Our schools. A repost

What I want is to create young men who have pure heart and pure body who willing to work hard for upcoming future no matter what. I don't want young men who passed all the exams with high scores and become honor students. I don't want them to be walking textbooks. What I want is them to be young men whose personalities are honest, loyal, have pure pattern and pure mind and I won't feel any grieve if you tell me that a student can't read or write, can't calculate and has no knowledge of mathmatic at all. Only if I know that he was in my school and could compare the differences between a gentlemen and a feminine. At this school I want the meaning of studying is to change young men to good citizens and won't let all the knowledges crush their personalities. And I want the education to be enjoyful for the students, so in their futures they would think back that they had fun when they were in this school. I don't want my school to be compared to other schools which have difference purposes. If I had wanted a normal school, i would have built a day school, not a boarding one."

- King Vajiravudh on The Vajiravudh College, Bangkok.

A vigorous and intelligent race of young men who will be in touch with modern progress but not out of touch with old traditions; who will be liberally educated but not educated out of sympathy with their own families and people; who will be manly and not effeminate, strong-minded but not strong willed, acknowledging a duty to others instead of being a law unto themselves and who will be fit to do something in the world instead of settling down into fops, spendthrifts or drones.

- R.J Willkinson on The Malay College, Kuala Kangsar.

Same difference, no?

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"A vigorous and intelligent race of young men who will be in touch with modern progress but not out of touch with old traditions..." I find it saddening, as things rot and writhe away with time. preservation no longer a matter, change seen as the only mean, foundations not laid but only the facade is prioritised. are we powerless in this turmoil?

Muhklis Izam.

Mukhlis.

I'm okay with change and all, but when in Rome, do as the Romans do. So someone wants to bring change to the Malay College, change it with respect to our foundation and our values. Rauhi Mohd Isa came in thinking that he's Dolores Umbridge. He doesn't appreciate the college, he doesn't respect the people in it. You come in to a new place, regardless of stature, you, in a new place, you adapt. Learn to adapt and accept that certain things are there for a reason, bukan sebab budak-budak ni ikut tradisi kolot.

Have he ever sat down with the enlightened boys and discuss why things happen, why are people doing this and that. Oh, and I hope the boys doesn't come up with 'sebab dari form 1 kitorang tengok form 5 kitorang buat' as an answer.

A CEO of Ford can't possibly hope to survive in Benz if he just toss the German's everything and adopt his old regime.

It makes me wish that our school have a constitution. Change what you must to move with the times, but don't go against the constitution.

We see our school as a metaphor of the world, why not teach a bit on real-ish laws. Back in our time we got the unity and patriotic formula done just right. You know how things are now kan?

Kids are lazy and underachieving not because there's not enough classes, not enough work. Kids ran away from school to the life outside not because they are evil, mischievous and rotten. See what King Vajiravudh said: I want the education to be enjoyful for the students, so in their futures they would think back that they had fun when they were in this school. Yes, fun is not a dirty word in education. Fun should be a part of education.

Often kids are told to go here and there to listen this and that talks about the changing world, scary words such as globalisation, world without borders, new media, the global village. How employers nowadays are looking for a different type of characters to fill the workforce. Impressive effort yes, but is the people in The Malay College themselves adhere to this sort of things, I'm sure they are aware of?

Give some soul back to the school. Budak Koleq don't like to be pushed around. They are a group of confident, idealistic young man that believes that the world is their oyster, that they can bake their cake, have it and eat it all among their peers. Don't put a leash on that, don't say anything is too big, too impossible, or that they are too young. Let them be, learn or fail, the classroom isn't the only place that they are learning.

So Mukhlis, that's my two cent (pick a currency). If I should give a yes or no answer to your question, I would say yes. Yes because you read on this simple cut and paste article and saw the same thing I did. Yes because you commented on it. Nothing is lost when there's still people who cares.

Thank you.

The khatib at my taman's masjid today talked about how important it is the role of the leader. So yes, I guess in this passion driven comment I put a lot of blame on the Headmaster, Mr. Rauhi. I still stand firm with my opinion to this date.

For the betterment of the Malay College Kuala Kangsar.

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