KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 6 — In a move set to rile Malay nationalists, English will be made a mandatory subject for SPM middle secondary examinations from 2016, according to Putrajaya’s Education Development Master Plan 2013-2025 launched today.
The step also appears to be a nod to English language education lobbyists pushing hard for the return of English language education as an option, following the reversal of a previous policy of teaching Science and Mathematics in the language in 2010.
As part of preparations for the implementation, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said education revamp will also include increased contact hours in English classes.
He said raising the English lessons from the 120 minutes now may require longer hours in some schools, and that his ministry was now examining the logistics involved, especially with dual-session schools.
“We are studying the option because we have about 1,600 schools with two sessions,” he said during the launch of the Master Plan here today.
English is a contentious issue in education here, as Malay conservative and far-right groups regularly accuse its proponents of disloyalty to the country for promoting the language over the national Bahasa Malaysia.
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had during his administration introduced a policy of teaching Science and Mathematics in English (commonly referred to by its Malay acronym, PPSMI) in a bid to improve mastery of the language.
But this was controversially abandoned in 2010 for a policy to “Uphold Bahasa Malaysia and to Strengthen the English language” (MBMMBI) that critics alleged was made to appease Malay nationalists ahead of the general election.
Last month, Dr Mahathir said the fortunes of Bahasa Malaysia were dependent on Malaysians’ ability to master and learn in English.
He also dismissed the perception that being proficient in English was a sign of disloyalty to the the national language.
“Would you be a traitor to Bahasa Malaysia if you learn mathematics and science in English?” he asked in his speech at the launch of the Malay Consultative Council’s (MPM) congress on national education in August.
“Will we be disloyal to our language? Our language will only develop in the future when we master science and write books in Bahasa Malaysia,” the former prime minister said.
