There are MANY pros and cons.. While i have my own opinion (I have 2 daughters in primary school and 1 in secondary school)related to this issue, i shall only put forth Some of the research related papers that have been published:
Recall the following statement released by the Jemaah Nazir (School inspectoriat)
"Dasar ini digubal berasaskan hakikat bahawa Sains dan Matematik adalah bidang ilmu yang sangat dinamik dengan pelbagai penemuan baru dan sebahagian besar maklumat yang berkaitan dengannya terdapat dalam bahasa Inggeris. Matlamat akhir dasar ini adalah membolehkan murid
mengakses maklumat yang berkaitan melalui pelbagai media supaya mereka mampu menguasai ilmu Sains dan Matematik dan
lebih berdaya saing di peringkat antarabangsa di samping melahirkan generasi yang
kukuh dalam penggunaan bahasa Inggeris.”
(Jemaah Nazir Sekolah, 2006, p.13)
We can therefore summarized 3 main objectives of PPSMI’s :
i) Enable learners master Science and Mathematics;
ii) Prepare the learners so that they become more competitive internationally; and
iii) Engender a generation of learners who are well-versed in the English language
This is
14 year boy blog
http://syameer.blogspot.com/commenting writing
about Malaysian politics including PPSMI...hmm..he still have along way to go....
1.
Teaching of Mathematics and Science in English: The Teachers' VoicesMohamad Fadhili Bin Yahaya, Mohd Asri Bin Mohd Noor, Ahmad Azman Bin Mokhtar, Rafizah Binti Mohd Rawian, Mahmod Bin Othman, Kamaruzaman Jusof.
abstractThe policy to change the medium of instruction in the teaching of Mathematics and Science from Bahasa Melayu (Malay Language) to English in 2003 is an important innovation affecting not only the students but also teachers of Mathematics and Science. However, how far do the changes affect the teachers is the issue addressed in the paper. In fact the objectives of the study were to investigate the reaction of the mathematic and science teachers to using English as the medium of instruction, the problems encountered by these teachers in using English in the classroom and the availability of language support systems. A study was conducted on a group of pre-university educators in the northern part of Malaysia who have undergone language enhancement courses known as English for the Teaching of Mathematics and Science (ETeMS). The study reveals that teachers of mathematics and science are generally perceptive of the change in the medium of instruction but needing some sustainable measures to not only improve their language ability and delivery. Thus it is hope that certain measures would be taken to address on teachers struggle to ensure the success of the policy.
2. Aziz Nordin, eprint-utm.my,
Students perception of teaching and learning of mathemtics in englishAbstractStudents use language to communicate and to understand mathematics concepts. Language
influences students’ thought by molding perception and structuring ideas. However, in recentyears, science and mathematics in lower secondary subjects have been taught in English.This may create problems in learning these subjects. Therefore, this research was carried outto gather information and to get the clearer picture on what have happened regarding theteaching and learning science and mathematics in schools. The research instrument was a setof 16-item questionnaire that was designed to identify students’ perception on teaching andlearning mathematics. The respondents consist of 279 lower secondary school students fromthree schools in rural area of Johor, Malaysia. The research found out that the respondents agreed to the importance of English Language in everyday life as well as career opportunity
but felt that learning science and mathematics was very difficult and demanding due to the lack of ability in understanding the subject matters and instructional language. The result showed that learning science is more difficult than mathematics. Finally, there arechallenges for the science and mathematics teachers to overcome students’ learning difficulties andto promote effective learning among students.
3. Proceeding math UNIPA/ project 21st century, Hamidah Ab Rahman, Aziz Nordin, Mukheta Isa, Fatimah Puteh, Faruk Muhammad, Norazman Abd Majid, Aminah Ahmad Khalid, Siti Fatimah Bahari, Hj Shufaat Tumin & Zurihanmi Zakariya (Universiti
Teknologi Malaysia).(2005) TEACHERS’ COMPETENCY IN THE TEACHING OF MATHEMATICS
IN ENGLISH IN MALAYSIAN SECONADRY SCHOOLS
Abstract The implementation of the teaching of Science and Mathematics in English (PPSMI)through the integration of ICT in 2003, teachers’ competency in teaching the subject is put to test sicne many of our teachers today have had very little exposure to the subjects in English. Many were taught in Malay and trained to teach in Malay. Many too have little experience of using ICT in their teaching. To ease the problem with regard to the language and ICT, the Ministry of Education has introduced several meaningful programs aimed at preparing the teachers and boosting their confidence in teaching the subjects. A research involving 575 teachers was conducted throughout the country to examine the effectiveness of the programs organized by theministry and togauge whether of not the trainings given were adequate and relevant to the needs of the teachers to teach
the subjects in English. Questionnaires, which comprised of structured items to elicit information with respect to facts, perception, opinion and attitudes of the respondents towards PPSMI were administered to the teachers. The findings reveal that the implementation of the teaching of Mathematics in English in schools was at satisfactory level (53.4%). The respondents also agreed that they have improved their command of the English language and that their level of confidence to teach Mathematics in English have also improved.Finally, recommendations for further study were suggested so as to further improve the teaching of Mathematics in English
4. Hen Tan & Chan Swee Heng, Teaching math and science in english: Perspective from UPM(2003) www.eltcm.org/eltc/Download/conferences/8_parallelpaper_08
AbstractPreparing teachers to teach Mathematics and Science in English is a responsibility that cuts across many institutions and agencies. Universiti Putra Malaysia(UPM) is one such institution given the responsibility of equipping the Mathematics and Science Trainee Teachers (MSTTs) with the skills of using English to teach both subjects. The UPM teacher training programme for this purpose is jointly conducted by the Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies with the education component provided by the Faculty of Educational Studies. The Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication is entrusted with the role of designing and implementing intensive English courses for the MSTTs to teach in English. This paper discusses issues and concerns about the effort involved in equipping MSTTs at UPM with the necessary English Language skills so that teaching along the stated objectives is achieved. It also elaborates on the profile of these MSTTs which includes their perceptions on the use of English for the teaching of mathematics and science. The paper invites discussion on the directions that tertiary institutions could embark on to fulfill the MSTTs’ language needs.
5.Ong Saw Lan & May TAN, Jurnal Pendidik dan Pendidikan,Jilid 23 (2008)(usm) Mathematics in English-Teachers experinces in the classroom
Abstract: In 2003, the Malaysian government implemented a new policy in the national education system; English is made the language of instruction in schools for the teaching of Mathematics, Science and technology subjects. These subjects had formerly been taught in the Malay language. The purpose of teaching Science and Mathematics in English is to enable students to acquire proficiency in English while learning the content. This study aims to provide more in-depth information concerning teachers’ experiences and classroom practices in the implementation of the change in language of instruction for Mathematics and Science. To gather information on teachers’ experiences with the policy change, classroom observation and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the four Mathematics and Science teachers. While teachers interviewed are supportive of the policy, they are still struggling with the realities of implementing this policy. Three factors appear to be salient in influencing how quickly a teacher can effect the transition into teaching entirely in English. They are the prior educational background of teachers, the linguistic environment in school and the linguistic abilities of their students.
6.Cheah,(2008) Refining communication to improve didactics: A case study , (Recsam).
AbstractThis paper presents a preliminary report of a case study on a lesson conducted as part of a project to introduce the Lesson Study approach to a group of teachers. The lesson which was planned collaboratively by three teachers to focus on mathematical communication and thinking was then carried out by one of the teachers. The lesson was videotaped and the communication that took place was then transcribed and interpretively analysed. The findings of the study revealed that the lesson tasks designed by the teachers were generally able to stimulate active pupil participation in the lesson. However the communication in the lesson was mostly focused on the teacher attempting to lead the pupils to arrive at his answers. While the study did raise some issues as to the way mathematical communication is carried out in the Malaysian primary classroom, it was found that the Lesson Study method was a suitable and non-threatening approach for teachers to improve and further develop mathematical communication in the classroom
7.Imran Ho ABdullah & Muhammad Yahya,FACING UP TO TEACHING AND LEARNING OF SCIENCE
AND MATHEMATICS IN ENGLISH AT UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA Proceeding 11th. Annual International Conference ‘ Shaping the future of Science, Mathematics and Technical Education (2006). Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education,Brunei
AbstractMalaysia has recently shifted the teaching of science and mathematics in English (SME). The implementation which began in 2003 has attracted a lot of debate and discussion. Not least, the fact that the national language has already been proven to be a successful language of higher education in the past 35 years. This paper presents findings from a study at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia to analyze students’ preference for the language of instruction in science and mathematics based programs and their language of group interaction. The paper also discusses the
issues in the implementation of SME including the wide difference in the English proficiency of students based on the Malaysian English University Test and the concerns of lecturers implementing SME. The paper concludes by asking whether there is a possible solution to the impasse of the nationalistic and globalist imperatives.
8.Nor Hashimah Jalaludin et.al,(2008) The Mastery of English Language among Lower SecondarySchool Students in Malaysia: A Linguistic Analysis, European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 7, Number 2
AbstractTeaching English language is a big challenge in this country. Students are still unable to acquire or even comprehend the language even after eleven years of learning the language at the primary and secondary levels. A study conducted on 315 Form Two students’ shows that the most obvious weaknesses of the students lay in the area of grammar, particularly in the aspects of morphology and syntax. Some of the problematic grammatical categories are affixes, adverbs, adjectives, plural forms, copula, subject-verb agreement. This contributes 60% of the total mistakes committed by the students. It is apparent that the attributing factor is the different grammatical structures between Malay and English. For example,Malay does not have morphological markers for adverbs (i.e. –ly) plurality (i.e. -s, es), superlative form for adjectives (i.e –er, -est) and these are some of the constraints the students face in learning the English language. Meanwhile, the different structure in syntax can be seen in relative pronouns, subject-verb agreement, copula and determiners, thus make the subject even more difficult to learn. Apart from the linguistics obstacles, the social surroundings such as
attitude towards the language and the environment that do not encourage them to use the language have worsened the effort of acquiring the language.
International mathematics and Science Study
