Reaffirming values through education
Professor Tan Sri Dato' Dzulkifli Abdul Razak
Learning Curve: Perspective
New Sunday Times - 15-12-2013
AUTONOMY: The Lithuania experience
I WAS in Lithuania last week. Many Malaysians asked me where the country is on the map. Lithuanians are also not well versed in our country.
Each nation is literally poles apart: Malaysia is close to the equator and Lithuania, the Arctic Circle. Lithuania is on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea and situated approximately at the border between Eastern and Western Europe.
However, Lithuania and Malaysia have something in common geographically: the former is the centre of Europe, while the latter is at the "heart" of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations member countries.
Lithuania is strategically placed as a buffer state between the civilisations of Western Europe and Asia. It attained its independence on March 11, 1990, following a split from the then Soviet Union after being occupied since 1940.
It was the first of the Soviet republics to declare independence. Now it is a member of the United Nations and part of the European Union (EU), and, in fact, currently the Presidency of the Council of EU.
All these augur well for the nation that is aggressively trying to emerge from the days of "Sovietisation".
From casual observations and discussions with Lithuanians, be it people on the streets or intellectuals and businessmen, you sense a kindred spirit in trying to decolonise and transform education, which is viewed as vitally important, given the relative small size of the country, flanked by larger and powerful nations on three sides of its border.
The Lithuanian educational system is "firmly established on the principle of creating a strong cultural community that will assimilate the whole of Western culture, join in its progress and make a valuable contribution to it with its own national values", according to a source (Maldeikis, 1957). Its aim is to strengthen national consciousness, and provide a platform for survival.
After all, a higher education body -- similar to any other social institution -- reflects the values, socio-culture and attitudes of its society.
An encounter with Lithuanian Parliament (Seimas) First Deputy Speaker Vydas Gedvilas reveals his passion for higher education when he advocated autonomy as the basic principle that must be respected in the education sector. In 2009, a Law on Higher Education and Research was passed, giving universities a high degree of independence.
"A higher education institution shall enjoy the autonomy which covers academic, administrative, economic and financial management activities, and is based on the principle of self-government and academic freedom." Reportedly, the education institution is relatively independent of state funding.
Collaboration, a part of the country's historical tradition of developing democratic higher education ambiance, is encouraged.
This, allegedly, is in contrast to the Soviet experience where the educational system exerted a high degree of government control as a political instrument under the purview of the USSR Higher Education Ministry then.
For a taste of the changes, visit the Mykolas Römeris University (MRU) campus in Vilnius, renamed in 2004 after a renowned Lithuanian legal scholar, judge and father of the country's constitutional law. It was formerly the Law University of Lithuania.
University rector Professor Alvydas Pumputis reaffirmed the importance of developing a well-rounded personality -- a mature, enterprising and independent future leader and a responsible citizen.
This is clear in the MRU mission statement "to nurture academic traditions of the world, European and Lithuanian universities in accordance with the principles of democracy and respect for human values, (and) to educate civic society".
MRU hopes to create a conducive environment for intellectual enrichment and well-being by encouraging dialogue between people who value different viewpoints and treat each other with respect.
To this end, the role of students in the governance of the tertiary institution is consistent with the aims of the Bologna Process, namely nurturing undergraduates who are involved in institutional governance at all levels, and influencing the organisation and content of education as competent and active partners. This is the right move in "developing a thorough personality in individuals while forming human values, professionalism, entrepreneurship and independence".
Young as they are, Lithuanian higher education in general and MRU in particular seem poised to shape the future while preserving the country's national heritage in the name of diversity -- something that Malaysia is keen to share.
The honorary Doctor Honoris Causa degree was conferred on the writer by MRU on Dec 5.