Tamil Primary Education in Malaysia

This chapter addresses the current status, challenges and prospects of Tamil primary education in Malaysia. It addresses the justification of the community for preserving Tamil Schools, which cater for almost 60% of the primary school children from the Indian Community. It is important to note that majority of the children who enroll in these schools come from low and middle socio-economic sections of the community. There are numerous challenges threatening the continuous existence of these schools, which include the ongoing drop in birthrate in the community, the urgent need to relocate a significant number of existing schools to new areas, and recent legal suits by some quarters to challenge the legitimacy of the vernacular schools in Malaysia. This chapter also addresses the recent efforts of the government and the community to help improve the quality of Tamil schools and proposes new initiatives to be taken.