I am very worried with the majority of Malaysians today. Our obsession with control and conformity in thought and behaviour discourages the young embracing diversity. They are dumbed down by an education system obsessed with producing students with straight As and led by teachers who do not realise there is a world beyond textbooks and exams. I know that a small percentage of us are fortunate enough to study overseas and expose themselves to diversity of knowledge. But what about the rest who never leave Malaysia, who moved from a closed school to a closed university and then to a closed workplace, trapped in the comfort of their own small world of certainties? The closing of the Malaysian mind a systemic problem that needs more than individual effort to undo the long-term damage already done.
Our education system needs a major overhaul. What we need is a mind-expanding education. We want learners to challenge prejudices and stereotypes. We want them to bring in and accept change. Show them different ways of thinking by providing unbiased or unaltered knowledge. Do not hinder their rights the become innovative thinkers.
