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Copyright of Jebat: Malaysian Journal of History, Politics & Strategy is the property of Jebat: Malaysian Journal of History, Politics & Strategic Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The objective of this paper is to discuss Malaysian classroom practices, as seen through historical and socio-cultural lenses, and the classroom as a space where socio-historical transformation plays out. Malaysia’s formal education system was largely based on a British colonial structure, and still today continues to maintain much of the system established during British colonial rule. Key socio-cultural building blocks also came into being during colonial times, but these have given way to decidedly more locally driven social-historical ideas since Malaysia’s independence in 1957. We explore whether some of these social-historical changes could have contributed to the shaping of contemporary Malaysian classroom discourse. A previous study found that such discourse was almost entirely and persistently monologic, but why was monologic discourse so dominant and so homogenously employed throughout the country? What goes into the shaping of such narrow displays of classroom discourse? This paper examines the socio-historical roots that may have shaped the monologic patterns of contemporary Malaysian classroom discourse. We argue that two far-reaching forces within the macrosystem contributed to shaping classroom practice over time: the first related to the underlying colonial and post-independence rule/government structure, and the second to Malaysia’s particular socio-cultural character.

Food security is critical for promoting health and well-being and achieving sustainable development, especially in developing countries. Despite the recent efforts to improve it, food security is still a concern due to the rapid increase in populations, conflicts, and natural disasters worldwide. Universities, particularly agricultural universities, play an essential role in addressing food security issues by researching, developing new technologies, and providing education and training to farmers and other stakeholders. The main objective of this review is to discuss the role of universities and integrated farming in ensuring food security. Specifically, this paper reviews the importance of universities and focuses on their role in ensuring and promoting food security in Malaysia. It includes a brief overview of the different types of integrated farming methods that can be used to improve food security and finally discusses the Student Farmer Entrepreneur program, which can be crucial in promoting food security by increasing agricultural productivity, promoting local food production, encouraging sustainable agriculture practices, and supporting rural development. This review also considers the significant impact of the Malaysian government and universities on food security. With integrated farming and the Student Farmer Entrepreneur program, food security can be further improved.

The Hindu community is a minority group in Malaysia, living together with the majority of Muslim Malays. Following their migration to Malaysia during British colonisation, the Hindus have to endure various challenges. This study discusses the survival of Hindus in dealing with their religious concerns in the Malaysian Islamic environment. The issue that was identified and triggered critical concern among the scholars is the Islamisation agenda. A qualitative approach is employed to fulfil the objective of this study, which entails analysing works of literature. This study finds that the Islamization agenda discussed to be a major concern in the survival of the Hindu community is its apparent application from the government's Islamisation of policies, including the land allocation for temples and shrines and religious conversion. The findings also reveal that, despite the intimidation perceived by the Hindus on Islamisation, it has played a vital role in reforming their religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this special issue we address how modern education crosses the borders of states, cultures and ethnicities towards developing universalistic perspectives. The Present Special Issue consists of 6 articles, 5 of them are on modernization of education in Japan and the remaining one discusses the issues concerning school education in Malaysia. Each paper illustrates the readers some of the typical phases of educational transitions which have been commonly observed in Asia. They represent reflexively and historically the educational situations which have been surrounding us all.