Trilingual Education, Cultural Heritage, and Talent Development in Malaysian Chinese Schools

Chinese students in Malaysia learn three languages starting from kindergarten: Malay, Chinese, and English, which lead to a specialized trilingual education. Chinese primary schools (referred to as Huaxiao in Chinese, the same below) use Chinese as the main medium of instruction, with Malay and English as compulsory subjects. In secondary school education, independent Chinese secondary schools (referred to as Duzhong) continue the trilingual teaching model of Chinese primary schools, while national-type Chinese secondary schools (referred to as Huazhong) focus on Malay and English, with Chinese as a compulsory subject. National secondary schools (referred to as Guozhong) use Malay as the primary medium of instruction, with English as a compulsory subject and Chinese as an elective subject. The trilingual education from different streams has varying impacts on cultural heritage transmission, cultural integration, and talent development, resulting in a diverse model of education and talent cultivation. The paper shows the learning experiences and self-assessments of Malaysian Chinese language talents brought up by different educational pathways by focusing on three case interviews and relevant educational statistics. It ends with a discussion of the advantages of multilingual talents in Malaysia and their role in cultural heritage transmission.

Keywords

trilingual education, cultural heritage, multilingual talents, Malaysia

source

International Journal of Chinese Language Education; Dec 2025; Issue No. 18; p.27-44

Language

Chinese