In Malaysia, school bullying K-drama Teach You a Lesson hits home

Nisa Mohd did not send her daughter to boarding school unprepared. Before the now 17-year-old left for Melaka, her mother enrolled her in silat, the Malay martial art, and made one instruction clear: report any trouble immediately. She still watches for shifts in her daughter’s mood each time they speak. Millions of parents across Malaysia recognise her vigilance, with the country still following the inquest into the death last year of 13-year-old Zara Qairina Mahathir and a steady succession of school bullying cases making monthly headlines. Into this climate arrived Netflix’s new hit Korean drama Teach You a Lesson, which does not sugarcoat the harsh reality of what some children endure. Released on Netflix, the 10-episode series follows Na Hwa-jin – played by Kim Mu-yeol – a former special forces officer deployed by a fictional South Korean government bureau to schools where teachers have lost control and entitled parents have bent the rules. “Everything in it relates to what is happening in Malaysia,” Nisa said. “When someone has money, the child who bullies can escape punishment.” The show’s solution to bullying is cathartic: its hero handles bullies by giving them a taste of their own medicine, literally slapping and punching them into line. Yet while dishing out to the perpetrators what they inflicted on their targets may be unrealistic, the core theme of championing victims has not been lost on viewers who have real-life experiences of their own. The first episode centres on the son of a powerful politician who terrorises classmates and teachers with impunity, confident of his father’s reach. Na is sent in after the school fails to act. Nisa, 42, said the storyline reminded her of allegations about children of influential parents in Malaysia being treated differently. “I prepared my daughter by sending her for silat and teaching her from when she was young to be brave,” she said. “I also keep asking about her activities, in case there is any change in her.” Noor Azimah Rahim, who heads the Parents Action Group for Education, said parents were now more alert to bullying. “When incidents do happen, parents expect schools to communicate openly, investigate promptly and explain what actions are being taken,” she said. “A lack of information often leads to frustration and loss of trust.” ‘You touch, you go’ When social media users began tagging Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki in posts about the show, chairman of Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) – which runs Malaysia’s network of boarding schools known as the Mara Junior Science Colleges – watched and recognised something familiar. Last year, following Zara Qairina’s death, Mara began to employ former soldiers and police officers as full-time hostel wardens at selected colleges. The result was fewer disciplinary and bullying incidents and a lighter load on teachers, Asyraf wrote on social media, citing research by the University of Putra Malaysia. “No wonder so many people asked me to watch,” he said, adding: “The main lesson from this drama is clear, bullying is a very serious issue.” The main lesson from this drama is clear, bullying is a very serious issue Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, institutional administrator But Asyraf also had a warning for school administrators: do not hide cases to protect a college’s reputations or spare students with “cable” – local shorthand for connections to influential people. He said when it came to the expulsion of school bullies, his rule was simple: “You touch, you go”. In one case Asyraf recounted, a politically connected parent’s child had been found guilty by a disciplinary panel, but the administrators were reluctant to take action. He said he only found out about the case after other parents contacted him on social media. When the father sought to appeal the ruling, Asyraf refused to intervene. “There can be no compromise when dealing with bullying,” he said. “We must act without fear or favour.” Malaysia’s Education Ministry reported a record 7,681 bullying cases in 2024. Last year, the number fell to 2,889. Officials have credited awareness campaigns and better reporting for the earlier surge. Since Zara Qairina was found unconscious near her school dormitory in Sabah in July 2025 and later died, authorities have installed CCTV cameras in 200 dormitories, conducted school safety audits and posted 523 additional counselling teachers nationwide, according to state news agency Bernama. Yet Noor Azimah is wary of optimism. What might once have stayed within schools is now follows children home through group chats and social media. “Children may no longer have a safe space away from their bullies,” she said. Andrew Mohanraj, president of the Malaysian Mental Health Association, said bullying was still too often written off as a normal part of growing up. He urged parents to look for warning signs in their children: withdrawal, school avoidance, difficulty concentrating and recurring physical complaints. “Instead of the usual advice telling them to ‘toughen up’, parents need to validate their child’s feelings and help build their self-confidence and resilience,” Mohanraj said. Schools and families could not simply leave the problem to one another, he added. “This is a shared responsibility.”

In Malaysia, school bullying K-drama Teach You a Lesson hits home

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Netflix hit is resonating in a country still reckoning with the death of 13-year-old schoolgirl Zara Qairina Mahathir

The Netflix hit is resonating in a country still reckoning with the death of 13-year-old schoolgirl Zara Qairina Mahathir