Chinese education groups shocked over single-stream education proposal

PETALING JAYA: Dong Zong and Jiao Zong are shocked and upset over a resolution passed at the Congress on the Future of the Bumiputras and Nation 2018, which recommended that single-stream education is implemented to revamp the national education system.
In a joint statement on Monday, the two organisations that represent Chinese school committees and teachers respectively reminded the Pakatan Harapan government, which hosted the Congress, that it had been critical of the previous Barisan Nasional government's unjust education policy and had indicated that should it come to power it would fulfil a promise to accord fair treatment to the mother-tongue education of the various ethnic groups.
The statement pointed out that with the change in government, the Chinese community particularly Dong Zong and Jiao Zong had hoped that Chinese education would be given "more room to develop" and be given due respect.
"But the Congress on the Future of Bumiputras and Nation which the government hosted has passed a resolution recommending single-stream education. We (Dong Zong and Jiao Zong) are deeply shocked and upset," it said.
The statement said the resolution is all the more worrying coming shortly after Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had expressed hope to revive the Vision School concept, which proposed the use of Bahasa Malaysia as the medium of instruction for all types of schools in the country.
Dong Zong and Jiao Zong stressed that Malaysia is a multi-racial and multi-cultural nation with a multi-stream education system since Merdeka to fulfil the needs of the various ethnic groups for mother-tongue education.
"In fact, this (access to mother-tongue language) is the right granted to all by the Federal Constitution.
"As such, the implementation of a single-stream education system will not only go against the Constitution and the spirit of nationhood but also infringe on the basic rights of the people."