Personally, I think the government made a potentially disastrous decision in choosing to revert back to teaching Science and Maths in Malay. This move will not produce Malaysian students who have the competitive edge and the needed skills to survive in the outside world. Like it or not, English is the 'international language' and the language everyone needs to learn. Some parties argue that teaching Science and Maths will not improve one's English. But can you imagine learning these subjects in BM from Standard 1 up to Form 5 and then entering tertiary education institutes that teach these subjects in English. Students will be wondering what the heck is 'covalent bond', 'definite integration' and 'potential difference' because they have all learned it in BM. As a result, students will struggle to adapt themselves to the English terms and will suffer greatly while in universities.
The government also decided to increase the duration of English classes in schools. However, I think that this will not help improve the standard of English among Malaysians, especially those living in rural areas. Half of the English teachers teaching in government schools are incompetent in the language and incapable of teaching English effectively. I personally found English classes boring when I was in secondary school. Furthermore, the standard of English among many Malaysian students are abysmal. When I was in NS, a group of dorm mates asked me what is sarapan pagi in English and how to spell it!!! Imagine that!! A pre-school word and they don't know!! WTF?? (I could go on, but one example is more than enough)
So, Mr. Education Minister, pls be more far sighted and don't succumb to the pressure of ultra-nationalists and BM advocates factions.
You can go to Tun Mahathir's blog and participate in his poll
http://chedet.co.cc/chedetblog/
Ok, I think I better get back to my Physics. Shite, mid-year exams in a week....
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