malaysian students too passive, incurious

in today's star: malaysian students too passive and incurious.

so are we going to start the blame game now? who are we to blame if we want to point fingers?
the education system again??
are we thought to think and to voice opinions in school??
imagine the time when u were in school...were you penalised for voicing out? did teachers hold discussion sessions where you argue and and support with facts?
notice that the minister in the article did not give any opinion on that issue except repeating the result of the survey.
i personally think that the classroom is the place where students can be encouraged and nurtured to form the thinking and questioning culture. what is wrong with asking questions when one is curious? teachers should not be too defensive when students ask questions or query the information given because it is part and parcel of learning. it is not a shameful thing to be corrected or to admit one's mistakes. be open to suggestions and grow together with the students. the society will miss out a lot if the future generation is made to shut up and only accept things spoon-fed to them. where is development if there is no inquisitiveness and curiousity?
maybe the syllabus needs another revamp. hahah...make it more project based where students have to write papers discussing subjects or carry out surveys or make it more communicative like what we had in the 60s.
the language factor might be one which hampers students from voicing out. so yeah, improve their language grasp first.