Yoursay: National identity doesn’t justify quashing English schools

Activists: National identity trumps demand for English-medium schools

Quigonbond: Dong Zong (United Chinese School Committees Association) president Vincent Lau makes more practical sense than former Gerakan Mansuhkan PPSMI leader Ishak Surin.

A language is just a language. Its cultural and commercial values are tied to circumstances. It may rise, and it may fall. Malay was the lingua franca during Malacca’s golden age, but once economically superseded, the language declined in usage.

If Asean becomes an economic powerhouse and the combined number of Malay speakers in Malaysia and Indonesia form a very large part of the purchasing power of this region, you will have no shortage of Americans, Africans, Chinese, Japanese, Europeans, even Eskimos, all clamouring to learn the language.

Saying we are not English, and therefore it would be unsuitable for English to be used as a medium of instruction sounds just as backwards as telling the Americans that they are not Chinese and therefore should not learn Mandarin, yet many Americans today speak more fluent Chinese than many overseas Chinese.

Patriot1: Are we less Malaysian than we were in the 60s and 70s when there were English-medium schools? Those days, everybody could have a meaningful conversation in English and still retain their mother tongue.

Were students from those days inferior to their counterparts today with bucket loads of ‘As’ in their exams? I think not.

Universiti Malaya was a top-flight university in Asia then, but now? Ever tried to get a local graduate to write a letter in proper business English? How many of our ministers can represent our country and speak effectively at the international level?

Our education system has become a political tool. Everything must be politically correct and nobody gives two hoots about quality anymore. Why are parents spending a big chunk of their income to put their children in international schools?

As long as education is planned by politicians, we will end nowhere.

NNFC: Speaking English does not make us English. Look at yourself in the mirror. The fact is, our education system has gone from bad to worse.

We need to have more dynamic and highly educated individuals driving the education system in the country, not someone who cannot see beyond his own limitations and abilities.

Hamzah Paiman: The youngsters need help to be employable and therefore the English medium would better for them. Can these nationalist fighters be of any help to them?

Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) and Mara colleges have most of their courses in English. Why can’t all students, irrespective of school or university, enjoy the same treatment? Why do we need to segregate them?

Enough of this nonsense by the so-called nationalists to split the people into different classes.

English schools: Open dialogue needed, says deputy minister

David Dass: Of course, the English language is a major issue. It has become a major issue because politicians and national language nationalists have made it a major issue.

Our people were proficient in the English language in the early years – right up to the early 70s. We made the decision to change to Malay as the national language without thinking of the ramifications.

At that time, English-medium schools were the first choice of school for many. Classes were integrated. Textbooks were of a very high standard. Teachers were passionate. Mission schools were premier schools. We had only one university. All spoke of the very high standards that prevailed there.

Unfortunately, there was the perception that English-medium schools were advantageous to non-Malay students as most of these schools were located in the towns. The decision should have been to establish more English-medium schools in the rural areas.

There was also strong nationalistic feelings about the Malay language, and feelings were also being whipped up about English being the language of the colonial masters.

So with the shift to Malay-medium schools, the Chinese moved to Chinese-language schools – more than 90 percent of them in primary schools. And the 70 secondary Chinese schools are overflowing with students. More than 50 percent of Indian kids attend Tamil schools. Standards of education in both primary and secondary Malay-medium schools have dropped.

Now we have more than 400 colleges and universities. We have close to a million undergraduates at any one time. Employers complain about low standards and lack of English language proficiency.

All private colleges use English as the language of instruction. UiTM and the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) use English exclusively. And other public universities use a combination of English and Malay. Textbooks and research materials are mainly in English.

But because of inadequate proficiency in English at the school level, college and university education is compromised. Remedial courses do not work well. In the meantime, the private sector functions primarily in English. As does international trade and diplomacy.

Are English-medium schools the answer? Of course not. It will be a non-starter because of the political opposition to it. But the wealthy have access to English-medium schools, one might argue. It is not fair.

A compromise would be more acceptable. Make all our schools bilingual. Teach some subjects in English and some in Malay. All kids must be proficient in at least English and Malay. Bilingual education is the way for us to go.

When? Now. Make a difference to the lives of our young.

Anonymous #44199885: Bahasa Malaysia can be the language to bind us as a nation and English can help us grow into an advanced society.

Lots of parents try to send their kids to international schools and the latest trend, learning centres offering IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education).

Pandering to nationalism will ruin us all.

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.

These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers on matters of public interest. Malaysiakini does not intend to represent these views as fact.