Technology No Substitute For Family Values - Mustapha

KUCHING, July 17 (Bernama) -- Education on the use of technology must be implemented in stages and integrated up to higher education levels to ensure students not only master it but also avoid becoming overly dependent, which could affect family relationships and core life values.

Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud said students and parents must remain mindful of technology's growing influence in daily life to ensure that core values rooted in religion and culture are not overlooked.

“There are students who prefer interacting with applications like ChatGPT rather than talking to their parents,” he said.

“They claim these applications provide quick and easy answers, while their parents are often too busy to respond to their questions,” he said when officiating the ‘Wanita Pesona Elegan, Jiwa Sejahtera’ seminar at Kuching Polytechnic today.

The one-day seminar, organised by Pertubuhan SALWA Malaysia and the Ministry of Higher Education’s branch of the Malaysian Association of Wives and Women Civil Servants (Puspanita), drew about 600 participants.

Mustapha also warned that the growing trend among parents of giving gadgets to young children to ‘keep them quiet’ needs urgent attention from all parties, including relevant ministries and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

“In the process of educating, we have unknowingly handed over our role to technology. Eventually, children become too dependent on devices and no longer see their parents as the main source of love and guidance.

At the same time, Mustapha called on students to be actively involved in organising activities focusing on personality development, confidence, and self-empowerment as a form of leadership and management training.

He said that through direct involvement in such activities, students would have the opportunity to sharpen their skills in managing, planning, and implementing programmes.

“This will not only boost their self-confidence but also serve as an important added value once they graduate,” he said.

-- BERNAMA