1. Higher Academic: Fine Art Studies to Deaf
Society in Malaysia
Nor Nadia binti Abdul Razak

2. Contents
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Background of the Study
1.3 Statement of the Research Problem
1.4 Research Objectives
1.5 Research Questions
1.6 Operational Definitions
1.7 Limitation of the Study
1.8 Significant of the Study

3. CHAPTER 1
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Deaf is one of the special deficiencies of human which is cannot hear or listen by affect of ears
problem. Everybody was known about the deaf but the realization and the concerns is still lack
among the communities in Malaysia. Actually, the deaf have their own culture and society. This
is actually exist a long time ago that synchronize with human needs but in Malaysia it still in new
development. In Malaysia, have some of groups of society of the deaf such as ‘Pusat Maju Diri
Y’ already stood in Malaysia almost two and half years only since 2011 opened. The Malaysia
National Deaf Association already exists since 1961. However, in recent years, many
organizations set up to help deaf people overcome their weaknesses. So, from this development
were given assumption about how far the development of deaf communities for now days in
Malaysia.
Ministry of Education to provide special education and facilities for students with
visual and hearing impairment, and integration of special education is for learning disabilities,
sight, and hearing. As we know that some school have specialized that academic scheme only for
deaf communities and Visual Art Education is one of the main subject for them. Curriculum
Creativity and Visual Art is a branch of science arts area. As a science, Visual Art also plays a
role in the education system. Creativity and Visual Arts to create opportunities for students to
develop interest, develop personality, awareness and sensitivity to the values of the arts and the
environment (Ministry of Education Malaysia, 2011). Art also was known as one of the method

4. therapeutic way for disability people to sent the message to who are cannot understand the sign
languages and in the same time can be a tool to courage them to be more creative. Art class can
be a non-threatening environment, empowering children with media choices they are free to
make and setting secure boundaries for them “within the scope of creativity” (Brunick, 1993).
The deaf communities was same with the normal people and they are also have own
future. They have their own communities that need to be more developing to avoid from being at
the tail of this development country. Sometimes due to a deaf child is not to act on verbal
instructions from his parents so he has mistaken for a child with mental retardation or otherwise
(Asmiza, 2004). Others using art as a tool for therapy or hobbies, these kind of talented deaf
communities also can be a professional in art field. The deaf student is actually more creative
them us because they have own world that we unknown whereas they was known about us
(Syarmeeze, 2014).
1.2 Background of the study
This paper focuses on the opportunities for the deaf to continue study in higher level in Art &
Design especially in Fine Art studies. These research for give the advantages for this society and
in the same time to in line with the development of education in Malaysia that has grown
tremendously in this century. They are also having passionate in art and want to be an artist as
well as the other common people but where need them to go to increase their knowledge in art
especially in Fine Art education. By this research, it will discover the superiority Fine Art
Department in Faculty of Art & Design in University Technology of MARA in handling The
Deaf students. Before that, off course need to measure how far the qualification by the deaf

5. student to analyzed the suitability Fine Art education to them. Deaf students must not only
survive their undergraduate experience but also must maintain enthusiasm for their subject
through graduate school (Woodcock, 2007).
1.3 Statement of the research problem
As someone that survives in art world I getting realize that art is very important to our life.
This is because I can learn everything about knowledge of life through art. What I means by
knowledge of life is about to be more creative people, improve my confident level and especially
make me more independent person without depend of helps from others else.
Although people who are deaf, deafened, or hard of hearing form a significant minority in
the general population world-wide, their representation in academia has yet to be considered. A
discussion of the possible reasons for the general lack of participation by this group is timely. It
is likely that this minority will start becoming more visible, because there has been an increase in
the inclusion and acceptance of deaf students into undergraduate and graduate university and
college programs. Although problems still exist, funding mandates to provide access services
may reassure deaf students that their application for university admission now will be judged on
academic merit. Their inclusion and acceptance notwithstanding, successful deaf students will
notice the conspicuous absence of relevant role models (Woodcock, 2007).
As my concern, the deaf students are actually same with normal peoples. Some of them can be
passionate in sciences and some of them maybe intelligent in engineering and maybe some of them very
talented in art. Parents who have children with hearing impairments not be problem because now there are
57 ordinary schools in all states. In Besides, there are also special schools in Penang, Kuala Lumpur and
Kuching (Asmiza, 2004). According to Asmiza again, government not only stop the concern only on

6. school but also has produced some institute as the platform to deaf communities to achieve the successful
to the professional level. Some of that is Polytechnic Johor Bahru, Polytechnic Sultan Salahuddin Abdul
Aziz Shah, Selangor and Polytechnic Ungku Omar, Perak. Example of the courses and the programs
that was provided is Fashion Department, Graphic Multimedia, Mechanical Engineering and others
but special department about Fine Art for them is did not have yet in Malaysia.
But, how was with the future of deaf communities who are talented in art especially in
painting? Should they just be an amateur artist at street to manage their passion? Or just force them
to studying in Engineering? Of course the deaf who are talented should be professional artist also as
well as Latiff Mohidin, Yusof Ghani, and others professional artist in Malaysia. Fine Art is not only a
tools to manage the traumatize problems, the psychology therapeutic or only as a hobbies. This kind
of art is actually the main and the basic to all kind of art type. Therefore, this study will explore the
important the higher educational level in Art Education especially Fine Art for deaf student to be an
professional artist.
1.4 Research objectives
The research objectives of this study are:
i) To identify the superiority Fine Art Department in Faculty of Art & Design UiTM in
handling The Deaf students.
ii) To examine deaf student’s level of talented in result of Visual Art Education at
school.
iii) To determine kind of Fine Art knowledge that suitable for the deaf.

7. 1.5 Research questions
The research questions for this study are:
i) What the level abilities UiTM in appropriated program for deaf students?
ii) What the level of talent the deaf student in qualifications to future study?
iii) What kind of art education that suitable for the deaf?
1.6 Operational Definitions
The definitions used in this study are as follows:
1.6.1 The Deaf Student
Hearing impaired children more accurately described as a damaged hearing because in
many instances they have hearing partial. She is the outer normal because it does not act
to level ‘bunyibunyi’ around him. Sometimes due to a deaf child is not to act on verbal
instructions from his parents so he has mistaken for mentally retarded children, or vice
versa (Chua & Koh, 1992). The hearing was divided into two half-deaf and deaf.
Deafness can also be divided into two j Enis of sensory nerve deafness and conductive.
Deafness is caused sensory nerves in the inner ear or auditory nerve whiles the damage to
the conductive nature of the middle ear and the outside. Actually troubled deaf people do
not suffer brain disorder (Mohd Width Salleh, 1998) (Jusma, 2004).

8. 1.6.2 The Deaf and Art Education
The introduction of a number of courses for deaf students in some polytechnics make
room for deaf students to improve their knowledge and skills them. According to Chua
and Koh (1992), deaf learners have style different learning. When the instructor to know
the style all his student learning, especially instructors involved indirect with deaf
students in some way help to predict What teaching approaches that are applicable to the
entire students who adopt learning styles and develop strategies appropriate teaching
(Jusma, 2004).
Ministry of Education to provide special education and facilities for students with visual
and hearing impairment, and integration of special education is for learning disabilities,
sight, and hearing. As we know that some school have specialized that academic scheme
only for deaf communities and Visual Art Education is one of the main subject for them.
Curriculum Creativity and Visual Art is a branch of science arts area. As a science,
Visual Art also plays a role in the education system. Creativity and Visual Arts to create
opportunities for students to develop interest, develop personality, awareness and
sensitivity to the values of the arts and the environment (Ministry of Education Malaysia,
2011). Basic entrepreneurship and creativity is innovation. Innovation important is
having the same meaning, only the difference between the two terms is in use. Creativity
used in the discipline of entrepreneurship. In which case, it can be said that visual arts
education is an essential foundation to nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit(Ministry of
Education Malaysia, 2011).
1.6.3 Faculty of Art & Design, Fine Art Department University Technology of MARA.

9. The mission about this faculty is to enhance the knowledge and expertise of Bumiputera
in art and design field of study through professional programs, research work and
community service based on moral values and professional ethics. In addition to placing
several art and design disciplines under core study centers in post-graduate studies, the
faculty is studying new possibilities to review its curriculum at the diploma and bachelor
levels in order to keep abreast of new global developments. The aspiration to become a
world-class university has always existed in the faculty, all the more since it is a unique
art and design institute that offers a wide variety of courses under one roof, something
rarely seen in any other university in the world ( Faculty of Art & Design, 2012).
The Diploma in Fine Art is a three-year program. It is a studio-based program
designed to provide extensive in-depth studies towards personal development for those
who wish to pursue an interest in fine art. In this program too, students will have the
opportunity to intensively explore into various field of specialization emphasizing the
development of studio skills related to painting, drawing, printmaking and sculpture
(UiTM Melaka, 2005).
1.7 Limitation of the study
This study is about higher education for deaf people in art field in Malaysia. To go far
in this research off course the researcher should studies first about deaf communities. This
way maybe becomes difficult because it will be deal with policies and suggestion, opinion
from educator or lecturer, professional deaf peoples, deaf students and Malaysian society to

10. acknowledge this research. It also become special if the researcher can learn sign language in
done this research.
1.8 Significant of the Study
This study will come out the reasons and the approaches about the knowledge in
education for the deaf especially in higher education through art field. In Malaysia we have own
community and society of the deaf. They are using sign language to communicate among them
and who understand on it. Yes, in Malaysia, the deaf communities still cannot be best friend in
communicate between them and normal people like us. This is because the perception of
community and the big barrier is the language. Majority of peoples in Malaysia do not know
about sign language. This is can make the unity will be spread according the society. This should
not be happens because the deaf is actually same with the others but they are only cannot hear. If
it happens since they were born, it also can be the mute and deaf. But they are also having the
brain like us, if the quality of knowledge was given to them they are also can be brilliant like a
normal people. For example Hellen Keller, Ludwig Van Beethoven, Linda Bove, Lou Ferrigno,
Ayumi Hamasaki, and the others that life as successful people even they are deaf. For my
opinion, they actually not the physical defect but they are only cannot hear the sound. And the
deaf actually have own society and culture. So, why the knowledge cannot be shared with them
especially in art? Because, art is beauty and the value of beauty is subjective. The different art
and culture of Chinese, Indian and the Malay took a lot of opposite but the different can bring the
artistic value of art in every culture because it have own identity for every culture. The story and

11. the message behind the art piece also brought us to understand what the artist thinking and
through who are those artists we can understand what the environment of that art piece. The
example is the art works by Rosliza Abdul Rahim. She try to deliver the message of the human
being in the starting from the meeting about 2 human seed and to the ‘nutfah’ level to the
‘alaqah’, to the ‘mudghah’, to the ‘izam’ and ‘lamh’, to the ‘nasy’ah khalqan’ and the last is
‘nafkhur-ruh’. And all this thing she was bring into the art works, ‘Perempuan’, ‘Dalam Berjuta
1’, ‘Antara’, and ‘Terapung di Persimpangan’. So, from her artwork we can read what the belief
and the culture about herself and the environment. So, why the artistic value of the art and the
talent by the deaf we just keep it silences and whereas in the school they are excellent in PSV.
Everybody want to be a professional in everything but, the professional only can be measure
through the higher education and without that, it can be separately to amateur, amateur artist.
According to Blandy, it is a socio-political orientation of disability. They are being disability
when they are life among normal people and all the development, buildings, transportation
mostly not for them. This is why they are become disability. So, how if all the development just
build only for disability people? We will become disability because can’t use it and be different
just like them for this reality time. This is including education system. As a human of majority in
this world, we should take this responsibility to give them space of education as well as how we
done today.
In this study the researcher tries to find the information of the UiTM that maybe through the
faculty about the reasonable that UiTM is the best choice to be the best institute for the deaf to achieve
their higher academic achievement especially in art education. This information will be come out by the
interview and survey that be done and be helping by the lecturer and UiTM staffs. Other than that, the
researcher also should collect the data about the level of the achievement by the deaf student at the school

12. especially in art subject. This is through the Certificated of Malaysia Education (SPM) result for several
years in some special school of deaf in Malaysia.
I hope for this study can help others studies about development of education for the deaf and to
give the new perception of art in Malaysia and especially to produce professional level in art field from
deaf community.