PMs statements on use of English in schools a political ploy, says Mahfuz
An opposition leader today accused Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad of creating for political gain, the issue of English as the medium of instruction for science and mathematics in schools.
PAS Youth Chief Mahfuz Omar pointed out the discrepancy between what was first announced by Mahathir in May and the eventual policy as revealed by Education Minister Musa Mohamad last Saturday.
Whereas Mahathir said the implementation will begin next year at all levels, Musa stated that it will be carried out in stages beginning with Primary One, Form One and Lower Six.
"This shows that the earlier statements from Mahathir, Musa and (deputy education minister) Aziz (Shamsuddin) were made for political purposes and not based on research," Mahfuz told a press conference at PAS headquarters in Gombak, Selangor.
"Because their irresponsible statements have led to public disquiet, I challenge Mahathir, Musa and Aziz to resign from their respective positions," he added.
MSC not progressing
Mahfuz said he believed the Barisan Nasional government created the issue "to divert peoples' attention, especially the fresh graduates who are jobless, by blaming their poor command of English as the reason for their being unemployed".
"In reality, the government wants to hide its own weaknesses that it cannot provide employment to local graduates especially when its Multimedia Super Corridor project is not progressing as expected," he claimed.
Mahfuz, who is also Pokok Sena member of parliament, said the BN government has tried to rush through this public policy without proper research or any feedback from the public.
He questioned the government's move to use English to teach these two critical subjects without any prior effort to improve the methodology of teaching English.
The PAS Youth leader also voiced concern that the performance of students in the two disciplines will worsen with English as the medium of instruction.
"Even now when science and mathematics are taught in Bahasa Melayu, most of the students in rural areas cannot do well in them," he added.
Feasibility of new policy
On the flip side, Mahfuz argued, using English as a medium of instruction also has nothing to do with improving the nation's command of mathematics. He cited from a study published in the Dec 2, 1996 issue of Newsweek , that the US and UK are ranked 28 and 16 respectively compared with Japan and South Korea which are in the top three despite using their respective native languages.
However, Mahfuz agreed with the government's move to set up the Professional Committee of the Education Ministry, led by education director-general Abdul Rafie Mahat, to study the government's capacity to implement the new policy.
"But PAS Youth believes that the committee should also study the feasibility of the new policy and why students failed to master English," he added.
In Saturday's announcement, Musa also said matriculation colleges and polytechnics will be using English by 2004 and 2008, respectively.
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