PUTRAJAYA: Govt convinced students’ performance in UPSR, PMR, SPM would not be affected.
The Cabinet yesterday agreed to allow all students in the Teaching and Learning of Science and Mathematics in English (PPSMI) cohort to continue learning the subjects in English until Form Five.
Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said this meant that primary school pupils in the PPSMI cohort could opt whether to continue learning Science and Mathematics in English or Bahasa Malaysia, or in both languages when they enter Form One beginning next year.
“Thus, the teaching and learning of Mathematics and Science in primary schools will only be implemented fully in Bahasa Malaysia in 2016 while in secondary schools it will be implemented in 2021.
“With the decision, the abolition of the PPSMI is upheld. The government does not intend to reimplement the PPSMI as demanded by certain groups,” he said at a media conference here yesterday.
Govt hopes decision could please parents
He said that the government hoped the decision to allow the PPSMI cohort to continue learning in the English Language up to Form Five could please the parents.
Muhyiddin said the government was convinced that with the decision, the performance of the PPSMI cohort in the Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR), Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR), and Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) would not be affected.
With the abolition of the PPSMI, he said pupils in Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina (SJKC) would learn Mathematics and Science in Mandarin while the Tamil language would be used in Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Tamil (SJKT).
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin, who is also the Education Minister, said a study by the Education Ministry on all schools under the ministry showed that most schools had implemented the teaching and learning of science and mathematics in Bahasa Malaysia. He said the study showed that less than five percent of the total number of classes in 7,495 primary schools used the English language fully in the teaching and learning of mathematics and science.
“Meanwhile, at the secondary school level, less than nine percent of the total number of classes in 2,191 schools used the English language in the teaching and learning of mathematics and science.
“The findings of the study showed that the PPSMI could not be implemented as desired,” he said.
He said the outcome of a field study carried out by the ministry found that the teachers’ experience and class practice as well as interviews with the students revealed that the students found it hard to understand mathematics and science in the English language.
Muhyiddin said that under the Elevation of Bahasa Malaysia and Empowerment of the English Language (MBMMBI), the ministry was implementing new initiatives which were more effective in raising the command of English among students.
“The abolition of the PPSMI does not mean that the government is ignoring the importance of proficiency in the English language,” he said.
He said that among the initiatives taken were increasing the time for the teaching and learning of English, improving the curriculum for English language under the implementation of the Primary School Standard Curriculum (KSSR), and the preparation for teachers.
Other initiatives included the recruitment of native speakers to raise the capacity of English lecturers and language teachers, the provision of quality supporting materials such as additional reading materials and digital materials to support the implementation of teaching and learning in the classroom, he added. — Bernama