Educational reform in SE Asia

Educational reform in SE Asia

By Kasina Olarnriksupuck

BANGKOK: Southeast Asian countries, which recently adopted the
basic educational reform concept of UNESCO's education for all
people program, are facing problems and the most critical of
which is a shortage of capable teachers.

The 1990 United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) conference in Bangkok showed that
developing countries in the region, including Thailand,
Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, have adjusted their
basic educational programs to suit today's globalization and
industrialization needs.

The governments of these four countries embarked on
educational reform less than two years ago. They have faced many
difficulties, such as the limited number of schools, obsolete
curriculum and the prevailing attitude of some parents who do not
see education as important, among others.

On top of all these problems is the dearth of qualified and
dynamic teachers.

All countries follow the same line of educational reform -- to
westernize the educational curriculum with the aim of fulfilling
their country's vision to become industrialized. But at the same
time they will try to preserve national and cultural identities.

Schools will concentrate on subjects like science and
mathematics, with emphasis also on computer literacy and basic
English skills, which are essential tools in today's globalized
economy.

The Malaysian government seems to be the most active in the
development of educational programs among the four countries. It
has improved the basic educational reform of curriculum since the
'80s with a focus on Vision 2020 -- the year the country is
expected to become fully industrialized.

Indonesia extended the compulsory education from six to nine
years in 1993.

While the Thai government has yet to formally reform its
educational policies, various ideas of reform put forth were
seconded by UNESCO. These include a plan to extend the compulsory
education from six to nine or to 12 years by 1996, a student loan
plan, distant education through the Thaicom satellite and
encouragement of private sector participation in education.

The Philippines, the regional leader in higher education,
started improving the quality of compulsory education in 1993
with the hiring of additional teachers.

From studies conducted in various countries, most of the
present crop of teachers are not that competent in important
subjects needed for industrialization, such as mathematics,
science and English. As such, governments need to subsidize the
training of teachers.

Innovation is needed to be able to come up with training
modules that will enable teachers to learn how to do their task
effectively and how to adjust their curriculum themselves to suit
each cultural community.

More importantly, governments have to make teachers realize
that their services are indispensable and as such, they must
offer higher wages and ensure better working conditions by
providing the right equipment, for instance.

A cue could be taken from the Malaysian government which has
revamped its primary and secondary educational curriculum.

The new curriculum aims to make students more skillful and
intellectual and at the same time allow them to retain the basic
traditional values to prevent them from becoming too
materialistic, said University of Malaya's Department of
Educational Development Dean, Dr. Rahimah Ahmad.

Like other nations, the country has faced similar problems in
trying to improve basic education on a large scale. Such ideas
are prevalent among government officials and educators, although
the mainstream of society remains hesitant to change.

But it would seem that teachers who are agents of effective
education are not capable of, or enthusiastic for change. Some do
not value the contribution they are making to society, while
others believe that their profession pales in comparison to
others with the salary not high enough, said Khadijah Rohani Mohd
Yunas of the University of Malaya.

The Malaysian government has promoted training for teachers
with a focus on them becoming aware of impractical teaching rules
and on adjusting the curriculum together with local communities
of various cultures to avoid conflicts and protests against
education, given Malaysia's multi-cultural society.

The country does not have a compulsory educational system, but
up to 90 percent of the population has finished secondary school,
with 60 percent finishing senior high school. Only 30 percent of
the population is enrolled in higher education.

Lower education is almost free, while tuition at the
university level is "very cheap", Khadijah added.

There are nine public universities and no local private
universities. However, international universities have mushroomed
in Malaysia in the last few years. The situation is similar to
Thailand where the University of Maryland and the University of
Southern Illinois are expected to open branches. Malaysia calls
it a twinning program and it is very popular among students.

Indonesia on the other hand extended compulsory education from
six to nine years last year. However, it still faces a shortage
of teachers, especially in remote areas. The government has
granted several teaching scholarships to students in some
communities with the hope that they will engage in this
profession after graduation. However, the low wages have
discouraged them from doing so.

Parents are unwilling to send their children to school and
many want them to help in the farming chores. As a result, the
government has opened more non-formal schools that will enable
students to study at home.

The Philippines has a basic 10-year short educational program.
The educational reform started in 1993 after the government
realized that many Filipinos wanting to enter into semi-skilled
and skilled professions did not go beyond secondary education.

Therefore, the government established an Education Commission
and tasked it with surveying the country's educational system
with the aim of finding out ways to improve it. The commission's
1991 study showed that teachers of basic subjects are not
qualified: only 34 percent of teachers in general science were
qualified, biology (30.5), chemistry (15.4), mathematics (54.6)
and physics (4.4).

Another study in 1990 revealed that secondary school teachers
scored only eight percentage points higher than their students'
mean of 45 percent in the evaluation test. The teachers also
scored low in English (58.49).

Subsequently, with the need for improvement imperative,
government asked universities to take a leading role in improving
the quality of teachers.

Aida C. Caluag of the Ateneo de Manila University, one of the
two renowned institutions of teacher education, said the
university came up with a module to train teachers for four days
with a subsidy from the government. Teachers attend the training
sessions when they have the time to do so, such as weekends.

The module stressed "how to teach" effectively. The programs
had three objectives: building a sense of mission, building a
relationship with students in person and strengthening knowledge
of basic subjects.

Higher education is expensive and there are only four public
universities, although there are 93 private institutions.
However, 55 percent of the population finished higher education.

The country is the leader and hub of education in Southeast
Asia. Educational reform in the Philippines, therefore, focuses
on quality enhancement, especially in teachers.

In Thailand however, there is no formal plan for educational
reform. However, both public and private sectors are actively
made aware of projects and concepts for a better education.
Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Education Dean, Associate
Prof. Dr. Paitoon Sintarat said government needs to have a clear
goal of what it really wants as far as education is concerned.

The extension of compulsory education will be done in 1996.
The original plan was to extend it from six to nine years,
although it is possible that the government will extend it to 12
years.

The Chuan government had also initiated a student loan scheme
of Bt6.5 billion for poor students to enable them to enroll in a
higher level of secondary education. This would have started in
1996 with an initial target of 132,000 students. The budget would
then be increased to Bt17 billion for 300,000 students in the
fourth year. Within 15 years, 922,000 students will be eligible
for the loan.

The government has established a department for distant
education wherein students in remote areas will be able to study
through the Thaicom satellite. The project, however, has yet to
get off the ground.

The private sector has also been called to play a more
important role in education. The Thai Farmers Bank has already
donated a substantial amount in a research project that will
study how Thailand's education should be run in the future as
well the feasibility of allowing more international schools to
operate in the country.

-- The Nation

Window: From studies conducted in various countries, most of the
present crop of teachers are not that competent in important
subjects needed for industrialization, such as mathematics,
science and English.