Before you read this post, make sure you check out Kenny Sia’s latest post: “Don’t Go To University For The Sake Of It”
I trust that you’ve read it. Now let’s get things straight. Malaysia is a really nice country, there’s no doubt about that. Who could find fault with nasi lemak, roti canai or tau foo fah? I truly appreciate the fact that I have friends from so many different walks of life. I really love how I can speak 4 different languages (although my Chinese is a bit off)
But. There is always a “but”. I hate living in Malaysia because I have to follow the extremely stupid Malaysian Education System. It’s so dumb, it shouldn’t even be called an Education System! Allow me to take you on a journey, through the Malaysian Education System, starting with Primary 1. Or as Malaysians call it, Standard 1.
In Standard 1, you learn absolutely nothing. Up until Standard 6, you will still have learnt nothing. Your entire primary school life is completely useless, in Malaysia at least. I can’t remember anything I learnt in primary school, probably because I never needed to put anything I learnt into practice. The only thing I remember doing in primary school? Having crushes on girls.
Then you come to Form 1. At this point, you (or in the case of most Malaysian kids, your parents) have to decide what kind of school you should go to for your secondary education. A government school, a private school or an international one.
This is what the most rational consideration would look like. It’s all about the money.
Government School: Free. Percuma. 免费. இலவச.
Private School: Must pay a little bit lah. Can lah.
International School: “I spend so much, my kid comes out like an American wor!”
In my honest opinion, if you want to be a better person, stop thinking about the money. Remember what Jessie. J said? “Forget about the price tag.” Enough side-tracking, let’s get back to business.
Government schools are rubbish. This may sound very harsh, but it’s the truth. Government school teachers are never in school half the time, because they’re attending courses on how to be better teachers. You won’t learn anything in a government school, because frankly, you get what you pay for. In this case, you paid nothing, so you get nothing!
Private schools. Hmm, I don’t want to sound biased, but private schools are alright. I go to a private school, but honestly, it just feels like a normal school, with a hint of style. But this does depend on which private school you choose. There are some private schools which cost ridiculously high, and some which are really cheap. But in the end, you’re getting the same thing.
International schools. Let’s get one thing clear. Not all International school students are as stuck up as you think. My mum stereotypes everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, and she classifies International school kids as stuck up kids. If you go to an International School, your future is going to be very bright.
At this point in time, you would’ve finished your PMR examination, assuming you went to a government or private school. If you went to an International school, then I’m sorry, but this blog post might no longer be relevant to you. Now the biggest question in your life is: “Which seat stream should I take?”
The answer is simple. Go for Science stream. I’ll tell you why. If you are very sure you want to work in the business/finance/any money related field, then go for Arts Stream. However, if you don’t know what you want to do with your life, then stay in Science. And if you hate Biology or Add Maths, then drop those subjects, and take English Literature, Accounts, Economics or ICT.
Why should you do this, you ask? Because my dear readers, if you study Science subjects in high school, once you’re older and finally realise what you want to do with your life, and it is arts related, then the transition is so much easier! Imagine studying in Arts stream in high school and then taking Chemistry, Biology & Physics in college! And I also have this theory, people who studied Science subjects in high school or college and go on to do Arts degrees end up reaching their first million dollars faster than people who did Science related degrees.
So now you’ve sat for your SPM trials, you’ve gotten your results and you apply for a college. Again the question arises: “Which seat subjects should I take?” Take the subjects that interest you. Don’t be afraid to check out the different colleges’ open days. They can be really informational and helpful, and will assist you in making your subject choices. On which course to take, all I can say is:
“If you still don’t know what you wanna do in life, then do A-levels. If you know you wanna go to Australia for university, then do the South Australian Matriculation or AUSMAT. Set on going to Canada for uni? Canadian Pre-U is your answer. Want to live the American dream? The American Degree Program is all you need. Want to blow RM60,000 in less than a year? International baccalaureate will help you!”
You’re 3 months into your first semester at college, and your official SPM results come back. They’re pretty much what you wanted, but you couldn’t really be bothered because no matter what, your SPM results, like most other Malaysian things, are completely useless.
The time you spend in college depends on which Pre-University course you do. This is where Kenny Sia’s blog post comes in. Most Malaysians parents have planned out their kids’ lives for them, right until the day they die. Malaysian’s have never been independent, because for most of our lives, we’ve been spoon-fed by our teachers, our parents, our friends and our tuition teachers! We just don’t have the ability to make choices for ourselves. Put your foot down, and make up your mind. Don’t go to university for the sake of it.
Your parents will spend roughly one million Ringgit on your tertiary education, so you better not mess it up. Don’t just do an Engineering degree so that when you go for a job interview you can show them a piece of paper which says you blew one million Ringgit on something you didn’t really want to do in the first place. No matter what your parents tell you to do in life, they can’t let you choose what you want to do, because it’s your life!
So you see, it all comes down to what you learn in primary school. My advice? Don’t ever study in Malaysia. It’s like a stack of Domino’s, one bad move sets off a chain reaction of unfortunate events. If I were given the option, I would study in Singapore, or Australia, or some other country. Anything beats Malaysia.
