I was reading the central page of my copy of the New Straits Times when i stumbled upon a very interesting yet critically evaluated column with regard to the move by the government to switch the teaching of Science and Mathematics from English to Malay.

The question lies; how far and to what extend does the effectiveness of this move would eventually benefit the young generation? Are the in-class students for a show simply because the  national policy can be changed over time and that they are sample of a never -ending experiment? Looking back, no one can deny the command of English of our forefathers. From simple and casual phrases to long and complicated sentences, you name it, they are the guru. They can even teach you literature without even had to sit in formal classroom like most of the students nowadays.

 The secret? The contextually defined approach of the olden days whereby English was made the medium of instruction somewhat ‘forced’ them to be confident English communicators and that most of the teachings in school were done in English. Thus, what makes it so feasible for the newbies to have such ‘exclusive’ exclusion? Neither it is a question of being less nationalistic to the country nor eroding the sovereignty of the nation, but using English in learning Math and Science will be beneficial in the long run.

 I came across a friend of mine who was 30 years old who couldnt spell the word- mangosteen. what? It’s like, where have you been, dude? This is one of the major problems of most Malaysians. Not to mention their reluctance in speaking English, but it appears that there seems that there is a hidden behaviorally influenced attitude that hinder most of Malaysians. Is it the fear? the fear to be laughed at when wrong phrases are uttered? or the initial parental influence? taking most of the examples around, only one in 5 persons can utter grammatically accurate sentences, suggesting that Malaysia is in a great state of having English language-challenged individuals. Now this is the problems we are talking about- english language development during early childhood; which should be promoted from one family to another.

 How about using the olden days’ style- the drill and practice? Let the children know basic words, phrases, and sentences. Then arouse their interests with books that they like provided that they are written in English and let them mingle around with english-speaking kids. In this way, children are exposed to a vast array of sentences and utterances and let them imitate. Just before they enter primary schools, enrol them in an english-speaking kindergarten. Here, individual and social roles are further heightened- not to mention, an increase in the command of English. Finally, after a strong basic foundation of the command of English is built, they are confident enough to step in the schools.

 Wait, i have almost forgotten, another vital stakeholder- teachers. Recently there have been a number of cases reported whereby teachers arent competent enough to teach. Because some of the children are a little ‘advanced’ as to speak, some of the teachers feel that there is no point to teach further and the worse part is, some would promote ’self-tuition classes’.Im not sure how far this is true, but teachers, personally, need to re-look at their teaching methodology to attract students. They need to know how distracted the kids are when they are not interested in the lessons and that a good ice-breaker needs to be introduced.

 For the next 10 to 15 years, lets keep our fingers crossed to foresee whether or not the recent move to switch back schools’ medium of instruction in teaching Math and Science in English will be effective and provides for encouraging responses from higher institutions and employers.