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Contrary to popular perception, Singapore does actually have a working Parliament, in which ministers are occasionally asked questions, some of which are not plants or attempts to crawl up the arse of a minister. In Parliament yesterday, one such incident occurred, when Zaqy Mohamed, vice-chairman of the ruling People's Action Party's youth wing and an ethnic Malay MP, asked the education minister what was being done about the persistent educational under-performance of Malay students compared to Singaporeans of other ethnic backgrounds. The problem is a serious and persistent one. Figures from the Education Ministry show that while Singaporean exam results have increased across the board over the last decade, the stark disparities between the city-state's main three ethnic groups remain. In 2008, just 59.3% of Malay students achieved 5 passes at O-level, the exams taken by 15 and 16-year-olds, compared to 86.2% of Chinese and 73% of Indians. The disparity, which appears to be particularly sharp when it comes to Maths and Science, seems embedded from a young age. While 89.6% of Chinese and 72.9% of Indian kids taking the Primary School Leaving Examination achieved A*-C grades in Maths, only 56.3% of Malay kids managed the same feat. The only area where Malay students seem to come out on top, according to the government figures, is in terms of mother-tongue ability. 98.6% of Malay students taking the PSLE achieve an A*-C in their mother-tongue exam compared to 98.4% of Chinese and 96.7% of Indians. But despite the clear message of this data, the government, which tiptoes around racial issues because of fears of ethnic disharmony, does not appear willing to confront the problem. In response to Zaqy's question, the education minister Ng Eng Hen said only that the performance by Malay students had been "stable" over the last decade, with some improvements in Malay and English. While Zaqy wanted to know "what more can be done to help Malay students progress at the same rate, if not better, compared to their peers from the other race groups", Ng offered only vague platitudes, as he side-stepped the issue. "Parents and families, of all races, can support students by ensuring that they attend school regularly, motivating them to work hard, and adopting good habits like reading widely," the minister said. "Community and self-help groups can also help families deal with problem issues related to finances, jobs and relationships, in order to create a more supportive home environment." In other words: nothing to do with me, mate. It's not surprising to see the government dodging this intractable and controversial issue again. The question is whether the PAP's seeming indifference is motivated more by its over-arching self-help philosophy or by the fact that a Chinese-dominated party in a Chinese-dominated nation is not too bothered by the underperformance of the Malay minority.
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Looks to me this Zaqy bugger is not very bright. Has he forgotten the dear leader's wisdom, whereby intelligence is mainly decided by genes ? Instead of badgering MOE to help Malay students improve their grades in maths and science, Zaqy can kickstart improvement to the gene pool by getting Malay graduates to mate. And of course with the dear leader as mentor to the Malay gene pool program. After one generation, Zaqy may get the last laugh i.e. if he lives long enough.
"The question is whether the PAP's seeming indifference is motivated more by its over-arching self-help philosophy or by the fact that a Chinese-dominated party in a Chinese-dominated nation is not too bothered by the underperformance of the Malay minority." This is silly thinking, Ben. Let me put it this way: in what way does the PAP gain if the Malay community does poorly?
Anonymous, The PAP benefits whenever anyone outside its ruling group is kept down. It would not bother LKY at all if all Malays left Singapore, along with all Indians and all Chinese who objected to Lee family rule. The logical result of PAP policy is a nation-state, like some of the Gulf emirates, with a small and loyal ruling group of natives being serviced by an obedient populace of foreign workers (who can promptly be deported if they cause any trouble).
Dear all, and Ben, I think you do not understand the situation in Singapore. The problem of underachieving Malays is constantly a consideration among those in power in Singapore. At regular intervals, the issue crops up and is debated publicly. In practice, many community, self help groups have been established to tackle the problem, such as Mendaki. In my mind, the problem is a social one, not an educational one. Therefore it is not entirely appropriate that the education minister be expected to fully answer this question on his own. This is a problem that involves the ministries of National Development, and that of Community, Youth and Sports. The responsibility of the Education Ministry is to ensure a top grade education system for all kids, and Mr Ng is doing a good job in this respect. Social, cultural problems such as absent or single parents, kids who constantly play truant or drop out of school are not problems that can be eliminated with any single measure. They can take generations to remedy, as they require a complete cultural, mindset change. The Malays can only improve when a majority of them are convinced that education and HARD WORK is the path to a better life. Contrast the Singapore approach with the Malaysian approach, where freebies of all kinds are given to the Malays. What we now have in Malaysia is a generation of unemployed graduates and disastrously deteriorating institutions of higher education. This, because of the misguided affirmative action program which has led to an entitlement mentality, and which fosters mediocrity. No, it is clear that the Singapore approach is the way to go. Because it is based on the fundamental principle that hard work pays. And those who better themselves will be rewarded for their efforts.
The answer is simple. The education system with its kindergartens which teach Chinese, SAP schools, Gifted Education Programs that are only open to certain races because they are contained in Chinese schools etc are all part of Singapore's official education policy by providing state support for Chinese children from a very early age. This is meant as a counterbalance to the Malaysian policy which provides affirmative action to Malays in Malaysia. If Malays only needed "education and hard work", then Singapore taxpayers of all races could save huge amounts of money by stopping subsidies to kindergartens that teach only Chinese, SAP schools, special scholarships for childen from China etc etc Lily Zubaidah Rahim has documented this very well in her work "The Singapore Dilemma" in which she shows how when adjustments are made for socio-economic status, Malay children do just as well as Chinese when given the opportunities
I would be interested to see what hard evidence you have that the Singapore government only supports Chinese children. And you are sorely mistaken if you say schools with GEP are only open to Chinese children. Schools with the GEP include: Henry Park School, Rosyth, Raffles Girl's schools, none of which are SAP. Whilst there is definitely support for the Chinese language in the form of SAP schools, you would be foolish if you did not try to connect with the next superpower of the world. I fail to see the logic in your second paragraph. What is the connection between education/hard work for Malays and subsidies for schools? In the first place let's see your proof that the government only subsidises Chinese children. Don't tell me the government does not help fund Mendaki too. Without a doubt, a Malay child of the same socio economic status would do just as well as any other child. And that is why, the important thing is to address the social situation of a significant proportion of Malays, ie why the proportion of dysfunctional families, with no idea about priorities in life, remains highest among Malays. There is an urgent need to sort these families out, and to convince them of the absolute necessity of a good education for their children.
/// The question is whether the PAP's seeming indifference is motivated more by its over-arching self-help philosophy or by the fact that a Chinese-dominated party in a Chinese-dominated nation is not too bothered by the underperformance of the Malay minority. /// I think this is a bit rich. Assuming you have a kid whom you expect to do well in school. Despite doing more for this kid than you did for your other kids, this one still underperform. Mind you, you have done more for this one kid than your other kids. What would you do?
the Q above is best resolved if you apply LKY's scheme. amongst his 3 kids, LHL is a dud. but with LKY holding his hands, under performance becomes non issue....... so the key to under performing kids is their parents, i.e. status and wealth. ps: the gene theory did not quite work out for the famiLee
If Malay children with good social background do as well as others, then it is because they would have been encouraged to work hard. And the parents would be supporting them and tutoring them in school work. Not like dysfunctional families where it is common for the child to play truant and watch TV the whole day. There is no escape from hard work. In Malaysia, poorly achieving Malay students have scholarships and coveted courses foisted upon them. Getting something for nothing means that in many cases they fail to appreciate the largesse subsidised by Malaysian minorities. Perhaps they just do not have the necessary foundation. They do poorly in University. The university lowers its standards to pass them. And so Malaysian universities are now routinely ranked outside the top 2 hundred universities in the world. And the graduates who have 'graduated' are not fit to be employed. In Singapore, except for certain institutions such as the military, opportunities are more equal than in most other countries. You only have to look across the causeway for a comparison.
"In 2008, just 59.3% of Malay students achieved 5 passes at O-level, the exams taken by 15 and 16-year-olds, compared to 86.2% of Chinese and 73% of Indians." The Singaporean Indians are doing very well. Why?
"The Singaporean Indians are doing very well. Why? " You are so right! Nathan, Jayakumar, Tharman, Shanmugam, Vivian, Davinder, etc, etc are well placed to provide you the clues.
Thanks for all the comments. It's not easy to respond to all your points individually as you're all anonymous but I guess that's one of the downsides of writing about Singapore - no-one wants to go on the record. I agree that it appears that the govt would have little to gain by keeping Malay kids down. My charge was more that the govt was sweeping the issue under the carpet rather than confronting it. But there are those who believe that the govt is trying to keep down the Malay population, out of lingering fears of a Malay/Malaysian "fifth column". They point to the significantly higher birth rate among Malay Singaporeans and the govt's apparent preference for immigrants from the People's Republic of China as signs of a govt trying to maintain the dominance of ethnic Chinese in Singapore.
89.6% of Chinese and 72.9% of Indian kids taking the Primary School Leaving Examination achieved A*-C grades in Maths, only 56.3% of Malay kids managed the same feat. Is high in-breeding i.e. intermarriage among first cousins the cause of the poor Maths scores of that particular ethnic group?
You fail to note the considerable improvements that the Malays have made over the years. It is true they still lag behind Chinese and Indian Kids, but this is no fault of the government. The Singapore government has in fact gone over and above to help the Malays. Please be fair when fairness is due. My own analysis of the situation is this: Chinese and Indian parents place a huge emphasis on education and their kids have to spend all their free time studying. Malay families have different priorities and attitudes to education, and do not place as much emphasis on it, hence they study less. The net result is self explanatory. Ben, I've noticed that your articles are consistently denigrating Singapore, as if you have an axe to grind. If there is a problem in the system, a good reporter should definitely write about it. After all, it makes good news. But a good reporter should also be as objective as possible. Please realize that Singapore is not a perfect place and has many flaws but it also has many good things too.
Ben is just doing a job which the MSM in Spore is not doing. LOL Whatever org. Ben works for, one thing is certain, the ranking of 154th is a really tough act to beat. LOL
Fair enough that he gives his alternative view but with his standard of reporting, he has a long way to go if he wants to be well known.
and respected
You mean well known and respected like the AWSJ and The Economist. LOL No worries Ben, you're doing fine, worry only when those from PAP praise you to heaven. LOL
I think "opposition class" is a better term than "fifth column." Many PAP policies are designed (or have the happy effect) of preventing the creation or empowerment of an opposition class. The racial housing restrictions prevent the formation of race-defined opposition wards. The scholarship programs incentivize the academically gifted to work for the government or a GSE. The legal community -- an incubator of politicians in most advanced societies -- is emasculated. The "white horse" program fast-tracks the sons of loyal families into top Armed Forces positions. The anti-sodomy and public order laws prevent the gay rights movement from becoming overtly political. And the import of compliant "foreign talent" makes it difficult for ordinary Singaporeans to advance in the private sector (because a bloc of educated Singaporeans who are not beholden to the government could become dangerous for the PAP). Harry Lee has systematically destroyed or co-opted the sectors of society from which a charismatic opponent could arise.
Thanks for your support chualeehoong. Righteous - I challenge you to provide evidence of your accusations: that my coverage consistently denigrates Singapore and that I have an axe to grind. There is certainly a lot to admire about Singapore, Singaporeans and the Singapore government. But, as with any country, there are problems. I believe that in Singapore, as elsewhere, the best way to deal with such problems is to confront them head on, rather than merely sweeping them under the carpet.
Dear Ben, The list of articles that you've written can be found here: http://uk.asiancorrespondent.com/the-asia-file I'll let the readers decide whether my view is correct or not... That way you benefit too. More clicks to your articles. Anyway some constructive thoughts: I agree sweeping it under the carpet is not a good thing, and I view your role in the alternative media in providing a different view as very important. I definitely appreciate seeing articles that the traditional media in Singapore refuses to print. But I personally think you should be more balanced in your reporting. If not, you'll just be like 'them' but on the different side. Best wishes,
Hi Derek Davies While in a sense it's true LKY has 'systematically destroyed or co-opted the sectors of society from which a charismatic opponent could arise', he has done so while at the same time maintaining real harmony among the different ethnic groups and dragging Singapore to 1st world status at a speed no other country in the region (SEA) can match. His very success is one of the factors why the opposition finds it so difficult in tiny Singapore. Please note that race defined opposition would be a disaster for Singapore. Nobody misses the communal riots of the 60s which were started by UMNO. While scholarship programs are a real incentive for the talented, it only makes sense because you want the best to run a country. Note that these are not PAP scholarships. They may have bonds, but the holder is free to pursue other opportunities once the bond is completed. I am not sure what you mean by an emasculated legal community. There is now a budding international arbitrage centre in Singapore and the Singapore courts are generally held in high regard. Real emasculation happens across the causeway-with sacking of non-compliant judges and judge fixing.
Anonymous, I applaud the concision with which you pack more than half a dozen PAP talking points into one blog comment. All the greatest hits are played: "harmony" (i.e., the superficial internal peace which any police state can create), "development" (as if half a point of further GDP growth is always the top priority, and must be achieved at the expense of further political rights and free expression), "First World" (plenty of less wealthy nations are nice places to live and have more freedom than Sing), "meritocracy" (which, coincidentally, tends to yield wildly disproportionate results in favor of Lee family members and their coatholders) and, for old time's sake, "Malaysia bad." Almost all PAP rhetoric reduces to one argument, supported by a false choice: "PAP rule brings economic prosperity. And your only choice is between the PAP or the abyss (chaos/race riots/your daughters becoming maids in Jakarta)." There are plenty of other choices. Singaporeans might decide they want to trade a point or so of growth in return for old age pensions or Brunei-style subsidized health care. And many Singaporeans would prefer to purchase a 2nd or 3rd marginal unit of freedom of expression instead of a 64th unit of prosperity. But continued GDP growth is what enriches the Lee family and its supporters, so that's what the PAP will stress. While, of course, rigging every rule of the game in its favor, and watching its lackeys fill newspaper letters columns and blog comments with regurgitated, 30-year-old arguments.
Hey Ben U should consider writing also about the 'kuda kepang' issues among the Malays in Singapore now. It is by far the most annoying issues and serves to proves why the Malay are not as smart. Clue, check police and government record, right now, there is an ongoing serious case involving a group from Blk 105 Bedok North Ave 4, #04-2168. This news can promote u straight to the top. Take it up if u can meet the challenge and want to know what the real problems with Malays here.
I'm going to need some more explanation here. What's the issue surrounding the "horse dance"? Or is "kuda kepang" a Malay euphemism?
Hi Mr Bland, Thanks for the article that got me thinking. I think it's a cycle. Poor education -> low-paid job -> children living in a lowly-academically-educated environment -> poor education -> low-paid job ... Malay families are now breaking this trend by encouraging their kids to study hard. Truth is, it takes a lifetime to change this cycle. I guess while the statistics look quite depressing, I'm really glad to say that I've got a bunch of Malay friends studying alongside me and doing real well in their studies. There are some from low-income families as well. I'm not into politics but I believe the government has been trying it's best to improve the situation about Malays not fairing well in studies. After all, we all know that Singapore won't benefit from having poorly academically-educated people.
Hi Ben, I'm currently a student at NTU majoring in Photography. I'd like to share my opinion on the "issue". There are no short cuts in life. Malays have to work hard and make sacrifices. I think life has its fair share of challenges and no system is perfect. As an ethnic Malay, it is really frustrating when the state still persist in analysing issues through the ethnic lens, after forty plus years of independence. I am grateful that I got into NTU, an institution that was set up by the Chinese community giving opportunities to non-Chinese Singaporeans like myself. We even have prayer rooms for Muslim staff and students. Here's my observation: In a National Geographic interview, Lee Kuan Yew mentioned that immigrants have the hunger to work hard and succeed. I have to agree with him. In my class, there were twenty students. 5 are foreigners, 15 are Singapore citizens. Being the kaypoh(busybody) Singaporean that I am, I like to ask about their backgrounds and share our life experiences. I found out that 5 were children of immigrants. 4 ethnic Han Chinese (Malaysia and Hong Kong) and 1 Tamil who grew up in India. Some of them were not born in Singapore. I didn't have the time to ask the other nine. I am the only ethnic Malay in my class. I am not a sociologist and I do not know how to go about in presenting this. I'm a fourth generation Singaporean. My great-grandparents were born in Raffles' Singapore. If I were to apply the scenario across the lecture theatres and put aside the 5, I believe ethnic Malay Singaporeans make up 10% of university students, not far from our 13% percent in the national population. If Singapore were to import 'talented' Malays, the little-Farish Noors and the little-Sri Mulyanis from region maybe the numbers might appear different. It is well documented that since 1965, our immigration policies have favoured ethnic Han Chinese and Indians. Everytime I read the Berita Harian, I read articles of 'successful' Malay Singaporeans who are 'successful' overseas, not in their own homeland. It is a good and a bad thing. Maybe it is true that Malay students are not good enough for Law and Medicine. Once while entering one of the school's prayer rooms, I overheard about five Indonesians talking about business strategies, maybe business students. The irony that we have places for pribumi Indonesians but few places for Singaporean Malays in Business courses hits me hard. One of America's famous photographers Richard Avedon once said, "All photographs are accurate, but none of them is the truth." The same can be said of statistics. There is a limit to pinning the blame on the government. I hope someday Singaporeans can rise above racial politics. There are many factors in an individual's success. We have to take into account one's socio-economic background. Other Singaporeans face similar challenges. I have classmates who come humble backgrounds, some of their fathers are technicians and lorry drivers. While talent is important, ambition is a key factor. If we look at the Malay community, the bulk of upper-class Malays are top civil servants. It is an uphill challenge since Malays have no land, no economic power and no political power. If we work hard, make sacrifices and inspire one another we will see brighter days. As fourth-generation Singaporeans(XXXth-generation Temasekians XXth-generation Srivijayans), the Malay community can and must be proud of our achievements. Malay Singaporeans can compete without affirmative action, without the help of 'talented' Malays from the region to boost our numbers. Best regards, Hafidz Senor http://www.flickr.com/photos/hafidzsenor
Dear Ben, It seems that your article is not very objective and is in fact, very loaded with pre-conceived notions about Singapore and our education system. As a journalist myself..i really think you may need to improve in this area? (just saying) And I suppose you do not believe in the term "meritocracy" ? In other words, Singapore is able to sustain its position as one of the fast growing economy in the world as well as provide its citizens with a relatively comfortable lifestyle (as compared to its neighbours) all centres around this idea of MERITOCRACY. Although the govt aims to this, there are also constant discussions on ways to help the less privileged (all races included) i.e SM Goh Chok Tong has always been connecting with the malay community and seeking ways to improve their lives. As compared to many other countries around the world, such as australia, britain, and close to us, Malaysia, there is very little racism. So please, learn to be objective, and perhaps do a little more research before you conclude. Thanks. |
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