Maths and Science: When the BN and PR agree
Wong Chun Wai
It's very rare for opposing forces in Malaysia to come to an agreement. The exception must be the stand taken by both sides to stop the use of English to teach Maths and Science.
The BN and PR component parties have all agreed to revert to Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil to teach these two subjects.
Anwar Ibrahim has put on record his stand. So has Nizar Jamaluddin who even proposed a motion to halt the use of English at the recent PAS general assembly. The Malay nationalists and Dong Jia Zong Chinese educationists also shared same sentiments.
So, it's pretty clear that these political and education groups must know what they are talking about, politically, that is. From my discussions with some of them, the feedback is that teachers, students and parents in rural areas, including new villages, are doing badly, especially in the teaching of Science. Parents are furious that their kids are unable to learn.
