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No society exists without a culture.Sociologically, culture represents identity,and it dictates the manner in which people

conduct themselves. In a multi-cultural society likeMalaysia, identity and behavior take on a differentdimension. A multicultural society requires aunique and delicate manner of governance. Itdemands a high level of tolerance, understandingand respect among its constituents. To ensurenational integration, Malaysia has included“cross-cultural sensitivity” in all aspects of adminis-tration, including political and economic policies,the legal system, businesses, education, etc.

The following discussion shares the unique expe-rience of Malaysia in inculcating the spirit oftogetherness and national integrity among its citi-zens, with a particular emphasis on its educationsystem. It also explains the role of arts education asa tool of national integration in a society of so manyraces, ethnicities and sub-ethnicities.

Several groups

After 496 years of colonization, Malaysia finallyachieved its independence from the British onAugust 31, 1957. The journey to freedom was farfrom glorious. Portugal was the first foreign powerto conquer Malacca, one of the world’s famousports in the 14th century. The traditional keris andspears of the Malays were no match to the modernweapons brought by the Portuguese. The defeat sawthe crumble of the Malay monarchy system inMalacca. The runaway princes sought refuge fromanother foreign power, and Malaya fell into thehands of the Dutch.

Britain was the last foreign power to stay in

Malaya. It finally succumbed after it could nolonger contain the spirit of nationalism among theMalays, paving the way for independence in 1957.

Slightly bigger than Mexico, Malaysia has a popu-lation of 26.9 million people. The Malays are theindigenous community, making up half of the coun-try’s population. The second biggest community isthe Chinese, consisting of the Hakkas, Teo Chewsand Hokkiens. They speak either Mandarin orCantonese and profess either Buddhism orChristianity or Taoism. The Indian community isthe third largest group. Most of them speak Tamil,Malayalam, Hindi and Urdu. The Indians inMalaysia embrace either Hinduism or Christianity.

Other indigenous ethnic groups include theOrang Asli, Ibans, Kadazans, and more than 20other ethnic groups who live in Sabah and Sarawak.Each ethnic community practices religious beliefsand lifestyles distinctively different from eachother.

Educational system

Malaysia’s education system has under-gone a long process of evolution. Duringthe colonial era, education policy did notconsider the need for development and didnot focus on forming a nation’s identity. Inrecent years, with the belief that educationis an important asset of the country, vari-ous efforts have been done to ensure thatevery Malaysian would secure completeeducation regardless of color and beliefs.

After independence, the country createdan integrated and standardized educationsystem. Among the strategies that wereadopted include the democratization inaspects of opportunities and quality. Thisinvolved distributing allotments fairly andgiving special attention to less privilegedgroups from the rural areas. Besides that,the national curriculum was expanded.

National education policy

The “13 May 1969 event” spawned sev-eral important changes in the Malaysianeducation system. The one-language sys-tem was introduced, making the Malaylanguage the medium of instruction in allnational schools, while English was usedas the second language in all schools andhigher learning institutions. The one-lan-guage policy aimed to make it easier forMalaysians to interact and communicatewith each other. Today, it has successfullyinstilled national sentiment and awarenessamong those who have gone through thenational education system.

Malaysia’s education system givesopportunities to all Malaysians to receivecomplete education, regardless of theircultural background and status. Believingin its power to influence people’s thinking,the government has always put educationhigh on its agenda. A school curriculumthat is based on unity is underlined by thenational philosophy of education, which isas follows:

“Education in Malaysia is on-goingeffort toward further developing thepotential individuals who are intellectu-ally, spiritually, emotionally and physicallybalanced and harmonious, based on a firmbelief and devotion to god. Such an effortis designed to produce Malaysian citizenswho are knowledgeable and competent,who possess high moral standards andwho are responsible and capable of achiev-ing a high level of personal well-being, aswell as being able to contribute to the bet-terment of society and the nation at large.”

Through the National Education Policy,Malaysian schools foster in all subjectsnoble values, particularly national unityand inter-racial understanding. The edu-

Art in theService ofMulticulturalismMalaysia offers a model.

By Badrul Isa(Faculty of Education, Universiti

Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Malaysia)bad3796@yahoo.co.uk

28 SangSaeng Spring 2008

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cation policy is focused on developing men andwomen and turning them into good citizens, capableof maintaining social order and contributing to thenational good.

Visual arts education

Before the arrival of foreign powers, the prevailingeducation system in the archipelago was based onIslamic education, which had been in force since theMalay Sultanate era. This Islamic system, known aspondok, was headed by ulama or pious individualswithin the Muslim communities. Art education wasnot included in the pondok curriculum. It was intro-duced much later by the British, particularly byChristian missionaries, through the establishment ofEnglish schools. Its introduction turned a new pagein the history of education in Malaysia. Since then,art-related subjects have been integral to theMalaysian education system.

In 2000, “arts education” as a subject was changedinto “visual arts education.” The change was aimed tomake it more focused on the production of works inthe visual arts. But the change did not include educa-tion at the pre-school level.

The visual arts education curriculum was preparedby the Curriculum Development Centre (CDC),under the Ministry of Education. In formulating thenew art subject, the Centre was guided by, first, thenational philosophy of education; second, by themandate of racial understanding and unity, andthird, other social factors.

Visual arts education, taught at all levels, is one ofthe important components of Malaysia’s education

system. It provides students the opportunity to pro-mote their cultures and heritages and to respectthose of others.

Pre-school: fun and flexible

Pre-school, which begins at ages 4 to 6, is a forma-tive stage in children’s development. Education atthis level provides learning that is flexible, fun andsafe; it also prepares children to enter a formal pri-mary school. The creative and aesthetic componentserves as foundation for the inculcation of such socialvalues as unity and inter-cultural understanding.Approaches include singing traditional songs,poems, drawing, art appreciation, as well as produc-ing toys and simple handicrafts of various culturesand races. These activities enable children to expressthemselves and to interact with other children com-ing from different traditions and backgrounds.

Another component is “introduction to heritages”where children learn about the traditional costumes

of people of various traditions and races. Anothercomponent is the celebration of important festivitiesof the various groups comprising Malaysian society.“Learning while playing” and the application of tech-nology like videos and other media are also used aslearning methods.

Primary school: compulsory

Visual arts education is compulsory at the primaryschool level. Here, the curriculum has been designedto inculcate ideals which will hopefully transformyoung learners into citizens who are peace-loving,critical, creative and productive. This is done throughtheir immersion in the basic principles and practicesof the visual arts. Through such activities such asweaving and pattern design, students learn how toappreciate the good values in life. They are alsoexposed to traditional crafts, the tools that are used,their functions and their design. The activity empha-sizes appreciation of the beauty of the environmentand the nation’s heritage.

The four main areas of study are drawing, creatingpatterns and designs, creating and building, andunderstanding traditional crafts. The spirit of unity isencouraged through collaborative activities in pro-ducing artworks. Unity and understanding amongthe students are further promoted through art appre-ciation, where teachers encourage pupils to interactand discuss the positive values in the artworks theyhave produced.

Secondary level: compulsory andelective

At the lower secondary level, visual arts educationis compulsory for students as they go through Form 1until Form 3. Here, the learning/teaching method istwo-fold: first, the students learn about theorieswhich emphasize aspects of art history and apprecia-tion of visual arts, and second, they produce artworks. Both these aspects focus on the inculcation ofthe national philosophy of education. At this level,the main objective of visual arts education is charac-ter-formation, considered as a key element innation-building. The curriculum engages each andevery Malaysian in the quest for constantly imbibingthe spirit of unity, patriotism and love of country.

At the higher secondary level (Forms 4 and 5), thevisual arts subject is offered as an elective stream forstudents who would like to continue a more in-deptheducation on the matter. The subject is also offeredas a core subject. Activities are focused on the pro-duction of artworks that have for their themes ideasof nationhood, heritage and culture—all of whichaim to develop love of country among the learn-ers. Students are given assignments to produceartworks after gaining an understanding of thebasic principles and practices of art and design.

Art in higher institutions

More advanced visual arts subjects areoffered by a few universities. Universities thathave been tasked to train future visual arts

teachers include the Universiti Teknologi MARA(UiTM), Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI),and several teacher education institutes.

While approaches vary, most of the university-and institute-based trainings continue to inculcatethe values of unity and inter-racial understanding.For example, the Faculty of Education, UniversitiTeknologi MARA, has developed an approach inexploring and researching artefacts in museumsand arts galleries, which gives teacher-trainees anopportunity to study the culture of a particular race.In the same vein, studies and researches on civiliza-tions are done via researches on objects in muse-ums and artworks in art galleries. Teacher-traineesare encouraged to produce artworks that use ele-ments of cultures and heritages as components ofenrichment and variation.

Education for unity

The learning of visual arts does not stop at theschools, institutes and universities. Handicraftactivities and art production are part of the commu-nal activities in villages. The Ministry of Unity, Artsand Malaysian Heritage frequently conducts inten-sive activities for local communities which teachvarious crafts.

Classes on making traditional kites (wau), doingtraditional dances, and introduction to cultures andheritages are taught for free to those who are inter-ested. These efforts are meant to unite Malaysiansthrough interesting activities. The skills they learndo not only promote the arts and crafts of commu-nities, but also provide occasions for communitymembers to know each other.

The visual arts curriculum has been designed inline with the national aspiration to produceMalaysians who are culturally sensitive and whounderstand how to live with others in peace. Socialstability through integration is the agenda of allMalaysians, and education is considered a powerfultool in achieving that end. The art education cur-riculum has unity as its defining character; otherschool subjects also play their role in inculcatingsuch unity. Malaysia has succeeded in developing amodel of unity by using its own mould, based on anational ideology.

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