Music Education in Malaysia

An article in the Star newspaper Education pullout section (Let's face the music) by Johami Abdullah perked my interest on a warm Sunday afternoon. This article touches on what I wasn' t aware of but it's certainly something we should be concerned about. 

Major issues highlighted in the article:
  • The Education Ministry announced plans to REDUCE the time allocated for Music Education in the primary school curriculum.
  • Certain schools drop or replace the Music Education subject: contradicting a Parliamentary Act which states that the subject is compulsory in the primary school curriculum.
  • Memorandums sent to the ministry have been ignored.
  • Lack of representation at higher divisions.
I see 1 major problem with the ministry: they fail to RECOGNIZE the importance of implementing Music Education for our children. They are IGNORANT to that importance. Nowadays parents need to have their own initiative (not to mention $ in their pocket) to develop their children's musical skills. 

As mentioned in the article, other countries like Japan & Germany (which we term as advanced & aspire to be) mandated their students be given music education & special rooms are provided for this purpose, fully equipped with instruments & related materials.

What is our ministry doing to fulfill their responsibility to uphold Music Education as a vital part of our education?

The only times students receive music education from the government is via school bands or schools that actually STILL teach Music Education. 

This site discussed the positive impacts of music education:
1. Skills gained while learning music is transferred to studying at school. 
2.  Learning music improves brain development
3. Develop ability of careful observation, pattern recognition & qualitative judgement among other skills.
4. Music education is enriching & mobilizes the glory of being human.

There are many benefits to teaching Music Education & being an individual with a strong love for music, I feel the ministry mustn't ignore the potential of developing this subject in our education system. 

It's bad enough that y'all teaching Science & Math in English, there's no reason to endanger the status of Music Education as a platform for developing a more mature & advanced Malaysian generation.

Comments

Albrecht said…
Hm... well this is a "democratic" country as they say..
August 4, 2009 at 11:40 AM
Rowan said…
Not as "democratic" as it should be :(
August 4, 2009 at 1:35 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fancy a Massage in Bangsar?

Image
I'm a fan of massages, I like people rubbing the aches away. Good thing massage centres are common in Malaysia and I've surveyed a few places in Bangsar so here's the rundown: 1) Chow Yang Reflexology This is probably the most popular massage centre in Bangsar. Their staff are local or from either Myanmar or Thailand. You need a high pain threshold to enjoy their foot massage; you might find it enjoyable if you prefer the strong kind of massage. I only tried their food and shoulder; unfortunately my neck ached more the next day and I never tried it again.  2) Everhealth This is a popular massage chain and the staff are China nationals, so communication is difficult. However the staff are polite, plus they have a variety of rooms (private and sharing). I got a young female masseuse during my 1st experience; she wasn't very strong and didn't get all the aches out. The 2nd time I tried the traditional body massage and the masseuse was STRONG! Check out th...
Read more

When is the Right Age to Marry?

Image
I went out with Grandma today & she made a light threat that I marry before her time is up. *knocks wood* *true story* That made me think: assuming she's still around for the next 10 yrs, I've less than that to find someone to spend the rest of my life with. In Malaysia, the minimum age of marriage is 18 with parental consent, 21 without parental consent. Having been in 2 serious relationships & both lasting for 4 months, I'd say I've little to no experience in having a deep relationship with another person. I'm 23 now, I remember being 18 & bragging that I'll have at least 10 boyfriends before I wed at 30.  Pfft. How reality has changed that estimation for me; at best, I can hope to meet Mr. Right within the next 5 yrs & start preparing for life as Mrs. Right. It won't be easy finding Mr. Right especially when Mom has a list of requirements for me to follow; I swear my ears ring everytime she tells me that "your husband...
Read more

Here We Go Again...

Image
Frankly I can't be the only one annoyed with all this talk about using English vs mother tongue for Science & Maths, right? I did an article about that previously.  All this talk is starting to piss me off. Why? Apparently many Malaysians are freaking ignorant & plain DUMB. I sent a letter to the Star explaining my stand on this issue, so I'll put it here (I don't know if it'll be published but frankly, enough is enough): "Hi I'm writing in response to the letter by CONCERNED CITIZEN on 18 June in the Star "What about English in Accountancy". My sister studied in form 6 arts stream, now she's studying accounting at a private university; although her major subjects were taught in Malay at form 6, she had no problem switching to English at the university level. This brings me to my point that the root of the problem is many young Malaysians these days aren't speaking enough English, hence the worry that they can't cope with the chan...
Read more