A Tamil education group is worried that the use of English to teach Science and Mathematics from next year may erode the characteristics of vernacular schools and result in an increase of drop-outs from Tamil primary schools.

"We beg to disagree with the Deputy Prime Minister [Abdullah Ahmad Badawi]. We believe that this is the beginning to change the nature of Tamil schools," said M Manogar, pro tem president of the Kuala Lumpur-based Malaysian Tamil Educational Research and Development Foundation (MTERDF).

"If the government can do it with Science and Maths now, they can do the same with more subjects later on. We don't want the government to set a precedent," he added after a MTERDF briefing for some 500 parents and teachers in Tamil schools on Saturday.

Manogar said they supported the government's determination to improve English proficiency among students but this should be done by improving the teaching of English.

One of the ways to improve English teaching is the re-introduction of classical literature in schools, he said.

"What happened to books like David Copperfield, Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. We don't hear of them anymore. It's time to bring them back to our schools and the students' command of the language will definitely improve.

"After all, at one time, we were better in English than many other nations because we studied English literature. But please, don't disturb the teaching of Science and Maths," he said.

Last week, Abdullah assured that the government has no intention to alter the characteristics of vernacular schools by teaching Science and Maths in English at Standard One and Form One starting next year.

Task force set up

A task force has been set up to translate textbooks into English and a pay rise has been promised for those qualified to teach the subjects in English.

However, the switch announcement met with strong objection from various vernacular education groups. Following this, the Education Ministry then said the final decision will be made by the parties representing different communal interests in the ruling coalition.

Primary schools in the country are currently divided into two categories — national school which uses Bahasa Melayu as the teaching medium, and national-type school which uses either Mandarin or Tamil.

There are some 500 Tamil schools with over 90,000 students in the country, many of which are located in plantation estates since the British rule during pre-independence days.

Manogar also pointed out that due to the socio-economic status of many parents, it is unlikely that they could provide their children with other alternatives of education even if they are unhappy with the changes in Tamil schools.

May leave school

"Many of these parents are from the lower-income group. English is an alien language to their children. When the students are forced to study in the language they are not familiar with, they will lose interest and may choose to leave school," he said.

This may create more social problems for the country as well as the Indian Malaysian community, he warned.

He said MTERDF had presented its view to Indian-based political parties and organisations but added that "it is not right for the government to just have the view of politicians".

Meanwhile, several other panellists who attended Saturday's briefing also shared Manogar's views.

S Thiagarajan, the Parents and Teachers' Association chairperson of SJK (T) Sungai Siput in Perak, said if the government feels that the command of English is weak among Malaysian students, the teaching hours of English should be increased then.

He also cited statistics showing that Tamil schools have obtained over 70 percent in pass rate for both Science and Maths in recent years and said there is no need to switch the teaching medium to English.

"We have done reasonably well because students find it easier to learn in their mother-tongue," he said.

Victims of system

A Nagappan, editor of Tamil magazine Shakti (or Power), said the government should not have introduced a change in education policy in a haste and without in-depth studies.

"First, they must prove that the existing teaching system for Maths and Science is not effective. Only then can they make recommendations and test them on a small group of students. When the government is satisfied that the new method is working, then the recommendations can be made into a policy.

"In this case, none of these was done. Our worry is that two years from now, the government may simply want to change the policy again. By then, the students would have become the victims of the whole system," he said.

At the end of the MTERDF session, four resolutions, including one that urges the government to let Tamil schools continue teaching Maths and Science in Tamil, were adopted unanimously.

The other resolutions acknowledged the importance of English in the era of globalisation, supported the government's effort to improve English among students, and suggested an increase in the hours of instruction for English from two periods to five a week in Tamil schools.