Education in Malaysia - The Cornerstone of National Development

Education in Malaysia - The Cornerstone of National Development 

Southeast Asia is experiencing a groundswell of financial development as the world adjusts to a change in international economic power from west to east. In Malaysia where national identity is strongly rooted in convention, the country still has adopted cultural diversity and western-style modernization. 

The Malaysian government has embarked on an ambitious program of technological development and educational reform as a national priority. The challenges that Malaysians face along with the aspirations they hold aren't unlike those of the acquaintances in Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and elsewhere. The forces of tradition and modernity and of course civilization and religion collide and split and morph to shape the future of this dynamic area like the huge tectonic plates upon which these states break.

Malaysia's developmental efforts have required long study, policy making, implementation and governance. Leaders in both the public and private sectors have made critical decisions on top, while a high-income inhabitants accomplishes the attempt of accelerated development through its labour and capital. To make sure that the supply of skilled manpower can be found in the scale required to realize its national possible, the Malaysian government has mandated the modernization of its educational system as a cornerstone of its national program.

The Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) hailed the "Strategic Plan for Higher Education: Laying the Foundation Beyond 2020" as its coverage of instructional reform and modernization. MOHE has established as its top priorities that the transformation of Malaysia to a center of educational excellence as well as the internationalization of higher education. For this end, foreign students are being actively recruited from abroad to enter Malaysian schools and universities. The Ministry establish a objective of 100,000 international students as its enrollment target for 2010.

To adapt the majority of the student influx, the Malaysian government is looking to private associations to boost their enrollment capability. There are many notable private colleges and universities in Malaysia that have risen to prominence since the 1970s. The largest have many campuses throughout the nation, and many have partnered together with overseas universities to further their reach and award globally recognized degrees to students finishing the vast majority of their research within Malaysia. With the price of living at comfortable levels, these venture arrangements called 'twinning' programs provide local pupils considerable price savings. Malaysian private universities and colleges give good value to local and international students alike.

Malaysia's modernization efforts and the expanding role of schooling are being closely monitored and analyzed. Despite recent setbacks in the world market and uncertainty over the economic future, prospects remain encouraging. In addition to China and India and its Southeast Asian counterparts, Malaysia confronts a feeling of urgency to maintain pace with its planned developmental course all the while keeping a grasp of its cultural heritage and national identity.