KGBS regrets mistake in BM textbook, wants MoE to amend error

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Ahmad Malie

KUCHING: Sarawak Bumiputera Teachers Union (KGBS) regrets the mistake made in the Bahasa Melayu Tingkatan 1 textbook and has requested for the Ministry of Education (MoE) to amend the error.

Its president, Ahmad Malie told The Borneo Post that they also received complains from concerned parents about the mistake in the textbook.

“They were complaining that the fact in the textbook is not accurate and seems to be denying Sarawak as the largest oil producer in Malaysia,” he said.

Ahmad was reacting to Lina Soo’s statement published in The Borneo Post today that the Bahasa Melayu Tingkatan 1 textbook for Form 1 students had omitted Sarawak as one of the oil and gas states in Malaysia in its section on the oil and gas industry of the nation..

Although the mistake of omitting Sarawak’s name from the list of oil producing states might be petty to some, Ahmad argued that it would have very serious consequences as the textbook would be used to educate the students.

“KGBS would like to stress that we must not take things for granted although the mistake seems very small because the effect (of the mistake) on our children’s knowledge building will be very big.”

Ahmad found it puzzling for a textbook which was prepared by so many experts and involved very detailed planning and editing could go wrong over such an important fact.

“KGBS feels very sorry for the writers’ lack of sensitivity and analysing panel for not checking the book content thoroughly,” he said.

Ahmad stressed that writers of all textbooks have to make sure that their works are based on accurate facts.

“If they do not check on their facts, our children will be learning the wrong teaching that may become their guidance for the rest of their lives,” he said.

Ahmad, therefore urged the Ministry of Education’s textbook division to quickly do a correction to make sure the book content is correct.

Meanwhile, a Dewan Bahasa Dan Pustaka (DBP) official when contacted said they will bring the issue to the attention of their director general, Datuk Abang Salehuddin Abang Shokeran who is a Sarawakian.

The 236 pages book published by DBP in 2016 was already in use since 2017.