Policies and Legacies

I was recounting to Ben how on my recent exit out at LCCT, my passport was rechecked by plain-clothes Immigration officials for its authenticity. It was far too early in the morning for me to be my cheery self and so it was a dull, dead “Good morning” that was uttered when it was my turn.

The officer looked at me, then to my passport and replied in a toned that was meant to be a smack-on-the-wrist “Selamat Pagi.” Needless to say, the rest of the ‘interrogation’ was akin to chicken-and-duck talk.

In a way, many weeks after, I can appreciate his determination to engage me to speak in our national language. Afterall, how can national language sustain its lofty status when the vast majority of her nation is not proficient in it? Add to all that, the up-roar stemming from the debate of what language should be the medium of instruction for certain core subjects in school, I really shouldn’t fault the dude for his censure.

I have been told that I should write a paper to be presented to my bosses, on the impact on the abolition of the PPSMI ruling (i.e. learning of Math & Science in English). And how this politically motivated decision would bring about a further dilution of the quality of students that we would likely receive.

Frankly, I am torn as to how to position this paper. For after much reflection and soul-searching, I have come to the conclusion that regardless of what the medium of instruction is, it is not going to bring about significant improvement in the quality of K12 education in our country, is the method of teaching and learning is changed.

It is easy to get away with using rote learning methods when one is dealing with factual subjects such as geography, history, etc. But with conceptual subjects (which at the heart of it, Math and Science would qualify alongside Literature, Commerce, etc) one can shove all the theories down the student’s throat but it ain’t gonna do jack when the method of assessment changes from a bulimic-3 hour-5 page script session to one that is case study oriented.

Ben, Mandy, myself – we all grew up in the era where the only subject that was taught in English was English itself. As Mandy rightfully said – she went on to obtain an Engineering degree without much hassle, despite that “handicap” in her K12 education. Ben, in reflection of his college days in the US, found that he could follow his Sciences without problem – and his opinion I would place great weight for he did not come from an English speaking family environment. Me – I never had an interest for Science and so, even though it was taught in a mixture of language (by virtue of my teachers being Convent girls themselves), I still didn’t get great scores.

And it wasn’t so much the language that our teachers imparted the knowledge in, but rather the way they did it. Learning back then was stressful (yes, stressful cos we didn’t know any better) but it was still fun. Our teachers had the time to share a joke, recount a tale about the haunted 3^rd floor (or the library!) and homework didn’t take up an entire school session. And to me, that is the broken link in the system today, not the mastery of subjects in a certain language.

The government has put it foot down and are sticking to the guns that the decision is irreversible. And I really cannot fault them. There is a huge gap between them who live in urban and suburban areas, and them who live in the outskirts. This I am still seeing today when I meet with our scholars. And the national school system is not meant to cater solely for the urbanites, but as the term suggests “National” i.e. the whole country.

And if we were to look at the bigger picture, one would be hard-pressed to now stand against the abolition of the PPSMI policy, on the basis that it would be for the greater good. For it would be much better for the nation as a whole to be knowledgeable in Math and Science, even if it is our national language, than for a small minority to excel in it and the rest floundering like a fish out of water.

Now that I have gotten that out of my system, I suppose I can level-headedly examine the cause and effects on our business sector in the years to come. Perhaps I might even don my different coloured hats and turn this “adversity” into something that becomes a USP for us.

But much remains to be seen as it appears that Phase 2 is now on the horizon, with the relevant ministries embarking on their attempts to shift the focus of our K12 system from an examination oriented one (i.e. rote learning) to a more applicable one (i.e. problem-base learning).

As a parent, I can only keep my fingers, ears and toes crossed and mutter under my breath “Insya-Allah.”