Monday, March 09, 2009

Bahasa Melayu for teaching Science and Math and not Tamil or Mandarin

More people are giving their opinion over the government decision to maintain the teaching English in science and math subject. It true that English is the perfect language to be mastered if one want to understand the knowledge of math and science. First at all, i support the government policy toward science and math but later on after reading some blogs and forums in television, i find it this is not the right decision.

1. No or only few country around the world use a bilingual in separate teaching any subjects at school. Most of them use their official language to teach all school's subjects consistently. For example, Indonesia uses Bahasa Indonesia to teach all the school's subjects and their level of education far better than us. Japan and China also did a same thing and they have launched rockets to the space successfully.

2. It not about the Malay’s language heritages or rights but more on confusing the young school children and creating identity crisis and conflict for the future generation. I am the product of the previous frequent changing education policy by the government each time a new education minister taken the post. Now, we even don't know how to call our national language. Bahasa Malaysia or Bahasa Melayu still not yet agreed.

3. English literacy among the majority of the school students is low. Unless we put English as our national language, it can be considered to be use in teaching science and math. While Malay is the national language by constitution, don't dream that it will change a things where only little percentages of city school students benefited from this policy while most rural and small town has less access to the material and practical everyday usages.

4. Teaching English in science and math shown that the government doesn’t want to put more effort in improving the education system in long term. Short term solution such this will create a new gap among the English speaking and non English speaking further away.

5. I believe the government should teach math and science in the national language that is Malay. We Malaysian no longer live in India, China or British. To stick with mother tongue language is a step backwards to the nation and educational building. I don't see the Americans teach their children in other language separately unless only as second language or culture and heritage conservation.

6. English should be the main qualification to any government post to make sure all spectrum of Malaysian can speak and write well. It is easier to lure the donkey with a carrot than pushing his back to make it walking. If the government not to obsess with Malay only policy, we will not have this problem at the beginning.

7. Other mother tongue language such as mandarin, Tamil, kadazan and iban should be listed as a mandatory pass for second language and should available in any government school around the nation. Secular Chinese and mandarin school shouldn't take the government fund if they want to maintain their language and should turn to private fund.

8. The government should not interfere with the nation education system. Changes only can be approved by those elected qualified expert in their respective field. Education Minister who chooses to change any education policy should present their cases in a commission established to safe guard the system.

These point above need no expert to think and create. It is a straight to the point and making some sense that was applied at some developed country. We lived in a very complex and complicated society that still living in their world and illusion of their homeland heritage. Those who still in delusional with their homeland should know that we're no longer considered as their country man. We will be treated as an outsider no different than we as to those illegal immigrants to our country.

11 comments:

seventh said...

hmmm. i never think about that. well, be it malay or english, they have to decide now. if no, the future generation is going to suffer. malaysia itself, doesnt stand like japan's education. what i mean, they dont feel proud about it. the minute they see other country using another language , they are going to copy-cat.
well, it's their routine to copy-cat not just education, there are others too.

Dean's Family said...

Hello. I chanced upon your blog and I read your take on education with much interest.

First, I just wanna mention that Yes, Indonesia uses Bahasa Indonesia in their curricular, but their education level is not better. Malaysian education, as flawed as it is currently, is still way much better and ahead in comparison.

About your point #4, its sad but its true. We are living in a globalised era where, if we choose to be stagnant and not improve, we will see other nations zooms past us and leave us behind.

I am totally with you with point #8. I really hated how we change our education methods/policy everytime the government changes.

Putting politics aside, I do believe National Ideals is a must for every citizen. But there must be a balance between being a national idealist and being competitive globally.

Now having said that, its almost an impossible task to achieve in my lifetime, but I do believe we can impact our next generation.

Thats why right now, I'm instilling the basic needs for my children to compete in the future i.e. language and technology skills. At the same time instill the heritage/culture via homeschool/montessory like methods.

Just my take. Sorry to ramble.

Jefferi Chang said...

seventh aka wendy: it is not about can stand it or not. it's about the will to change. now, i don't really see it within our society and don't talk about the politician who just playing genius over something that they so fragile to our future. they just gambling away our future generation progress with their narrow minded and ignorance propaganda. malaysian became so lazy day by day. they just want to find short term fix. nothing long lasting at here, even the national car got problem just after a year in using it. idea stolen from other country and claim it as their own. so terrible and depressing, sad and disappointing.

Jefferi Chang said...

dean: thanks for your time reading my blog and your thoughtful comment. i don't really know much about indonesia education system or quality. i just know that indonesian government take their education seriously. that why i don't hear or read any big changes each time someone new took charge. during my uni years, most of my friends need to find those indonesia translated book for their research because of the lack of material in malay due their lack of comprehensive in english. most of the material written in english and the translate seem not enough and cover no much material for research purpose. indeed that malaysia education far more better than indonesia with their good funded facilities, but i doubt that the quality, standard and the level of education in public school overall not really matching the indonesia. indonesia produce more intellectual more than malaysia by comparison. most of the good lecture was imported from the indonesian and some from Philippine. this shows that even malaysia has those first class of facilities and teaching power to create intellectual, but mostly it not utilized. malaysia government creating a mirage of education center around the world but the truth is not the case. there are no respect to the intellectual who voice there worries and doubt to policies taken by the government because of the ignorance from politician who think he can outsmart those intellectual for their own purpose and propaganda. it remind me the oldest trick in maintaining power. it was to make sure your people not smarter than you. this was applied by some culture revolutionist in most communist run country. most of our government leader don't have faith over their own system when it was found out their children was sent out to oversea for their education. it seems that they not really ignorance at all.

Khairul Affendi said...

Malay to English Software Translator.
Penterjemah Bahasa Lingovista
http://lingovista.googlepages.com/default.htm

Paste the text and see what it mean.

jazrul said...

they just gambling away our future generation progress with their narrow minded and ignorance propaganda. malaysian became so lazy day by day. they just want to find short term fix

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Jefferi Chang said...

sadly to said, it is true.. :(

jazrul said...

indonesia produce more intellectual more than malaysia by comparison. most of the good lecture was imported from the indonesian and some from Philippine.
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fauzi said...

this was applied by some culture revolutionist in most communist run country.

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fauzi said...

indeed that malaysia education far more better than indonesia with their good funded facilities,

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jazrul said...

education is very important
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