended assignment question for them to search and wander in the dark. These are people with undergraduate degrees; they are not wet behind the ears when it comes to assignments and the like. But some of them are clearly way off the pace, and is that their fault or those who accepted their applications?

I always took the view that universities can be under too much pressure to raise revenues due to governmental budget cuts and thus accept students who might ultimately struggle but still pay the fees. I'm glad to report to myself that at least as far as my university is concerned I am fairly certain that is not the case (after 1 year lecturing experience). Most have shown great aptitude to learn a subject quite alien to them, and showed that their analytical skills (hopefully sharpened during their first degree) is well formed. Some struggle somewhat due to their level of English competency, and here I feel my university can take a second look at English proficiency entry requirements. It is painful to see a bright student not get the marks they deserve because they don't quite fully understand the question or express themselves well enough. If their answer is somewhat obscure, what can I do? It's not my job to simplify the English in the course just for them. I already try hard to use simpler terms, but if they cannot even understand the word 'endeavour' perhaps they should have spent a bit more time studying English before being allowed to do such a course.

A few are meandering along, and should do better. Perhaps they need time to adjust to the Australian system, or perhaps they need to try harder. I don't know, but to be fair one semester is not enough to make judgements. They seem quite bright too, but maybe their expectations of what they need to do at this level is too low. One or two look like failing, not because the university has taken them in when they should not have, but because they are just not trying. Father's $$$ I assume.

So, no I don't think students are being ripped off, in terms of being taken into courses they cannot do for the sake of university income, and that I am pleased to find out for myself. Whether fees are too high is another matter entirely, and again hardly the fault of the universities-Little Johnny and his short-sighted views can take the blame for that!