Malaysia Chinese Secondary Schools: The Emphasis on Chinese Traditional Culture

• In Event: Educational Responsibility for Students of Diverse Backgrounds and Social Identities in the United States, Japan, China, and Malaysia

Abstract

Malaysia is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multilingual society, consisting of 68.6% Malays, 23.4% Chinese,7% Indians and 1% other indigenous tribes (Tan, 2000). The Malays, which form the largest community, play a dominant role politically. However, for Malaysia Chinese, they can either go to the national secondary schools for free or pay tuition to go to the Chinese Independent Secondary Schools. There are 61Chinese Independent Secondary Schools with 78000 students and 5000 teachers. There are about 30% Malaysia Chinese teenagers go to the Chinese Independent Secondary Schools (Siah & Ong, 2015) Those schools are run by the Chinese society and communities which have a focus on passing on traditional Chinese culture to their youngsters (Li & Li, 2017)
This study investigates the phenomenon of the heavy emphasis on the teaching and learning of the Chinese traditional culture at Malaysian Chinese independent Secondary Schools. The main research questions are: Why Malaysian Chinese independent secondary schools put such a heavy emphasis on the teaching and learning of the Chinese traditional culture? What is the status of the traditional Chinese culture inheritance? How do those schools pass on the Chinese culture and values to the students?
Qualitative research methods, interviews and participatory observations were used for data collection. John Berry’s (1997) theories of acculturation and adaptation were used to analyze and interpret this phenomenon. Twenty-five school administrators from Malaysian Chinese Independent Secondary Schools participated in the study.
Findings show that in general Malaysia Chinese Independent Schools did very well in inheriting the Chinese traditional culture. However, there are different opinions between the older generation of principals and younger ones; and the principals from western Malaysia are more critical about the practice of emphasizing Chinese culture than their peers in eastern Malaysia. Seeking the Chinese root, obtaining the Chinese status and identity, and forming the unique characteristics of Chinese Secondary Schools are the major impetus for the emphasis on Chinese culture (Collins, 2006). The major ways to pass on the traditional Chinese culture at the Malaysia Chinese schools include using Chinese as the instructional language, teaching Chinese language class, teaching moral education based on Chinese traditional values, offer extracurricular and foster school culture with Chinese tradition and values.
This study contributes to the understanding of why Malaysian Chinese Independent Secondary Schools place heavy emphasis on teaching and learning of traditional Chinese culture, and how it has evolved in the Malaysian context from the comparative perspective of a Chinese scholar. It also has important implications for Mainland China on how to preserve and inherit the traditional Chinese culture and values among its youngsters.

Author

• Wanxi Xiong, East China Normal University