Every now and then the debate on the need and role of Tamil schools is raised. To me, this kind of debate is an excellent opportunity to get the opinions of the more exposed and educated members of the Indian community.

Let me tell you a story of my experience with Tamil schools in rural areas. Many years ago, I had worked as a temporary teacher in two Tamil schools in the northern states. Both were in estates far away from the main towns.

The first school, which was deep in an estate, only had about 18 students. It comprised four teachers (including me), a gardener and headmaster. Being one from an English-educated background (with Tamil credentials up to a distinction in SPM), I taught lower secondary Tamil and English.

As a temporary teacher, you are not given any training whatsoever and you're given the job just to make up the numbers with a pay of about RM450 a month (at that time).

After about a month, I realised that the students were not getting anywhere as we were forced to follow the curriculum set by the Education Ministry. What I realised was that the syllabus was meant for bigger classrooms and as such, a better way to teach my students was to use the syllabus as an outline but teach them in a tuition manner.

This idea was however, rejected by the headmaster as he did not want to go against the norm as the education auditors would not like it according to him. In the end, the students did not benefit very much and most of the teachers were unhappy as their they was bogged down with so much paper work for just a small number of students.

The headmaster, on the other hand, was either not in most of the time or came in late with bloodshot eyes testimony to heavy boozing the night before. The school itself was in a shabby condition with the garderner asleep after having had some booze himself.

The second school I went to was a much bigger school with a student population of about almost a hundred. Better, younger and more dedicated teachers were present in this school. The headmaster however, was a politically active person.

He was very involved in MIC activities which took place during office hours. This school was also in a shabby condition and the finance clerk always complained that the headmaster was pocketing all the funds allocated to the school.

Another problem was that the buying of school supplies required a kickback of about 20 percent for the headmaster. I found out later that this was a normal habit amongst headmasters in many schools.

Nope, I do not have anything to back up my statements as I am out of the education system. You are free to make your own assumptions.

The toilet of in the second school, for instance, was horrendous but I was again told by the school's finance clerk that the ministry had given money for the building of a better toilet. Although the money was utilised, the toilet never got any better.

And oh yes, before I forget, that headmaster has since retired and is currently a state assemblyman for his area with his kid educated in non-Tamil schools. Good for him and his family, I guess. I wonder what happened to his former students.

The point I am trying to make is the supposedly usefulness of some of these Tamil schools in this day and age. You see, after the students finish their Standard 6, they have to go to the secondary schools further away from their estates.

Due to the distance (some walk or cycle an average of 20km a day), financial burdens and the pressures of being with students much more educated then themselves, only a few go on up to Form 5 with a very, very small number making it to universities.

From the beginning to end, Tamil school students in rural areas have to surmount tremendous obstacles in order to get a decent education. On top of that, they have to contend with school administrators who are more interested in their own pockets and personal gains.

To my understanding, almost every Tamil school headmaster is somewhat active in the MIC and this consumes most of their time. Which makes me wonder how they have the time to come up with dynamic ideas to improve their schools' standards.

Let me also say that the Tamil schools in urban areas do very much better then the ones located in the estates. This is because urban parents are much more involved in their kids' education and this in turn puts pressure on the schools to produce better results.

Also, the teachers are more dedicated and outspoken which forces their headmasters to perform. And to give credit where it is due, many of the urban Tamil school headmasters are dedicated as well.

You see, it was the British who made sure that the Indians in the estates never got out. They built schools, temples and quarters within the estates to keep the community contained. They never gave any importance to the children's education.

It was important to keep the kids lowly educated so that they take over the work of their parents and become a new generation labourers. As entertainment, they used to screen Tamil movies every now and then until TV and electricity were available. They also provided a flow of cheap liquor to keep the men happy and hooked.

And nowadays, it's our very own Indian politicians who are employing similar tactics in order to get votes when required.

The idea here is not to totally get rid of the Tamil schools but to do away with the schools in rural areas which are not performing and to come up with a scheme to enable students there to have access to better Tamil/non-Tamil schools nearby in order to have a more focused education.

Phasing out Tamil schools is not a solution and blaming culture would be totally off-track. You see, getting rid of things is easier then creating something concrete. If you ever want the lives of these youth to be improved, then something has to be done and a strong will needs to be in place.

Don't blame their cultural or language preferences as their downfall. And if you keep the politicians out of the schools, then perhaps there will be a light at the end of the tunnel.

The question is, can this ever be done?