Seated, Yap (centre), Lim (11th right) and Teo (10th right) in a group photo with the dignitaries and the association committee.
KOTA KINABALU: The Minister of Education, Deputy Ministers of Education, state education directors and curriculum director will be meeting in the next one to two weeks to determine the time allocated to the teaching of Bahasa Malaysia (BM) and English languages.
Deputy Education Minister Datuk Mary Yap Kain Ching said she had chaired two meetings with stakeholders, namely from national-type Chinese primary schools SJK(C), national-type Tamil primary schools SJK(T) and the National Union Teachers Association on BM and English lesson schedules.
Yap said all three stakeholders had submitted their proposals on this matter which she had discussed with Deputy Prime Minister cum Minister of Education Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
“In one to two weeks, the Minister of Education, Deputy Ministers of Education and state education directors will meet to fix the (teaching) time for BM and English lessons,” she said when officiating at the Sabah National-Type Chinese School Management Committee’s 11th installation ceremony here on Sunday.
Yap explained that the additional time allocated to teaching BM was because the ministry found that Chinese students scored lower results in quantity and quality in BM in the Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR).
“It is important for Chinese students to reach a level for them to be able to compete when they enter Form 1.”
She said obtaining a credit in BM was a condition set by the Ministry of Education to apply for public and private higher learning institutions, as well as a condition to apply for scholarships and to seek government jobs.
“The Ministry of Education pays attention to results that do not reach a satisfactory level, which explains the increase in BM teaching.”
Yap assured that the additional time given to teaching BM did not mean that the time for Chinese lessons would be reduced.
“It will not be fair to reduce (the teaching time for Chinese lessons), we will maintain it at 300 minutes a week.”
Yap added the Ministry of Education would safeguard the education of different religions, race and ethnic groups.
She pointed out that the National Education Blueprint 2013-2015 mentioned Chinese schools, Tamil schools, international schools and private schools, which showed the ministry intended to retain these schools.
She specially stressed that national-type Chinese primary schools or SJK(C), would be maintained.
“Do not believe in the allegations made by certain quarters that Chinese education will be abolished. The Ministry of Education does not intend to do so.”
On the shortage of Chinese language teachers, Yap said it was due to less students who applied for teacher training. Hence, she said students should be encouraged to take up teaching as their career.
“To me, education is not the sole responsibility of the Ministry of Education but a collective responsibility of everyone in Malaysia to ensure the education system is implemented effectively.”
Yap was commenting on the various issues aired by Sabah National-Type Chinese School Management Committee chairman Ben Lim Kiat Kong in his speech at the event.
She said the National Education Blueprint would be launched in September and hopes it will garner the support of the people.
The Ministry of Education, she added, considered all factors in relation to the students’ interests when each policy was proposed.
Nonetheless, Yap said she could be contacted through email or short messaging service (SMS) if there were any issues regarding the matter.
“Even though I’m a Deputy Education Minister, it does not mean that I’m a fairy godmother who has a magic wand. And if I wave the wand, you will get the results immediately.”
She said the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Higher Education had been combined into one since this year, which carried heavy responsibilities. Hence any issues would take time to resolve.
“I promise that if there are any issues, I’ll hold a discussion session and take follow-up actions and finally towards resolution.”
On the other hand, Yap commended the Sabah National-Type Chinese School Management Committee which had focused on its objectives for the betterment, improvement and development of education in the country, especially in Sabah for the past 20 years.
The Sabah National Type Chinese School Management Committee include 79 Chinese primary schools and eight national-type secondary schools.
Yap added that the association had recently approached state education director Jame Alip on the proposal to adopt Chinese primary schools in the rural areas in Sabah to initiate a project on instilling a solid foundation of the Chinese language.
“This project will certainly benefit many students living in the rural areas, especially non-Chinese students who particularly enrolled in the schools to attain a broader spectrum of knowledge as it will widen their language proficiency and enhance their opportunity to garner a better future.
“It will render them more equipped not only locally but also in the global arena.”
Also present at the event were Minister of Special Tasks Datuk Teo Chee Kang, former Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Yee Moh Chai, former Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister Datuk Edward Khoo Keok Hai, Sabah National Type Chinese School Management Committee chairman Ben Lim Kiat Kong, KTS Sabah area general operations manager Ngu Ngiong Hieng and other Chinese leaders.