The Problems & Solutions

Emancipatory education via a curriculum rewrite

Life requires critical thinking and sincerity in solving the problems ahead of us. Schools thus must build a conducive environment, not burn it down.

The Tiada.Guru Campaign
4 Jan 2022

Why now?

The emancipatory curriculum will give power and autonomy to students and teachers in thinking and taking action. This will change the orientation of the learning and teaching process (PdP) from a knowledge transaction by teachers alone (teachers teach, students learn) to a process of co-teaching & learning between teachers and students critically and reflectively.

The Problems

The Malaysian education system can be regarded a manipulative and autocratic weapon of the elite in defending the status quo. The education curriculum is deliberately deprived of human rights, justice, and corruption to keep the people away from the reality of oppression and questioning the corrupt government regime. Today's curriculum succeeds in giving the people's “obedience” to the government through a culture of fear and silence as stated in the Public Officers Regulations Act (Conduct and Discipline) 1993, Part II, Regulation 13 “Making Public Statements”).

Schools became corrupt institutions protecting the guilty, even the hypocrites with the slogan “kemenjadian murid”. The evidence 1) the case of a student's lawsuit against a teacher for being absent for seven months 2) the culture of rape in schools has gone viral with hundreds of victims speaking out and 3) the stunning statistics that 44% of respondents recall MOE teachers making sexually provocative jokes. However, corrupted teachers have been shielded and the future of the students is dismissed.

Schools are getting further and further away from the real purpose of education. It focuses more on courses and workshops, performance dialogue, talks without courage and sincerity for accountability. The education system only pursues KPIs and becomes an enduring distraction and diverts teachers and students from critical reflections on grassroots problems.

The Solutions

Social change requires reform strategies and actions (non-reactive) from the solidarity of the people. The new education curriculum will change the people's values and paradigms to a civil society that has the ability and power to be conscious of the realities of injustice and oppression.

The emancipatory curriculum must provide optimal options for students to develop their talents, interests, potentials, and abilities. Examinations and academic achievements are no longer the sole measures of achievement, but students in multiple intelligences are empowered in the institutionalization of TVET for Special Education students. Eliminate inclusive programmes that kill the potential and talents of those that are not academic.

These humanist values must be formulated in the syllabi of every subject in schools. The PdP process must incorporate external programs / duties as practical training for students and teachers to understand issues such as social injustice and climate change.

The subjects of Civics and Citizenship are reformulated to include studies on the political, legal, and governance systems of the country, as well as the roles of the government towards the people, and the roles of citizens to preserve a just, peaceful, and compassionate society. It also includes a study on the diversity of practices in cultures and religious beliefs in the country and around the world. Awareness and civic skills are seen as important to develop ‘shared thinking and shared well-being’ in individuals living in a multiracial society.

The emancipatory curriculum must be humanistic by encompassing fair, critical, and genuine views on human rights, anti-corruption, democracy, fundamental freedom, justice, free media, news literacy, renowned Court & litigation history, social justice movements, and recognizing the diversity of talents and potentials of individuals.

What would a more just school look like?

Take a read from Tiada.Guru's January 2022 presentation: