Kuala Lampur, Jan. 26 -- As educators in Malaysia, we have spent decades in lecture halls observing patterns that are frequently discussed in passing but rarely examined with care. In many of our classes, the racial imbalance among students is immediately apparent to the naked eye. These demographics reflect "upstream" differences in schooling quality, household income, and geographic access. They are the visible results of decades of national policy design and historical circumstance.

Yet, a fundamental shift occurs the moment a lecture begins. Once inside the classroom, those historical or structural advantages cease to dictate how a student is taught or measured. We do not teach "groups;" we teach individuals who have come to learn. A...