Education system for Orang Asli still has a long way to go, said Lt Cdr Dr. Abu Yazid Abu Bakar from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia's (UKM) Education Faculty.

The current education provided for Orang Asli is like two different jigsaw puzzles that hardly match with one another, he said.

“One size fits all will not work for Orang Asli. Imposing an education system that suits us does not mean it will work for Orang Asli,” said Abu Yazid who has written many articles on the situation of education system for Orang Asli.

He cited the case in 2015, where seven children aged 7 to 11 years old, ran away from their hostel in SK Pos Tohoi. Two were found alive, four dead and one more could not be traced until now.

As the aftermath, there was assumption that the Orang Asli community do not prioritise education at all.

“The assumption that Orang Asli does not care about education is wrong. In fact, they welcome it when education is brought to them. They are excited when there are plans to build a school in their area.”

He was among the group of UCTC UKM – EPIC MALAYSIA who went to Pos Gob, Gua Musang, Kelantan last October to conduct research and provide aids for the Orang Asli there.

Abu Yazid said a different content of syllabus should be taught to them so that the education given to them can be applied in their daily life.

Conventional syllabus that is used in national schools may not be suitable for Orang Asli.

"Some of the Orang Asli have Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) and Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM), yet it is nowhere usable when they went back to their homeland.

"In the end, they see conventional education as pointless to their everyday life," he said.

Providing Orang Asli with knowledge that is not applicable to them is useless too.

The Orang Asli need basic education such as 3M (Reading, Writing and Calculation) to help them in their daily life, he added.

He said these natives conduct business activities with wholesalers who come to their villages to collect products from the woods and crops that they grew, such as bananas and durians.

However, the price given to them can be as low as RM1 for a durian and 80 sen for a bunch of bananas.

On the other end, they were sold petrol with an exaggerated price of between RM4.50 and RM5 for just 500ml. When asked, the wholesalers would use the rising petrol price as an excuse.

“Through education, they will understand more (about the price) and thus prevent them from being taken for granted by those who make deals with Orang Asli.”

“We are imposing our education system on them despite the fact that it may not suit them. We should see from their perspective and listen to what they want from education,” added Abu Yazid.

The method and content of Orang Asli education should be Orang Asli-centered instead of being standardised with all Malaysians, he added.

Meanwhile, Assoc Prof Dr Novel Lyndon from UKM's Social Science Faculty said education can help to tear down walls between Orang Asli and development, but not in the conventional way.

“Orang Asli hold strong to their beliefs. These beliefs act as a strong wall that prevents them from accepting development in their daily life,” he said.

As a result, forcing them to go to school the same way as others will not work because it is not their lifestyle.

“They have their do's and don’ts. For example, some of them believe that women should stay at home while men go out to search for food.

"In such a situation, how are they supposed to send their daughters to school? It will anger their ancestors, thus show that the changes are contradicting their principles in life.”

In solving this situation, education should tolerate and compromise with the culture of Orang Asli.

Novel suggested that vocational should be able to work well for the Orang Asli community compared to conventional education.

This is because, Orang Asli are physically and mentally capable of doing so. "Even better, they can work without the need to leave their hometown."

They can learn to cultivate commercial plants like oil palm and rubber. Other than that, they can grab the opportunity to grow forest products that have high demand like bamboos and agarwood.

“With the collaboration of Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), the Orang Asli in Jerantut were given five hectares of land each for them to work on with palm oil. The project was proven successful.”

Other than that, careers that involve the jungle and environment can also be focused on, such as the forest ranger. These are their strengths and expertise that should be focused in their education.