Born in Johor Bahru, Johor, he is of Hakka Chinese and Malay descent. He attended the English College and Maahad Johor. He obtained his bachelor's and master's degree in the Islamic Jurisprudence from University of Al-Bayt, Jordan. He completed his doctorate in Political Science from Durham University with his doctoral thesis titled "Constructing the Architectonics and Formulating the Articulation of Islamic Governance: A Discursive Attempt in Islamic Epistemology". Before being elected, he taught at the International Islamic University Malaysia and studied Islam and the Middle East. Apart from speaking fluent Malay, Arabic and English, he also speaks moderate French, German, simple Mandarin Chinese and Hokkien.
Politics
Maszlee joined the PH coalition's component party, BERSATU in March 2018 and defeated incumbent Liang Teck Meng for the Simpang Renggam constituency in the 2018 general election. On 18 May 2018, Maszlee was appointed as Malaysia's new Minister of Education after Prime Minister Tun Mahathir Mohamad vacated the post just one day after taking it. After some 20 months of his appointment, he resigned from the ministerial position in January 2020.
Education vision
As a minister, Maszlee has made changes in the Malaysian education system that were deemed useless and unconstitutional by many. He introduced student-oriented system to primary schools to replace a formerly exam-oriented structure. He had also made reforms to mitigate teacher's clerical burden, empowered technical and vocational education on the tertiary level and amended restrictive law which had previously suppressed students’ freedom of speech in universities and colleges. His time in academia did not encase him in the proverbial academic ivory tower, exemplified through his commitment to helping students remain globally competitive in an era of vast technological change and globalization. Recognizing that vocational education is essential in transforming Malaysia from a nation of consumers to a nation of producers, he formed a national steering committee to expand TVET collaborations with industry stakeholders alongside increasing access to polytechnics and community colleges. Maszlee believes that nobody should be left behind, and that every child deserves an equal opportunity in education. To that end, he has pioneered efforts to improve the access and quality of education for marginalized and disadvantaged communities. He has increased access for nearly 5,000 students from low- income communities in fully sponsored state boarding schools, and is working towards providing free meals to disadvantaged students nationwide. He has introduced the Zero Reject Policy, which ensures that stateless children have access to the national schooling system.
Positions
In 2018 Maszlee ventured into politics. Aside from his position as a parliamentarian member and a minister, he currently holds various positions, including:
President of Southeast Asia Minister of Education Organization Council
Maszlee believes that education should be inclusive and empowering. He taught at the International Islamic University Malaysia, with affiliation with two departments—fiqh and political science. He was also actively involved in volunteering works. He was the advisor of Orkids, board member of IDEAS Autism Centre, and advisor for TFTN.
Books authored
Foundations of Islamic Governance: A Southeast Asian Perspective
