As a student at a private higher education institution, I was happy to hear that Minister of Higher Education Mustapha Mohamed will be reviewing the Lembaga Akreditasi Negara or National Accreditation Board (LAN) Act 1996 in June. In the process of reviewing it, I hope that the Private Higher Education Act 1996 will also be reviewed because it is time that the Ministry of Higher Education reverse the decision made in 1996 that Malaysian higher institution students must take Malaysian Studies and Moral Studies in order to graduate.
From this year onwards, international students no longer have to take the aforementioned subjects unless they wish to. Why should Malaysian students be forced to take Malaysian Studies and Moral Studies, ie, LAN subjects?
Pursuing a full-time degree course is already taxing enough. The option should be made available (not compulsory) for students who are interested in these subjects if it will help them in their future careers. For example, someone majoring in International Relations could find Malaysian Studies useful if no subjects with a similar syllabus are offered at his or her educational institution.
Having been a student before, the minister could understand that compulsory degree-level subjects are constructed to equip degree holders with skills that will maximise employment opportunities. Even when we select elective subjects to obtain sufficient credits in order to fulfill degree requirements, we choose subjects that we are not only interested in but also subjects which are more likely to help gain employment.
The Ministry of Higher Education should be responsible to ensure that all college and university students, including those private institutions of higher learning, are able to achieve their best in academic pursuits.
Burdening students with trivial subjects like LAN subjects does nothing to improve the standards of education. How are we made to think more critically when all these subjects only require us to memorise facts and regurgitate them for another exam?