Recently, vernacular schools are again attacked by narrow-minded politicians and even professors from public universities.

These single-minded individuals criticize the unity government for funding vernacular schools.

To them, the funding is unconstitutional as well as perpetuating disunity in the nation by allowing schools that do not use the national curriculum in Bahasa Malaysia.

In my writings, I have always argued that race and religious conflicts are not because of language but more related to the way we learn the history of our nation and the way we learn religions in our communities.

The disunity, disharmony and conflicts between cultures, races and faiths are by our own individual, communal and institutional misunderstanding between traditional sources of learning and the need of a nation-building and global coexistence mindset.

Thus, it is about our holistic education, not about language per se.

In my opinion, we need a serious revamp of our history narratives and approach to a more inclusive communal history of our people rather than the single narrative of politics of one race and a peninsular dominance of the story of our country.

In religion, we need a set of common and core values of our spirituality that should be framed in a sustainable and inclusive global coexistence.

Be that as it may, I feel that it is high time that the owners and stakeholders of the vernacular school embark on a soul reflection exercise.

In my view of personal growth, all of us must reflect on our state of self involving our priorities, values and aspiration.

If we do not do so, we will fall into the sea of others determining what we do and become as well as we will be on a self destruct mode on our failed KPI that we set unrealistically for ourselves.

Reflection of the self is an important tool of personal and spiritual growth, for without it we will truly be lost.

Those who are lost are those who never self-reflect but follow traditions in a blind fashion or worse, follow trends and TikTok populism without questioning worth and validity.

I would like to suggest that vernacular schools to think of a double stream education system, just like some public schools which are allowed to have a full Bahasa Malaysia stream and an English-BM stream.

Those in the English-BM stream will have their science and mathematics in English and the whole communication culture is nurtured in both languages.

I was part of the last year when the English-BM scheme was implemented.

My children were all taught in the full BM mode but I had transferred them to some private schools where English is spoken mainly, even though the curriculum is still in the full BM mode.

The vernacular schools can start a small stream of one or two classes that have a Mandarin-BM stream where the subject of Bahasa Malaysia will take on the national level syllabus and the subjects of history and geography will be taught in Bahasa Malaysia.

The history and geography curriculum can still remain the same that is used by the vernacular schools, but I would recommend a bit more history be taught on Islam because in Southeast Asia, that religion is the dominant force influencing social, political and even economic issues.

In this manner, the vernacular schools would gain an added value in terms of their students and graduates being able to appreciate and understand better the Malay civilization and would become the bridges between communities, cultures and faiths in the future.

In any family conflict, I would be the first to self-reflect and change my approach.

I do so because I am the oldest and supposed to be the wisest. I do not follow knee-jerk reactions. I do not explode my temper at the smallest provocation. I do not also hold any resentment in my heart even though my wife and my children may say something terribly hurtful to me.

I have done so because that is true maturity, that is true wisdom and that is a sign of a higher spirituality.

We, Malaysians must all change, not just political parties in government. It is we who will determine the fate of Malaysia, not Anwar or Hadi Awang. Us. You and I.

If the parents, teachers, board members of vernacular schools do not change their ways, approaches and attitude towards what is needed in education from time to time, we have only our own selves to blame when Malaysia fails in every aspect of a matured and progressive society.

Remember, self reflection is always for the winners while those who complain and sit within their comfort zones are always the true losers.

(Prof Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi is Professor of Architecture at a local university and his writing reflects his own personal opinion entirely.)