SPEECH BY YB DR. MASZLEE BIN MALIK MINISTER OF …
Transcript of SPEECH BY YB DR. MASZLEE BIN MALIK MINISTER OF …
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SPEECH BY YB DR. MASZLEE BIN MALIK
MINISTER OF EDUCATION MALAYSIA
ON THE OCCASION TO OFFICIATE THE CLOSING CEREMONY OF THE
SPECIAL EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCE (SEIC) 2019
ON THE 27TH OF SEPTEMBER 2019,
AT THE MARRIOTT HOTEL, PUTRAJAYA
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Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.
Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.
Good morning.
Salutation
Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
1. I wish to extend my deepest gratitude to all the esteemed
delegates and guests for attending the Special Educational
International Conference 2019.
2. It humbles me to be here today at this event, it is indeed a
meaningful occasion. It has to come to my attention the
Special Education International Conference (SEIC) 2019 is a
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public private partnership programme organised by the
Ministry of Education together with the Parents Teachers
Association of Bukit Rahman Putra Secondary School and the
Dyslexia Malaysia Parent Support Group. This conference is
also supported by Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP),
Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) as well as the
industrial corporate Petro Teguh (M) Sdn. Bhd.
3. I would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge our
partners that have contributed in making this conference
possible. Thank you to SASBADI Holdings Berhad, Yayasan
UEM Berhad, Boost, Yayasan Pembangunan Ekonomi Islam
Malaysia (YAPEIM), Doof, and the Southeast Asian Ministers
of Education Organization Regional Centre for Special
Education (SEAMEO SEN) for your contributions.
4. It takes great effort to bring all professionals around the
globe together to share experiences, knowledge and
evidence based practices in the special education field in
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Malaysia. Having this platform can open up more
opportunities to reflect and improve the different
approaches in special education.
Her Excellency, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
5. Allow me to share the story of one of our students, Eddy
from SMK Beluran. Eddy has this condition called cerebral
palsy, which is a permanent movement disorder caused by
damage to the parts of the brain that controls movement.
This did not stop Eddy from training and competing to
become a world class athlete.
6. He eventually won the gold medal at the ASEAN Paralympics
in 2017, and the gold medal at the Asian Para Games in
2018. He also was the recipient of the Anugerah Pendidikan
Khas Putera in the same year. When we asked him what was
next, he said, and I quote: “To realise my dreams, I will train
hard to feature in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics”.
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7. This is why the theme of SEIC 2019, Special Education:
Access and Quality, is so timely and urgent. We have a
generation of children like Eddy in our countries that are just
as capable as everyone else. All they need is access to
quality education and opportunities and they can achieve
unbelievable things.
8. In the past, special education here was all about providing
education for the blind and deaf. Families resisted
registering their special needs children to formal schooling,
thinking that our system was incapable of supporting their
education and needs.
9. We have come a long way since then. Special needs
education now caters to a spectrum of needs, both physical
and mental. So far, our Ministry estimates that 1%, or
300,000 of Malaysians have special education needs, and
even that number might be an underestimation. With this
large cohort of indivuduals, we have a duty to ensure that
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we are able to cater to as many students as possible, no
matter what their needs are. This duty aligns with the United
Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Four, of
providing inclusive and equitable quality education.
10. Malaysia has broad, ambitious plans for this. I said this
before, and I say it again: I will ensure that access to quality
education to special needs students is implemented radically
and throughly nationwide.
11. Through the implementation of our Zero Reject Policy, we
have recorded increasing enrolment for special needs
education. This year alone, approximately 12,000 special
needs students have registered in our schools. Under this
policy, our schools may no longer turn away special needs
students from formal schooling, and will have to develop
innovative methods and partnerships to help our students
find their best selves.
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12. Furthermore, based on the 11th Malaysian Plan Mid-Term
Review, the Ministry of Education targets to improve access
to quality education by encouraging enrolment of more
students with special needs in early to tertiary level
education.
13. At the same time, we are in the process of ensuring that the
special education becomes an important component in the
12th Malaysia Plan now under preparation. This is to ensure
that educational institutions nationwide are special needs
friendly as well as to ensure that special needs parents are
no longer stressed and feel inhibited.
14. All of this is to ensure that we prepare an ecosystem that all
our students, regardless of their abilities, can fully realise
their potential. I believe that all children have the capability
to succeed, despite any disadvantages, as long as they have
some hope and help along the way. As Stevie Wonder aptly
puts it : “Just because a person lacks the use of their eyes
doesn’t mean they lack vision.”
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Her Excellency, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
15. Our stance towards special education is aligned with our
education policies and capacity-building efforts with the
current Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR) agenda. All students
from preschool to tertiary education should be equipped
with The Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR) skills which are
communication, creativity, collaboration and critical
thinking.
16. With soon to be released IR Curriculum 4.0, educators must
prepare students with knowledge and skills for the new
economy as well as future technologies. We must be vigilant
as the current and new economy is knowledge-intensive and
demands highly skilled talent pool.
17. Our special education needs talent will play a large role in
this. They have unique skills and experiences that they can
bring to the table to help Malaysia be a leader in this new
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economy. From coding to user experience design, there are
many opportunities for our special education needs students
to specialise in to thrive in.
18. That is why the Ministry of Education has made tremendous
efforts to pursue this vision by developing the Roadmap for
Students with Special Education Needs since October 2018.
Through this plan, six important pillars are identified to
enhance our special education system. These pillars are:
Pillar 1: Empowerment of Human Capital;
Pillar 2: Strengthening Support System;
Pillar 3: Enhancement of Teaching & Learning, Co-
curricular and Talent Expansion;
Pillar 4: Reinforce Accessibility and Mobility,
Pillar 5: Enforcing Good Governance and finally;
Pillar 6: Improving Data Management.
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19. As a developing country, we must also move towards
nurturing and instilling better morale and compassion within
ourselves and our children. Working towards increasing
awareness and acceptance of different and exceptional
needs of individuals is crucial for us to progress as a society.
Different does not mean less.
20. Distinguished guests, learning itself is an ongoing process
throughout our lives. Continuous professional development
is key in ensuring that educators’ skills are up to date,
adapting to the constant changes in the education field, as
well as enriching their knowledge. The knowledge learnt can
then be applied in the classroom to improve students’
achievements.
21. In addition, with the findings of research, evidence-based
teaching practices are seen as vital in providing effective
education as it has been demonstrated to benefit both
educators and students. The use of scientifically proven
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teaching methods that cater to the needs of each student
will save more time and resources.
22. The Government would also greatly benefit from the
support of the higher education institutions in contributing
and providing high-impact evidence-based researches to
develop better education policies.
23. Hence, innovative collaboration towards providing better
services for persons with disabilities must be forged
between the public sector, research and development,
business and industries as well as non-profit organizations.
Through these partnerships and cooperation, high quality
education can be achieved…a crucial spark for economic
growth and social transformation for the country.
24. Therefore, I would like to express my utmost appreciation
towards the organizing committees, honorable speakers,
participants and guests for their support and contribution.
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25. Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, let me once
again thank everyone for joining us in this conference. I hope
everyone had shared and obtained invaluable insights and
knowledge from other professionals, all towards the vision
of Education for All. I hope that everyone walks away from
this today, at the barest minimum, with the belief that we
must do more. And as Franklin D. Roosevelt, a wheelchair-
bound American President, once said: “If civilization is to
survive, we must cultivate the science of human relationships
- the ability of all peoples, of all kinds, to live together, in the
same world at peace”.
26. On that note, it gives me great pleasure to officiate the
closing of the Special Education International Conference
2019.
Thank you.