WHEN the National Education Philosophy (FPN) was introduced in 1988, it was with the purpose of building a complete citizen through the national education system.
Done in a holistic and integrated manner, students would be inculcated with knowledge and values that would develop them into responsible, competent, open-minded citizens with high morals, who would be "able to contribute to the harmony and betterment of the family, the society and the nation at large".
The end-objective was to achieve a united and progressive society that would work towards shared prosperity. But for a values-based education to be successful, it requires the nation and policy-setters to be clear on where we are as a nation, and where we want to go from here.
What kind of citizens do we want? What values are important to us as a nation? So, every now and then, the FPN is worth a revisit, not least to assess whether we are on track to achieving the objectives we had set.
The "SEJAHTERA" initiative launched by the education minister this week is therefore a repackaging of the FPN; refreshing the concept and refining the values.
The minister says this initiative will not require any additional classes, since it can be applied through everyday lessons — in much the same way that teachers have inculcated and reinforced good values for generations.
It is important that students are shown that knowledge and values are something that can and should be applied across the board, in all aspects of life. And in the teaching and reinforcement coming from all educators, as batons pass from one teacher to the next, the younger generation will hopefully absorb values as a natural part of the human ecosystem.
But for the batons to be passed smoothly, all educators must be clear on what values we share as a nation. What are the rules? Where do they come from? And do we all believe in them? It is worth noting that currently, Morals is not a subject that is taught in schools to all students.
Rather, Pendidikan Moral is taught to non-Muslim students and Pendidikan Islam is taught to Muslim students. This suggests that Malaysian students are taught different, and possibly divergent, ethics and morals in school.
All religions call for adherence to good behaviour; but if that is the case, why do non-Muslims have to be taught Morals? And if Morals classes help establish a good understanding of ethical behaviour, why are Muslim students excluded from such valuable lessons?
Logically, then, all students in Malaysian schools should have to take Morals classes — preferably together — and be taught the same morals and ethical codes, which should be ones that are shared by all communities, not just by one or the other.
No doubt, the children will bring with them their respective cultural and religious understanding of things; but that will serve to enrich the lesson, because it will expose everyone to different perspectives and give them a better understanding of where each is coming from.
As a value-add, respective religious studies can be conducted as in-school after-school curricula. Such a plan would best work if schools are ethnically diverse and have teachers who are mature, worldly and objective.
That won't be easy to start with. But like building a nation, building character and shaping values is a long game. The sooner we get started, the better.