KUCHING: Sarawak must develop its own education system and stop relying solely on frameworks designed elsewhere if it wishes to compete globally, said Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) President, Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh.
He commended the state government’s ongoing efforts to strengthen English education, describing the initiative as both “wise and timely”.
Wong, who is also Bawang Assan Assemblyman, stressed that this single measure is not enough to raise standards to the level Sarawak needs.
“Despite the government’s repeated emphasis on the importance of English and despite years of teaching the language, the standard of English in Sarawak still remains low and unsatisfactory,” he said in a press statement today, calling for a bold new approach that places Sarawak in the driver’s seat of education reform.
Wong argued that education should never be constrained by racial politics or narrow interests, but instead act as the foundation to unite Sarawakians and prepare them to “stand tall among nations”.
He dismissed the idea of pitting Bahasa Malaysia against English, noting that “Bahasa Malaysia unites us at home while English empowers us abroad”.
He said that the key to any successful education system lies in the quality of its teachers.
“If the English teachers are strong, students will be strong. If the teachers are weak, the students will be weak,” he said, urging the state to work with world-renowned institutions such as Harvard, Cambridge and Oxford to craft a globally respected education framework.
He said such collaboration, combined with Sarawak’s own determination, would ensure that future generations of Sarawakians are recognised as world-class leaders, innovators and thinkers.
“Our children can walk anywhere in the world and be treated as top-class elites,” he said, stressing that the greatest treasure of Sarawak lies in the minds of its children.
“If we give them the best, they will carry us further than we have ever dreamed,” he said.
He added that the state must boldly build its own system to secure a prosperous and competitive future.
