Alhamdulillah I have finished my draft for my research project. Hopefully my supervisor will be pleased with all 36 pages of it tomorrow! Now I have a bit of spare time so I can blog.
So, the Malaysian government today announced that they will be making a U-turn on the decision to teach Maths and Science in English. It will be done in phases and hopefully by 2012 everybody at school will be back to square one; learning in BM.
I actually support this idea and congrats to Tan Sri Muhyiddin for having the balls to make this decision. Let me tell you why.
First and foremost, we must ask ourselves, what do we want to achieve in the long run? I am sure most if not all of you will unanimously and fervently say that ‘We want our kids to be better in English!!’. Good.
Now we must understand one very important principle to this argument. Read the title of this post. Yerp, teaching maths and science in English does not equate to having a better command of the language. Those who think that it does, you have to rethink. Don’t believe me? Ask any language expert, and they will tell you that to master a language, you need to learn things like grammar, pronounciation, sentence structures, and actually speaking the language itself. I don’t see how learning Maths and Science in English will contribute to that because they are both very theoretical subjects. You have to understand the concepts in the subjects that transcend language anyway. How many times did you write a sentence when you were doing your sums? Not often I suppose.
Having said that, how DO we achieve our initial purpose? To get better in English? Ahh, here is something that we actually need to focus on. Not the Maths and Science stuff. What we actually need is a complete reshuffle of the way we teach English and the amount of time we spend learning English as a language on its own, NOT as a MEDIUM to learn other subjects. I can assure you based on my own experiences that mastering English comes from lots of reading and learning the language itself and not through learning it in Maths or Science or History or even Geography for that matter!
Once you’ve mastered the language, everything else will take care of themselves. Trust me, we will be better off devising new ways to encourage students to speak English and make learning English more fun rather than bog them down with difficult terms and concepts in Maths and Science that they struggle to even comprehend in BM. Before you run, you must learn to walk. We learnt Science and Maths in Malay and we did fine.
So, go and learn the language first. Focus on mastering your English, then everything else will sort out itself. Forget Maths and Science, even Sociology or Theoretical Physics in English won’t scare you by then.
All this while, we have actually been trying to solve the problem from the wrong end.
*The views expressed on this blog are entirely the author’s and in no way reflective of public opinion
9 Comments
July 9, 2009 at 6:51 pm
“…learning English as a language on its own, NOT as a MEDIUM to learn other subjects” –
-Do you think Islamic Golden Age will exist, had the ancient Islamic scholars weren’t to learn the Greek language in order to inherit its greatest wealth – knowledge in Science & philosophy…
-Would the Renaissance in Europe flourished after 1000yrs of Dark Age if the western scholars weren’t to master Arabic language? to understand the cores and principles of modern science founded by Islamic Scholars…. e.g. Avicenna’s (Ibn Sina) The Canon of Medicine in 1025 AD still form the basis of modern clinical trials
- These all clean & clear show that language indeed is a medium to learn other subjects….
- After 6years of implementation of PPSMI + more than 4 billion ringgit spent (which obviously taxpayers’s money) + huge effort contributed by both by teachers and students – we easily say “takpe kita boleh u-turn”… does it mean we need to spend more billion to change back all the textbooks in English to bahasa?…is Malaysia such a rich country to spend as if we are the oil sheikhs ?
- only after 6yrs of PPSMI we already (confidently) concluded that this programme is unsuccessful – which funnily through UPSR results – ironically the real measure of success in life is how he/she succeed in their careers/undertakings after student life not through exam results especially UPSR!!!
- It’s also very funny to know how the mainstream media didn’t highlight the fact throughout 6 yr period of PPSMI how English performances based on UPSR results were significantly improved (pls read carefully the findings from all the studies done)…what they highlighted was the fluctuation in math & sc results…..
- The Framingham Heart Study takes more than 50 yrs to associate smoking with cardio-vascular disease, but in Malaysia it takes less than 6 yrs to prove English leads to poor performance in Sc & Math…itupun berdasarkan UPSR!!! (lol again)…methodology pun highly questionable….
-p/s: do you know what multiple sclerosis is called in bahasa melayu?…according to one health article in Utusan they refer MS as “Sklerosis Berbilang”….are you sure it’s easier to understand science concept in your mother tongue language?…i beg to differ….
July 9, 2009 at 9:37 pm
First of all, thanks ‘pak mat’ for commenting
Opinions are always welcomed here.
“Do you think Islamic Golden Age will exist, had the ancient Islamic scholars weren’t to learn the Greek language in order to inherit its greatest wealth – knowledge in Science & philosophy…”
- No of course not. And that’s why they went andlearnt the language first before jumping head first into science and maths. Like you said, ‘learn the Greek language’ in order to inherit its greatest wealth. Not learn science and philosophy in Greek. In my humble opinion, those two things are different.
“Would the Renaissance in Europe flourished after 1000yrs of Dark Age if the western scholars weren’t to master Arabic language? to understand the cores and principles of modern science founded by Islamic Scholars…. e.g. Avicenna’s (Ibn Sina) The Canon of Medicine in 1025 AD still form the basis of modern clinical trials”
-Same point as above. You mentioned it yourself. ‘Master the Arabic language’. Not master Science in Arabic.
“These all clean & clear show that language indeed is a medium to learn other subjects….”
-I respectfully disagree. The reason being, PPSMI neither improves your science / maths nor your English. Learning a subject in a particular language for the sake of mastering the language or even mastering the subject is a misconception. They are not mutually exclusive, but that is not the best way of getting where we want to be. Even if you do eventually master English through science and maths, it will take a painfully long time, and your proficiency will be very isolated, i.e. only in that particular subject. For instance, learning science in English might make u better at understanding multiple sclerosis, but there is a danger that you will not be any much better in let’s say understanding survival analysis in prospective cohort studies since you are not taught epidemiology in English. Language is a language, and there are specific tools to help you learn it. Michel Thomas, the famous French language teacher who teaches based on pure listening skills without any notes is a prime example. Once you learn the language, you can master any subject in that language, rather than mastering subjects in that language but find yourself limited on expanding your language skills in other areas.
“After 6years of implementation of PPSMI + more than 4 billion ringgit spent (which obviously taxpayers’s money) + huge effort contributed by both by teachers and students – we easily say “takpe kita boleh u-turn”… does it mean we need to spend more billion to change back all the textbooks in English to bahasa?…is Malaysia such a rich country to spend as if we are the oil sheikhs ?”
- No we are not rich like the oil sheikhs. Hence the need to stop now before we waste any more money.
“Only after 6yrs of PPSMI we already (confidently) concluded that this programme is unsuccessful – which funnily through UPSR results – ironically the real measure of success in life is how he/she succeed in their careers/undertakings after student life not through exam results especially UPSR!!!’
-I agree, success is measured by how well they do in their future. Hence the greater need to make them better at English as a whole and teach them properly and not just in Science and Maths. Are they all gonna be Engineers? No Historians or Geologists? What will the history and geography teachers say? Surely they will want their students to know what ‘igneous rock formations’ mean? Or do they not?
“- It’s also very funny to know how the mainstream media didn’t highlight the fact throughout 6 yr period of PPSMI how English performances based on UPSR results were significantly improved (pls read carefully the findings from all the studies done)…what they highlighted was the fluctuation in math & sc results…..”
-I don’t know much on this to comment so I’ll take your word for it
. But it can be due to other reasons as well. Heck, UPSR results or even other Malaysian exam results always get better each year anyway don’t they?
” The Framingham Heart Study takes more than 50 yrs to associate smoking with cardio-vascular disease, but in Malaysia it takes less than 6 yrs to prove English leads to poor performance in Sc & Math…itupun berdasarkan UPSR!!! (lol again)…methodology pun highly questionable….”
-Again I dont know how they did it for UPSR. But Framingham is another issue. That’s a clinical study and hence you need enough follow-up years to get reliable results. Your hazards ratio would be very high and less reliable if follow-up years is not enough.
“-p/s: do you know what multiple sclerosis is called in bahasa melayu?…according to one health article in Utusan they refer MS as “Sklerosis Berbilang”….are you sure it’s easier to understand science concept in your mother tongue language?…i beg to differ….”
I don’t think knowing what multiple sclerosis is in Bahasa Melayu is a measure of your proficiency in English. Some terms are just not interchangeable, especially scientific terms. In my humble opinion it is of course easier to understand science in your mother tongue. As for English, it is easier to master it if more time is devoted and improved techniques are introduced. Not mix them up all together in a cauldron and hope for something to happen.
On a side note, language is controlled by a very specific part of your brain i.e. parietal lobe and logic (for instance in maths) is by another i.e. frontal lobe. I dont know why I wrote that but just thought it would be interesting. Haha.
Kind regards.
July 10, 2009 at 11:04 am
Zaid,
If you think learning language through your mother tongue is better than learning via other language, i want your humble opinion while the Chinese Malaysians (who obviously BM is not their 1st language at home) can outperform most of their Malay counterparts in Science&Math??? (prior to PPSMI implementation)…how do you fit in all the linguistic theories that you try to justify your argument?
Why the Jews, wherever they are in this world can be very successful even they are not learning the Science & Math in their Hebrew language?…
the reason most likely due to effort!!!…language is always become a scapegoat for those bloody pessimists and incompetent individuals out there to progress forward…
menangis jiran saya mendengar PPSMI dibubarkan setelah melihat kemajuan anaknya (bdk kampung) dalam English + Sc&Math…menurut Lim Kit Siang di satu sekolah di Perak kebanyakkan muridnya menangis mengenangkan masa depan mereka apabila silibus akan ditukar lagi…..
July 11, 2009 at 12:49 pm
My daughter is less than 2 years old and she can understand both English and Japanese, and later will introduce Malay, Mandarin and Cantonese.
http://daddyparentingtips.blogspot.com/2009/07/tip-161-reading-in-both-languages.html
I can’t see why we cannot take 1 step forward to integrate the BM textbooks few years back with the current English science and maths text books. Its a lot of effort, but why move backward instead of forward. We can allow students to use either English or BM to answer in the exams as long as the maths and science principles are correct.
Some good will surely come out of the dialectics at work between both languages instead of choosing either one. We need new advancements. We need Malaysia Boleh. Not some power struggle between languages.
When will Malaysia advance and not hold on to race and language as stumbling blocks but embrace our differences as advantages?
July 12, 2009 at 10:02 pm
topik yg amat menarik diperkatakan sekarang…
pada pandangan saya…setiap satu idea yg diperkenalkan oleh seseorang…biasanya mempunyai visi dan misi tersendiri…dan sama ada idea itu berjaya atau tidak…itu bergantung kepada tahap perlaksanaannya…bagaimana ia dilaksanakan..adakah pendekatan yg diambil itu sesuai…
ok…cuba kita kaji balik apakah misi PPSMI ini semula? adakah ia untuk memperbaiki mutu bahasa inggeris pelajar2 kita….atau cuba utk memahami ilmu atau perkembangan ilmu sains dan matematik semasa..dengan mempelajari terminologi2 nya di dalam bahasa inggeris.
memang betul ada yg memperkatakan tahap penerimaan PPSMI agak lemah diluar bandar…
dan kita juga tahu tahap pelajar2 ini berbeza…
oleh itu kita boleh memberi cadangan..seperti…adakah sekolah yg dpt mengajar mereka ini dgn PPSMI dan sekolah tanpa PPSMI….seperti terdapat sekolah melayu dan sekolah inggeris pada ketika dahulu…
dan kepada sekolah yg tanpa PPSMI mereka masih boleh mengadakan kelas tambahan ..hanya utk menambah ilmu anak2 kita…di dalam mengetahui terminologi2 sains atau math di dalam bahasa inggeris…
dan seperkara lagi…perlaksaan PPSMI itu sendiri mungkin agak mengejut…dan ramai guru2 masih tidak bersedia mengajar di dlm bahasa inggeris…
cuba bayangkan bagaimanakan pelajar dpt menerima PPSMI itu sendiri,jikalau guru masih lg belum bersedia…
jelas di sini…sebelum sesuatu idea dilaksanakan..persediaan yg cukup amat diperlukan…
dan utk pelajar luar bandar…mereka memang memerlukan bantuan yg lebih…kaedah pembelajaran dan penyampaian guru yg berkesan..
insyaallah ada kesannya pada generasi muda kita..
saya yakin mental anak2 muda…amat mudah untuk mempelajari perkara baru..oleh itu bantulah mereka…hanya dgn cara yg betul kita dpt membantu mereka…
dan akhir sekali…tidak salah jikalau kita mampu menggunakan bahasa ibunda utk mempelajari ilmu sains dan matematik ini…cuma hendak saya katakan..ilmu ini setiap hari semakin laju berkembang…
jika para ilmuan dan ahli intelek malaysia mampu menterjemah setiap ilmu ini dgn kadar yg pantas..
maka kita jg mampu bersaing dgn negara asia yg lain spt jepun,korea dan sebagainya…
jika kita mahu menggunakan bahasa kita dlm sains dan math…kita haruslah menjadikan salah sebuah kuasa dlm bidang sains dan teknologi yg ada sekarang…
sekian…minta maaf mungkin sedikit panjang ulasan di sini…ini hanya pendapat..ada pro dan kontra.
July 14, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Begitu obvious bangsa yang sibuk menentang PPSMI ni adalah orang melayu…Bangsa lain senyap jer…baca news baru-baru ni MCA merayu PPSMI diteruskan di sekolah menengah…betapa dorg memikirkan masa depan anak2 mereka…pas & umno sibuk survival masing2 dari memikirkan anak bangsa….
Nampak sangat perangai orang melayu ni sejak berkurun-kurun tak berubah…semua nak senang…memang la benda yang baru, memang susah nak nampak hasil positif dalam jangka masa pendek…kalau diberi pilihan untuk drop sains & math pun dorang bila-bila masa sudi asalkan senang belajar…tapi apa akan jadi pada masa depan negara???
Agak-agaknya kalo ribuan anak melayu menganggur tak dapat keja akibat lemah dalam English….ada pejuang2 bahasa tu nak berarak kt tepi jalan pertahan mereka???
A. Samad Said kata bahasa melayu, patut juga diperkuatkan di Universiti, tapi dia sendiri hantar anak kat universiti omputih (US)?…anak dia belajar dalam bahasa English takpe anak orang lain dinafikan?…hipokrit giler…takut novel-novel melayu dia tak terjual ke?
July 14, 2009 at 3:05 pm
I think most people are missing the point.
According to Tun Mahathir (the person who made the policy in the first place), the main objective was not to improve their English per se, it was to give the younger generation a headstart in their science and technology education. Improving their English was just a bonus point.
While I do agree that implementing the policy may have been doubtful in the first place, in doesn’t change the fact that it has been implemented. Therefore I was quite disappointed that the government REVERSED the decision after all the work and money that had been spent on it. I totally agree with what Tun Mahathir said after Tan Sri Muhiyyidin made the decision, “Change the implementation, not the policy itself”. Its like taking a step back after making two steps forward. I personally think 6 years is not enough to judge the results of a policy that is meant to bring a change in the long run.
Sadly, in the end, these kids suffer as they become the guinea pigs
August 3, 2009 at 4:25 am
zaid.. (dunno if u stil remember me or not)
yatie xmo nak berbahas panjang2 pasal visi misi wutsoever cuma nk cerita dr segi experience.
ni kisah 1985 – 2009
i bet u notice how poor my english aite? dari kecik i tried to learn english baca paper english, pegi tuisyen blajar english.. hr2 kat skolah blajar english, pg kolej smpai english teacher ckp ‘awak ni mmg x pndai english’, tgk tv citer english tp x pndai2 tambah2 dgn environment ppl kat cni x ckp english. nak ckp english tp nk ckp ngn spe? pokok?mind us we are eastcoasters.
but im stil learning. medical book medium english pg mane2 pon smue speaking. alhamdulliah sedikit sebanyak da improve n smpai hr nih masih survive.
kisah 1997 – 2009
puji pada Tuhan adik yatie sekarang da standard 6. dari st. 1 – st. 6 dia bljr sc. n maths medium english. walaupun grammar n stuff she learnt from subj. english, tapi sc, maths (mind my YM language) giler tlong improve eng dia. n OMG she speaks eng while doing h/works wit her frens. bukan stakat tu, self confidence die, even nk buat h’work pun die google internet cari bhn2.. semua english. smua org kerja keras untuk blajar english tmasuk la cikgu cikgi. n its a gud thing aite? we r not like most families yg zaid knal esp westcoasters dkt rumah medium english.
w/pun blajar sc, mths guna medium english, Bahasa Malaysia dia takde pun terganggu mcm yg ditakut2kan sgt pakar bahasa kita? n i bet kwn2 dia pun sama..
i wish n i pray my sis x yah laaa nak kena hina2 lagi dgn cikgu/lecturer like me in those days.
tp ape jadik? english in sc n maths da dimansuhkan balk..
arghhh!!! (hari2 kena tadah telinga dgr my mum yg x reti langsung ckp english membebel pasal english in sc n maths dimansuhkan)
- ur x classmate -
August 14, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I agree with Jannah that the implementation should be changed. Whether the policy was introduced to improve English or give students a head start in science-based knowledge, it is insufficient to apply the policy without supporting the students, teachers and system in various aspects.
I think starting the program for those in Darjah Satu (like Yatie’s sister) is a great idea as the students start off with English from the first day of school. But for those who start learning Science an Math in English from secondary school, there are a lot of other things to be considered.
I taught Chemistry and Mathematics in a relatively good (admission of mostly UPSR 5A students and PMR > 5A) secondary school in Kuala Terengganu. I am not trying to show off, but only after I taught these students did they say they started understanding the concepts of the subjects. Why? Because their English was poor in general due to their English teachers’ (sejak Darjah Satu) inadequate mastery of English and also masalah cikgu Science subjects takleh nak explain concepts in English because the teachers pun tak faham sangat.
I am sure the results after many years would be great if we were to implement this policy in children from a young age, but for the generations yang terpaksa ‘dikorbankan’ for the sake of experimentation, who will be responsible for their future?
One way to encourage better English among our youth is by making books more affordable and available. Terengganu, for example, doesn’t have a Borders/MPH/Popular/Kinokuniya; it only has Pustaka Seri Intan (and a few other book stores) that sells (apart from revision books) buku2 Ahadiat Akasyah dan yang sewaktu dengannya.