An educational policy becomes one of the factors to determine the function of education for learners. The notion was the main point of a public lecture on Political, Social, and Educational Management in Southeast Asia conducted by Master of Governmental Studies on Tuesday (17/4) at meeting hall of A.R. Fachruddin A, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY).
A professor of Midia Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology, the Philippines Prof. David N. Almarez D.M. informed that President Duterte made policy to enhance quality of students and teachers. “The decision was based on the previous policy and today’s phenomena. For instance, the policy was dealing with language teachers since children can access internet and most of contents on the internet use English. I think that for a certain issue this is a part of language colonialism because government made policy to emphasize early education to use mother tough and to build characters in accordance with values in their home country,” he stated.
David also told that government standardize a school curriculum in the Philippines. “There are several school types in the Philippines such as religious-based schools, education for natives, and state schools. Government apply the policy in order that students can have opportunities to pursue their higher education without discrimination,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Mudzakkir from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) revealed that Malaysia emphasizes the relations between educational institutions and government. “Prior to the 1970s, the educational institutions and government adopted a colonial bureaucratic system that they ran independently. Government had limited control to interfere in socioeconomic development of Malaysian higher education institutions, and educational institution members were trusted to manage their institutions by themselves. They could focused on academic activities and knowledge exploration, but national issues were neglected,” maintained by Mudzakkir.
He added that after 1970 that there was an enormous shift in Malaysian higher education institutions “Racial riots determined the new Malaysian policy in various aspects. In the educational area, Malaysian government created Malaysia Plan as a guideline for Malaysian universities and the members to contribute to the national development and modern economy activities,” said Mudzakkir.
