Many people will wonder, is it better to allow their children to study in a Chinese Independent High School or National Secondary School (Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan, SMK)? Both independent and national schools both have their advantages and disadvantages because after all, nothing can be perfect in this world. Nevertheless, we have compiled some information regarding Independent and National schools to help you decide which school is better suited for your children.

We have carefully analysed and listed out both good and bad points of each school and we do not side with either party! Without further ado, let’s take a deep dive into the differences between independent and national schools.

Teaching Method

Firstly, the teaching approaches offered by both schools are quite different. Independent schools are more diverse in their teaching methods. This can be seen as students are often more engaged by doing presentations on a certain topic. Hence, this sort of flexible learning helps the students to feel more lively, as they are not confined to textbooks and assignments.

On the contrary, national schools are more rigid in their teaching methods. Written works are mostly given as alternative learning is not being taught. Because of the difference in teaching approach, national school students may experience boredom with their studies while students in independent schools may enjoy their studies more. 

In fact, college students are often tasked with presentations. If students are exposed to giving presentations in their early studies, it would remove any public speaking fear as they would be comfortable speaking in front of a group of people. In that way, when your child goes to college, they won’t be unfamiliar with the format used in college.

Student Discipline

In terms of student discipline, the independent school is more concerned with the student’s discipline. As an example, the independent school will educate its students to be grateful and polite. This is very important, as besides doing well in their examinations, the students’ personalities are equally as important. The reason is some students still do not have self-discipline. If a student is still unwilling to correct their mistakes after repeated persuasion from their teachers, that particular problem student will be counselled by a trained counselling teacher.

Whereas in the national schools, the school environment is less favourable because the disciplines in national schools are not so strict. When a student gets used to such an environment, they will learn to be less disciplined over time. For example, we always hear about girls wearing above-the-knee length school uniforms to school or the news about students swearing at their teachers. As parents, we need to remember that our children are going through a rebellious period at this age. Therefore the school environment is important, as children are more easily influenced at this age.

Fees

In terms of cost, the independent school fees will be higher than the national school. However, the fees for each school differ. Therefore the parents must do a bit of research to compare the costs. As for the students who meet the requirements of the respective independent schools, they can apply for scholarships and may get to be exempted to pay the school fees for six years.

As for the national school, the advantage of studying there is free education, which means that there will be no higher cost incurred. For income low families, the national school would be a more suitable choice.

Degree of Stress

In terms of stress, national school students may not face that much pressure. Class hours are half-day, from 7:30 am to 1 pm, or from 1 pm to 6:30 pm. The students will have some time for them to relax or to do some extra-curricular activities such as tuition. It will be less stressful as they have the opportunity to have some time to rest before going to their tuition.

Students at independent schools are more stressed because their class hours are much longer and assignments are more burdensome. Long class hours are already so stressful, but some students have to go for extra tuition classes to get better grades. Studying under these circumstances is much more stressful.

Coming to the topic of tuition, it’s interesting to discuss the costs. Tuition classes for independent schools are much more costly than at national schools. This is because of the level of teaching. Independent schools’ tuition teachings are much more advance. Their teachers have to have much more patience and knowledge to prepare their students well for their exams. Therefore independent school tuitions are much more expensive than national school tuition.

Language

In terms of language training, national school students are exposed to three languages, that is Mandarin, Bahasa Malaysia, and English. In Malaysia, it is important to understand all these three languages, the student will not miss learning one of the languages. If any student wants to be more advanced in a particular language, they must be more equipped in that particular language by speaking or reading more in that particular language.

As for the independent secondary school, the language emphasis would be Mandarin. There it would be difficult for the students to master other languages well. Bahasa Malaysia, in particular, is much more difficult for independent high school students to master. Nevertheless, independent secondary schools are not entirely focused on the Chinese language, they also emphasize the English language. From some parents’ feedback, the English classes taught at the independent school are very systematic. In the independent school, they emphasized not just the students’ writing skills but also their speaking skills. Furthermore, some independent schools are teaching the subject of Mathematics in English.

Among the trilingual schools mentioned above, the independent school places special emphasis on Chinese. This means that the standard of Chinese spoken by independent school students is not just average but very advance. If a student cannot master Mandarin well, it would be difficult for them to join an independent school. Whereas in the national school, among the trilingual languages, Bahasa Malaysia is the most demanded language. The same goes for students in the national school. If their proficiency in Bahasa Malaysia is poor, they would have a hard time coping with studying in the national school.

Scope of Curriculum

The scope of the teaching curriculum in independent schools will be wider, not just in Malaysia, but worldwide. Geography and History subjects, in particular, will be more international. In this way, students will learn more about what is happening in the world. The more worldwide perspective knowledge the students have, the easier for them to decide on their future undertakings.

As for the national schools, history and geography are focused on Malaysia and Southeast Asia only, thus limiting the students’ knowledge.

Learning Enviroment

If you would like your children to become more integrated into Malaysian society, the learning environment in national schools will be relatively appropriate. This is because the national schools consist of students of three major races. Therefore the children studying in this environment every day will naturally be able to meet different races and understand how to relate to multiple races. For example, the children will understand the taboo of not appropriate to eat in front of the Malays during fasting (puasa) month.

On the contrary, the students from independent schools do not necessarily understand all of these; or know how to relate to multi-ethnicity. This is because the majority of the students are Chinese. Of course, there may be other ethnic groups of students who are studying in an independent school too, but the majority of them are from Chinese backgrounds. As a result, it would be difficult for the students to feel the atmosphere of the three different major races studying together in class.

Extra-curricular Activities

The independent school emphasizes extra-curricular activities. For example, teachers at the independent secondary school encourage students to join school clubs or school-organized activities as much as possible. Actually, students shouldn’t just study all the time, but they should participate in extra-curricular activities that will help them to learn more about things that are outside the scope of their school subjects and at the same time develop their interests.

Although studying is very important but children will face many different challenges in the future. Through extra-curricular activities, they have the opportunity to experience various happenings and gain problem-solving skills. For example, if they run into difficult problems during an event, they will learn to be united. Teamwork can’t be learned from textbooks. So the independent school is just the right place, with different types of interesting clubs.

But the national school students pay less attention to extra-curricular activities. For example, there are fewer kinds of clubs and extra-curricular activities. If students are less active in extra-curricular activities, they may only know how to study only and overlook the importance of extra-curricular activities.

Further Study After SPM

After graduating from an independent school, students can go abroad to study in Taiwan. Foreign universities accept independent school (UEC) graduates, and the advantage is that they can enter the first-year course directly. Therefore they do not have to do the pre-university foundation course. In addition, those students who want to work in the National Public Service Bureau will have to choose to take a government examination which is SPM. The government recently announced that anyone who wants to apply to work in the National Public Service Bureau must pass SPM Bahasa Malaysia with excellence.

As for the students who only take the independent school entrance exam (UEC) and whose proficiency in Bahasa Malaysia is poor, it would be difficult for them to enter the National Public Service Bureau sector. However, some independent schools have already decided for their students to take up the SPM exam at the same time as they take the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC). To be honest, if students take both exams at the same time, they will be even more stressed.

National school students have the choice to choose either enter a local private university or a foreign university after graduation. Of course, they also have the opportunity to choose to attend a national local university instead. But for independent school students to enter national local universities, they must attend Form 6 to get STPM. But if they want to join a private university, they just need to take up a Foundation (Pre-university) Program or A-Levels.

Well, that’s the difference between independence and national schools. Both independent and national schools have their advantages. The most important thing is to analyse which educational system, environment, or other elements are best suited for your children. After all, each person is a different individual. It is not necessarily that independent schools are much better if many people support independent schools. Your children may be suited for the national school environment. What will happen in the future will ultimately depend on the child’s home education. Even if you send your child to the best school, he or she may not have a good future if he or she lacks parental love and encouragement.

It’s important to select a good school for your child, but as the old saying goes, if you want your child to have a good future, you can’t ignore your child’s education as well as the family’s environment.