Education in Malaysia: Unifying or Divisive?

I read a very informative book published by the Malaysian Strategic Research Centre and Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation and edited by Abdul Razak Baginda and Peter Schier.

The book, MSRC-KAF Inter-Cultural Discourse Series III Education in Malaysia: Unifying or Divisive? is a collection of various presentations and discussions made during two and a half day seminars entitled "Education in a Multi-Racial and Multi-Religious Society: Divisive or Unifying?" held on 20 Nov 2002 and "Education and Religion: Combating Parochialism" held on 21 Jan 2003, both at the Nikko Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

I wish I could reproduce some of the excerpts here but, well, the book is copyrighted. Anyway, the back cover of the book reads:-

Education, a contrivance to build nations and individual character, might also inadvertently erect barriers between peoples and cultures. While education in Malaysia has helped the nation a long way in producing a rapidly developing country, concerns about the state of racial polarisation in society and schools have emerged to provoke a renewal of debate about the state and objectives of education in this country. This publication, limited as it is, hopes, however, to bring additional perspectives to this continuing debate of national importance.

I hope the copyright owners won't take me to task by my reproduction of the above. I find the articles within the small volume enlightening. It is a call to the government to remodel and reformulate the education system in our country in order to lay a solid foundation for Malaysia's development and progress in all spheres, from social and economic to political in this new millenium.

I bought my copy of this book for RM10.00 at the Popular Book Co. It was RM10.00 well spent.