Saturday, December 23, 2006
To Minister of Education, Mr. Tharman Shanmugaratnam
To start off, i'd like to say that as much as i will try to be formal and polite, i'd think you and I would prefer reading something that isn't forced out. To properly show what i mean, i have to write it in a manner that is comfortable to me, but to show respect for you, i'd have to make an attempt to be polite as well.
Anyway, the thing i want to talk about is about how i feel there's an immense lack of focus on moral education, differentiating what's good what's bad, moral fibre, moral courage, consideration for others, for other races, for the environment. I know that there are some forms of "Civics and Moral Education" or other variants in our schools, but these only comprise merely of a few hours, or even less a week.
There seems to be a lot, a lot, more focus on educating the students on science, logic, mathematics, etc, i don't know what to call it besides "academic" education, and i'm sure thats the way it is all around the world. The government wants their citizens to be more competitive in the economy, naturally they would put much moe focus on the "academics" than the "morals"
But surely, what makes the world worth living should be based on morals rather than academics! Science and logic are neither good or bad, which means they can be used for good or bad purposes. Cloning might help a person transplant an organ for himself, but cloning can also be used to take over another person's identity for financial...or whatever benefits. Where there's nuclear power, there's nuclear bombs.
Detectives use logic to pin down criminals, but criminals can use logic to escape detectives. Hell, even medical cures or therapies, seemingly researched for the benefit of mankind, are sometimes harmful, researched simply for financial benefits. I draw this conclusion from two sources, first being a website detailing the fight of ozone therapies to be used to treat Aids.
The article states how ozone therapies are ignored, because other "cures" or "therapies" for aids are simply much more profitable. I had an inclination to believe in it, because the writer of the article didn't have any reason to push for ozone therapies besides the benefit of mankind, and exposing the ugly side of the medical industry. It goes on further, and i would love to link the website to you but somehow its gone down. Neverheless, i did copy-paste it on my blog, so i can refer to it, and i'm only too happy to provide you with it if you request for it.
What is clearly shown here, is how science and logic can easily be manipulated for nasty reasons, under a facade of goodness. Science doesn't run the world, morals do.
The other source is when i was trying to get my myopia down, and i read...about minus lenses. I always had a theory i thought up myself that spectacles ake your eyes accomodated to myopia, hence when you continue doing closework, further myopia is developed, you get used to the glasses, even further myopia is developed, and so on.
Reading those websites confirmed what i always thought, and thistime, i can refer you to one of the better ones, www.myopia.org . Because of money. the whatever industry in charge of eyecare does not acknowledge the harm of these "minus glasses", which treeats the symptons, but not the cause. And in fact, worsens the problem.
I confirm these facts by asking the people around me, and then i know, what they say is true. I suppose it takes people with guts, people with moral courage and fibre to stand up and speak up. This is what we should inculcate in the people of Singapore, as well!
If we could develop moral courage, the ability to "Say No" to drugs would come naturally. It will be easy to say no to smoking, alcohol, or any other hamrful vices. There will be no space for bullies, since everyone dares to stand up against the bully. It is the people who dare to speak up for what they believe in that are remembered. It is these people who can change the way the world works. Ghandi, Martin Luther King, i'm sure there are plenty of other examples.
Many seem to feel the Government is trying to "stifle" the public from expressing any views contrary to theirs. People who may want to speak up, dare not, because they lack the moral courage and dare not face the implications. It is the same principle.
The ban on chewing gum is a classic example of treating the symptons but not the cause. Once we educate the youths about being considerate, so many goshdarned problems would be solved. There's no need to put ridiculous fines for people who don't flush the toilet! Educating their morals, is what makes the differenve between a person who litters, a person who doesn't, and a person who voluntarily picks it up.
I make sure i do what i preach, i try to pick up one or two empty bottles if i see them lying about, and make sure i do not litter as well. But i can't be expected to pick up every single bit of rubbish i see. It's about encouraging everyone to stand up for who they care for and what they believe in. There's no use nurturing great "leaders" in science who lead the Top 50 richest. We want people who make mankind's life for the better.
If we start pushing forward our education more on morals than on academics, i honestly believe we can continue thriving. Sure, perhaps our students might learn academically at a slower pace, but there will be harmony in the office, there will be less stress in everybody's life. There will be much less "office politics" going on, if we succeed in truly "morally-educating" the people of singapore. People overseas will be more willing to work with us, and that, i believe, far outstrips the slower pace of academic learning.
Governments everywhere only care about making the lives of their people better. "Better" in the sense of what? Economically? A life of luxury and comfort? While that is nice, i believe a place where everyone is nice to each other...a place like heaven would mean a far higher quality of life. But its a sort of gamble, it's something that may or may not work out. But if we don't try, we'll never know.
How to go on about this? We should start really young, and focus a lot more, maybe even half the lesson time, from kindergarden up till maybe primary 3? It's a whole lot more easier to convince and instill morals at a young age. To inspire teenagers, to change them, its not impossible. But you need teachers who know them, who understand them, and these teachers don't come easy.
There's no need to try instilling a "hip, youthful" image. All you need is an honest, straightforward campaign, asking whether we want to work for a better Singapore. There will be those who step forward and give things a shot, then people who, have the inclination but didn't have the courage to do those things, can see that other people are doing it. And they will too take the initiative.
I think a minister, not formally addressing anyone, jusd going on tv and talking, asking to those watching to step forward and make a difference would make a refreshing, sincere change to other commercial advertisements which try to entertain.
And if we fail, at least we tried, we can keep going, and know in our hearts that we did what we could, to change the world to what it wanted to be.
Thanks for reading,
silverletal [Simple and Clean] 3:42 AM
