YOURSAY | ‘The system has spawn at least two generations of dumb citizens.’

A reflection on M’sian student awareness in overseas varsities

SSG: The best talent and brains have already decided not to return and are laying roots in the countries where they are studying, with a welcoming mat placed for them by these same countries where they are studying.

They have seen how their parents suffered and struggled, trying to raise the money to send them to study there after all the handicaps stacked against them (their parents). They want no part of it.

Why should they care to involve themselves now even though they may be 5th/6th generation and born here and being called names like ‘immigrants’? It is better to start a new life in a new country that appreciates your talent and hard work.

When two people (mother and father) grow old and pass away, their taxes are to be picked up by their children, but they are now gone. Malaysia will be poorer for it.

The Analyser: Young Malaysians are not interested in anything because young Malaysians have rarely been allowed to show any interest in anything and never encouraged to follow their own ideals.

The situation has got so bad that young Malaysians are not even allowed to be themselves - individuals with their own opinions.

The draconian laws that we all rage about are merely topping off the actions of parents. Those laws are there to target the few individuals who have run the gauntlet of parental abuse and emerged as individuals who believe in their own rights and the rights of others.

The Asian obsession with exams means that the true concept of education has been lost. No longer is there the concept of learning for learning's sake, no longer is hypothesising and idealising encouraged because the exam must be passed.

No longer do students regard tertiary education as a place to explore themselves and the world around them, to understand and question human nature and how their society operates.

The ultimate educational nightmare is that practised in South Korea and Japan and increasingly China, where to pass exams is a do-or-die concept and where learning and growing is sidelined.

One of the most horrendous aspects of this exam obsession is the fact that young people cease to learn once the burden of exams has passed.

Former president of the United Kingdom & Eire Malaysian Law Students' Union (KPUM) 2014/2015 Pang Jo Fan has summed up the situation perfectly with his quote: "There is nothing the Malaysian authorities can do to you when you are overseas and privately sponsored."

And the Malaysian authorities need not do anything because the damage to the students has already been done, by their parents.

Anonymous 2299391436500295: I was involved in international education for over 30 years, including several years in the United States. American students tended to remark that "the Asians need to lighten up".

The university where I did some of my graduate work was a disaster because there were too many Malaysians - 1,400 of them, in fact - with their Mahathirist stereotypes of the US as an evil, racist, third-rate empire, and were constantly complaining with petitions about perceived national slights.

They also placed ads in the student paper asking for ‘Malay only’ or ‘Chinese only’ roommates. I found this highly offensive, as racial demands in a newspaper were in extremely bad taste in the US, even in 1982.

I was foreign student adviser, a native speaker, with degrees in English and print journalism, but the Malaysian undergraduates even tried to lecture me on the meaning of the word ‘ghetto’.

But it's also well known that Malaysian students overseas often incur threats and the usual ‘show-cause’ letters from the Malaysian government.

Senyum Kambeng: I don't know about the UK, but in Melbourne, witnesses will tell you that the consul-general would allegedly take photos on his smartphone of students at Malaysian rallies, whether it's Bersih's or others, and then forward them presumably to Putrajaya or the high commission. This is outright intimidation of the young people.

If you look like a Malay or a government scholar, he would approach you and solicit information from you. So I don't blame the students from staying away from active participation simply because of fear.

ACR: The Asian parenting system and the teaching methods from schooling days in Malaysia where asking the teacher questions is frowned upon (due mainly to teachers lacking in knowledge) have spawn at least two generations of dumb citizens.

So as Pang says, even if they move abroad you can't remove the Boleh! (being dumb) from them.

Sleepy: Pang, I am inclined towards the opposition not because I think they are great, perfect, say/make politically correct statements but because I want the political system in Malaysia to mature by growing out from this condescending political system controlled by superficial race/religious parties.

Snake-in-the-Grass: This writer would not return to Malaysia, presumably. Let's hope he gets back and walk the talk.

Jo Fan: Hello everybody, I am the author of this piece. Interesting discussion going on. Keep it up.

Just to respond to a few of the comments above, I have returned to Malaysia, I wrote this piece in Malaysia, I am currently in Malaysia and I have no intention to leave.

There is so much that has yet to be done and as difficult as it may seem, I think there is a lot more that my generation should do to pursue our Malaysian Dream.

My disappointment to the environment of apathy surrounding my generation is essentially why I wrote this article.

It is an observation after a couple of years of getting involved in student movements, pushing for awareness and student empowerment, as much as possible, in the ways that we can.

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