MADRASAH EDUCATION IN SINGAPORE: THE IMPACT OF COMPULSORY EDUCATION

Abstract

In 2000, the Ministry of Education (MOE) implemented the Compulsory Education (CE) Act to prepare students for the knowledge-based economy (KBE). Under the Act, all six full-time madrasahs in Singapore are exempted. Yet, the administrators of the madrasah education system have chosen to offer compulsory primary education despite revelations of major pre-existing problems that have impaired the quality and learning outcomes of madrasah education in providing both the religious and national curriculum since the 1970s. These include high premature drop-out rate of students prior to the GCE ‘O’ examinations, the consistent challenge of sustainable funding, a stable pool of well-trained professional educators, and vital educational resources for teaching and learning. This study examines the impact of CE on the madrasah and its implications on the madrasah education system. It attempts to analyse persistent issues faced by madrasah arising from the decision of madrasah stakeholders and the Malay Muslim community elites to offer CE. How madrasah have responded to these challenges as evident in dominant discourse amongst these groups will be analysed. The overriding aim is to evaluate the ramifications of CE on the madrasah’s effectiveness in fulfilling its own aims as an educational institution that seeks to develop both Muslim professionals as well as religious scholars for the community and country.