A CRITICAL REVIEW OF THE EARLY HISTORY TEXTBOOKS IN MALAYSIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS

Abstract

During the colonial and well into the post-independence era, most history textbooks in Malaysian secondary schools were written by British civil servants who became academics later in their careers. This article appraises whether there is an autonomous history of Malaysia in its history textbooks, with reference to the textbooks used in the lower secondary, middle secondary and the upper secondary (pre-university) levels. Historical writings and interpretations of Malaysian history are also critically reviewed.