Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik received some stinging barbs at a dialogue session today, with academics saying that the education system is broken, and questioning if he is the right man to fix it.

Former Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (Ikim) director Syed Ali Tawfik Al-Attas said the education system is fundamentally broken, and needs a complete overhaul.

"Let’s face reality and state once and for all that this education system is broken. We have to completely reevaluate it.

"You (Maszlee) don't seem to understand the minds of young students ... how they are prepared throughout their development," Syed Ali Tawfik said at a dialogue session organised by the Asian Strategy and Learning Institute (Asli) in Subang Jaya today.