Are our school ours? I think that should be the most pointed question when asking ourselves if there is indeed indirect or direct segregation in our schools. The complaints raised by non-Malay parents in the last decade indicate that something is amiss in our schools.

It also shows that the quality of education in national schools may have fallen so much that parents who themselves went to these schools now prefer to send their children to ethnic schools. The problem, I suspect, may be even more deep-rooted than mere segregation.

The average non-Malay parent has lost faith in the national school system, and if we want to thwart this trend, we may have to take a long and hard look at the way things have gone in this country.

The majority of the teachers in national schools today are Malay. With few exceptions, most were reared on the new economic policy. They went to secondary schools and local universities where they were 'favoured' and indoctrinated to be more pro-Malay development.

These are the teachers that now 'control' the national schools in this country.

Subconsciously they want to promote Malay students to progress further. This, in itself, is not wrong. Black pride is the basis of organisations like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in US to promote educational advancement of their people.

The question is how much affinity and desire the average Malay teacher has to improve the non-Malay student? My gut instinct tells me, generally not a lot. But more importantly, the average non-Malay parents also share the same view.

The thing is, most of the teachers have been trained to view integration differently. They may very well think the job of helping non-Malay students is the job of non-Malay teachers. After all, this does reflect life as it is in Malaysia — Umno takes care of the Malays, MCA the Chinese, and MIC the Indians.

That is why the average non-Malay parent has so much apprehension in the school system and often she is not wrong.

What can we do to correct the system, assuming that we are genuinely interesting in changing for the better? State unequivocally that the Malaysian education system is for all Malaysians and the focal point of national integration is the national schools.

It does not matter what the racial breakdown of the school is, the job of the educators is to educate all students of that school. Increase the number of non-Malay teachers to reduce the apprehension of non-Malay parents and take politics out of the school system.

Education life in Malaysia should encircle one education system, one national school system. Reintroduce pupil's own language in national schools. Open the exclusive residential schools to bright students of all races — not just the Malay — who qualify for a place.

Schools that are not places of racial integration, whether Chinese-type schools or Malay residential schools, should be considered 'private' schools. That is the only way to 'save' the national schools, and rebuild the muhibbah (harmonious) spirit.

Like the landmark case "Brown vs the Board of Education in America' in 1954 that ended segregation in America, we may need something similarly constructive like that to happen in Malaysia to change things.

Many Malaysians may not like it — just as many Americans did not then — but in hindsight, I think we would be grateful that we did decide to put an end to this disgraceful scheme of things that was our education system.

Respect for our education system is more important than being Malay or Chinese. Integrated schools are the only schools considered public in America and those who believe in language and ethnic-based schools can send their children to private schools that satisfy their needs.

Unless we do that, there can be no real change in the national schools, as there is too much mistrust and a litany of historical anomalies. Like Alexander the Great, we need to approach the Gordian knot with some swagger.