Critical issues in preschool education in Malaysia

Critical Issues in Preschool Education in Malaysia
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Critical Issues in Preschool Education in Malaysia
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In Malaysia, cultural diversity and ethnic composition of the population are some of the major factors that shape education policies. The education system has been transformed to ensure that preschool learners are able to achieve a high-quality education that improves their learning and development. Recent statistics indicate that preschool classes in Malaysia that are run by the government total to 15,627 while those run by government agencies are 17,899. The average size of each class is 23 children while the teacher to student ratio is 1 to 24. Numerous efforts have been placed by the government to transform the country’s education system and they have directly and indirectly impacted on the preschool education. Furthermore, the recent efforts of improving the education system have also transformed the early education system. This paper critically analyses the issues and challenges facing the Malaysian preschool education system and recommends various strategies of improving quality.
To address the critical issues associated with preschool education, it is important to examine why improved quality of this education level is important. Scholars have found that the experiences which children have from an early age play an instrumental in shaping their progress in the future. Evidence indicates that 60% of Malaysian preschool children aged six years and below attend early childhood education. This implies that 40% of preschool learners either study from home or do not attend any form of early learning. It is important to note that poor-quality preschool education may negatively affect the ability of children to excel during and after elementary education. It is important to address the improvement of preschool education at the micro and macro levels. Research studies on brain development indicate that learning is highly affected by the kind of preparation that is done during the foundation years.
The kind of experiences that children get on a daily basis has a huge impact on functional and structural development of their brain. Therefore, early childhood education influences the development of children’s personality and intelligence. However, it should be noted that various experiences can either be positive or negative and this depends on the quality of education and intensity of the programs. In Malaysia, studies have proved that quality childhood education has a positive impact on learners from low income families, including higher success rates, minimal need for special education in the future, reduced juvenile crime, reduced risks of teenage pregnancies, and higher rates of college graduation. Furthermore, quality preschool programs lead to better cognition, interpersonal relationships, social skills, behavioral self-regulation, and performance in language and mathematics subjects. Conversely, inferior childhood education contributes to poor school performance and weak development in language and social skills. Therefore, elementary schools with insufficient resources and which are unable to provide qual...