New Straits Times, Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Set up governors' panels

MAY I congratulate Education Minister Datuk Hishammuddin Hussein and his ministry for adopting the concept of cluster schools.

This idea is not new in education and has been adopted by many countries to allow for innovative approaches to education. But it is new in Malaysia.

The concept and initial appointment of 30 schools as cluster schools are more proof that the ministry is embarking on an overhaul of education
policies.

Those in the education service, from the grassroots level to the leaders in the ministry, had been constantly making suggestions for changes. These ideas have now been congealed and presented to the government and the people for adoption.

It is my hope, as a former member of the education service, that those who have been appointed to head these schools carry out their task effectively so that more schools would be granted such status. Their success in implementing the concept will determine how far this project will go.

Millions of taxpayers' money would be spent on these school heads to give them the training and exposure to modern concepts, and millions more will be spent to allow them to carry out their projects to move their schools towards directions few dreamt of.

Many have called for a bigger role of the parent-teacher associations but, from past experience, the PTA is often not the best body to advise such schools.

Instead, I suggest that the ministry re-establish boards of governors (or boards of managers) in cluster schools where there are none existing.

However, the constituency of the boards must be more representative and not dictated by any one institution. In the case of mission schools, the church has lots of say in appointing members; in Chinese schools, the trust also shares this right.

In cluster schools, such domination by particular institutions should be reduced and members of the board must reflect all parties.

In mission schools, only one-third of the seats should be given to the church concerned, and the Chinese trust body should only be given one-third of the places in their school boards.

One-third should go to parents of students of the school and one-third would be representatives with knowledge of education matters appointed by the ministry or its representatives (state directors of education).

The teaching profession has long been the whipping boy of the public and I hope these changes will make it the pride of the nation.

VICTOR CHEW
Ipoh.

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