The Present Situation and Enlightenment of Chinese Teacher Training in Malaysia
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Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, volume 99 3rd International Conference on Social Science and Higher Education (ICSSHE-17) The present Situation and Enlightenment of Chinese Teacher Training in Malaysia Kehua Yu Overseas Education College of Xiamen University China [email protected] Abstract—Malaysia retains a complete system of Chinese education and Chinese teachers’ role as the machine tool of II. THE UNIQUE ADVANTAGES OF CHINESE TEACHER Malaysian Chinese education. This paper is designed to provide DEVELOPMENT IN MALAYSIA reference for the training of international Chinese teachers by Thanks to globalization and China’ role as the world’s analyzing the unique advantages of Chinese teachers’ second largest economy, the “Chinese fever” continues to rise development in Malaysia, and teasing out the present situation, worldwide. Since the 1990s, the Malaysian government has characteristics and existing problems of Chinese teachers training. been increasingly open to Chinese education as it began to change its long-term single language education policy of “One Keywords—Malaysia, Chinese teachers, teacher training, country, one language, and one source of origin”. Malaysian enlightenment government officials and non-Chinese people have all followed the trend of learning Chinese and Malaysians are more intended to learn Chinese as the second language. In order to I. INTRODUCTION meet the needs of the sustainable development of domestic With a history of nearly 200 years, Malaysia’s Chinese Chinese education, the Malaysian government, United Chinese education has retained a complete system of Chinese education School Committee’s Association of Malaysia (UCSCAM), from pre-school, elementary, secondary to higher education. At United Chinese School Teachers’ Association of Malaysia present, Chinese courses are given not only in Chinese schools, (UCSCTAM), private secondary schools, private Chinese but in the major national system including elementary, institutions of higher learning, Confucius Institute secondary to higher education. As the “Chinese fever” has been Headquarters (Hanban) and Overseas Community Affairs on rise, the number of Chinese teachers in Malaysia is far from Council, Republic of China (Taiwan) set up efforts to support enough so that more than 90,000 are demanded[1]. The Chinese teachers training in various forms, through various development of the “One belt and One road” initiative has channels and with various methods. As a result, the Chinese taken the cooperation between Malaysia and China to a higher teachers have been on the rise at a fast rate, which effectively level in politics, economy, culture, education and other areas, helps resolve the trouble of “the shortage of teachers” to a and has further stimulated Malaysia's demand for Chinese certain extent. Compared with Chinese teachers’ education in teachers and international Chinese talents. Chinese teachers’ Southeast Asia or even the rest of the world, Chinese teacher development in Malaysia has its own unique advantages as development in Malaysia has its unique advantages manifested they not only meet the need of the domestic market, but serve by the following essentials. other Southeast Asian countries. Most of previous studies of Chinese teachers in Malaysia are devoted to the existing A. Advantages of Chinese education problems facing them [2]-[4], instead of the current situation Malaysia retains the world’s most complete education and problems of their training, not taking into account the system of Chinese as its mother language with its unique unique advantages of its development. Accurate understanding Chinese education in the world. Chinese has been serving as of the current situation of the Chinese teacher training is of the mother tongue, the first language and teaching language in great practical significance to the construction of the Malaysian Chinese elementary schools, private secondary schools and Chinese teachers’ team and the development of Chinese private institutions of higher learning at all times. Chinese teachers in other countries, and it also works as an important education in Malaysia has five advantages: complete education basis for the training program and goal of international Chinese system, standardized curriculum system and management talents. Therefore, the study of Malaysian Chinese teacher training merits further discussion. mechanism, abundant Chinese students, solid people’s foundation and strong organizational safeguards [5]. Therefore, This paper is to discuss: (1) What are the unique advantages Malaysia’s overall Chinese levels are better than those of any of Chinese teacher development in Malaysia? (2) What about other country, and have higher-quality of Chinese teachers, the present situation of Chinese teacher training in Malaysia? providing important sources of Chinese teachers to any other (3) What are the implications of Chinese teachers training in Southeast Asian countries, such as Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia for other countries? Brunei. Copyright © 2017, the Authors. Published by Atlantis Press. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). 613 Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, volume 99 B. Geographical advantages primary and secondary school teachers. Chinese teachers Located in the center of the two continents and the two training courses are opened in 15 of those institutes in which oceans, Malaysia roles as key links between Asia and Oceania Chinese teachers are required to take teaching theory courses in north-south and between the Pacific and the Indian Ocean east- 5 semesters and teaching practice & training in one semester. west. As a critical waterway connecting the two oceans in a Then one obtains the teacher’s certification issued by the very favorable geographic position, the Malacca Strait boasts Malaysian Ministry of Education before passing the required one of the world’s busiest straits open to navigation with the examinations. The learner is not only exempt from tuition and largest shipping amount for the longest duration. Besides, lodging fees, but also given subsistence allowance. To solve collectively known as “Nanyang”, Malaysia and other the shortage of elementary Chinese teachers, the Ministry of Southeast Asian countries share similar histories, cultures, Education has re-opened holiday teacher training classes to natural climate and living habits so that Chinese people train more provisional teachers to be qualified ones, recruit residing in different Southeast Asian countries share similar more Chinese training teachers, and reduce the requirements fate. Chinese people are closely associated in those neighboring for teachers to be trained, and continue to rehire the retired as regions and cities such as southern Malaysia and Singapore, contract teachers. At the same time, the Ministry also offers northern Malaysia and Thailand, Penang and Medan, Kuching Chinese teacher training courses for graduates to train and Singkawang, and Miri and Brunei[6]. Therefore, elementary and secondary Chinese teachers and has approved Malaysian Chinese teachers training can serve both it and the the establishment of private Chinese universities & colleges to neighboring countries with geographical advantages to become develop reserve Chinese teachers. the center for Chinese teacher training in Southeast Asia. E. Advantages of Chinese community C. Advantages of cultural integration The prosperity of Chinese education in Malaysia is in large Although Hanban designates a large number of volunteers part attributed to the efforts of Chinese community leaders to teacher Chinese in Malaysia every year, the “quantity” and UCSCAM and UCSCTAM and the Malaysian government’s “quality” of Chinese teachers remain to be improved continuous fight to firmly defend Chinese education essentially despite the alleviation of “shortage of teachers”. The development. In view of the fact that Malaysian government main cause is the difficult adapting and assimilating themselves and the Ministry introduced the policy of restricting Chinese to the indigenous culture of Malaysia. Moreover, just as the education and of the shortage of Chinese teachers, UCSCTAM proverb “Distant water can’t quench present thirst” puts it, the not only provides prompt enrolment information of Chinese use of foreign-aid teachers is only a matter of expediency for teacher training for those who intend to sit the exams for Malaysian Chinese education. Instead, the cultivation of native admissions to Chinese teaching, but also assists those Chinese teachers has been a consensus of worldwide experts candidates who qualify for but lose the exams in lodging and scholars. Due to its marked geographical advantages and complaints to the Ministry, fighting for their qualification of similar national conditions, language, culture, diet and climate registering for the exams and admissions. In order to promote to those of other Southeast Asian countries, native Chinese the professional development of private secondary school teachers in Malaysia will have strong cultural adaptability to teachers, the Student Affairs Division and the Teacher Institute Chinese teaching environments of those countries quickly, and of UCSCAM not only set up a “Special scholarship for be more likely to satisfy the needs of Southeast Asian countries teachers education in private secondary schools” and “Lin for Chinese teachers. Huangsheng education