FACT No. 1: Dr Maszlee Malik has arguably one of the toughest jobs in Malaysia.

Fact No. 2: The education minister will also have to accept that many Malaysians want to have a say in how the education system can be reformed.

Dr Maszlee has announced that the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025 and Malaysia Education Blueprint 2015-2025 (Higher Education) will be continued, but both will undergo midterm reviews.

Still, his announcement did not stop parents from coming together to form a Facebook group dedicated to sharing ideas on how to rebuild the education system.

The “Revamp the Malaysian Education System” Facebook group is urging the public to provide ideas or raise concerns regarding the current education system, before the ideas and feedback are submitted to the ministry.

“Education is clearly very important to the rakyat, and they are very eager to contribute, to make the system as good as it can be,” the initiator of the Facebook page, Feisal Kamil, told Malaysia Decides.

“We have not been approached by the minister or ministry, but we are making the effort to contact them, and we hope to be able to present this report to the ministry soon.”

So far, there are more than 1,200 responses – barely 24 hours since the group’s launch. Collection of the forms will close on midnight on Sunday.

A member of the group, Rozana Halpin, said schools should equip students with basic life skills to promote independent living.

“My daughter mends her own clothes, thanks to sewing lessons she received in school when she was 8.”

Another parent, Shanee Singam, suggested having a third language made compulsory in the curriculum.

“The curriculum must include learning a third language of choice, aside from Bahasa Malaysia and English.”

Another member, Dahlia Soraya, hopes for an education system that properly caters to students with special needs.

She said the current system’s “one-size-fits-all” approach should be changed.

“Modules should be developed for students with different needs and diagnoses.” – May 25, 2018.