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Former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has urged the government to reconsider its decision to do away with the teaching of Science and Mathematics in English.

Dr. Mahathir took to X (formerly Twitter) to suggest that English should be the primary language of instruction for these two subjects.

"This field of knowledge is not indigenous. It comes to us not in the Malay language, but largely in English," he remarked.

Dr. Mahathir emphasised that the development in science does not normally take place the within the Malay language.

Due to this disparity, translation becomes necessary, requiring translators with a profound understanding of the subject and fluency in both English and Malay. These qualifications, he noted, are relatively scarce.

"This knowledge has to be translated into Malay. The translators must have a good understanding of the subject and be fluent in English and Malay. Not many people would have this qualification," he said.

Unlike subjects like Geography and History, Dr. Mahathir observed, Science and Maths are constantly evolving due to new discoveries and applications.

"It is different from other fields of knowledge. In geography and history, for example, the basic facts hardly change. Only the presentation may vary. So the need to translate is quite limited.

"But with science and mathematics, new discoveries and applications have to be learned or acquired if students are going to keep up with new technologies," he said.

Acknowledging the nation's aspiration to enhance the Malay language, Dr. Mahathir balanced this with the imperative of preserving knowledge acquisition.

He asserted that the pursuit of education should not be compromised by linguistic goals, as knowledge remains pivotal for the country's progress.

"If the teaching is in English, all the new knowledge can be learned directly as most scientific papers are presented in English.

"Education would be worthless if we are left behind in terms of knowledge which is essential for our development and progress," he emphasised.

Dr. Mahathir claimed that many parents were upset with the government's decision to stop teaching science and maths in English as an option.

Consequently, he urged the government to reconsider, even suggesting that science and mathematics should be exclusively taught in English.

"Better still, let it not be just an option. Let us decide to teach science and mathematics in English," Dr. Mahathir said.

Although he acknowledged the growth of Bahasa Malaysia, the 98-year-old politician underlined that some mathematical and scientific terms in the language are still borrowed from other languages, predominantly English.

"We understand the national desire to develop our language. But the objective of education is primarily to gain knowledge.

We cannot sacrifice knowledge for language development. Education would be worthless if we are left behind in terms of knowledge, which is essential to our development and progress," he said.

During his tenure as acting Education Minister in 2020, Dr. Mahathir announced the revival of the Teaching of Science and Mathematics in English (PPSMI) policy, initially introduced for Year One and Form One students in 2003. However, it was abolished in 2013.

Despite this, he attempted to revive PPSMI in 2020 when he returned to power and held the education portfolio.

In a separate incident earlier this year, the proposed abolition of the dual-language programme (DLP) faced backlash from two parent-teacher groups.

The DLP allows selected schools to teach specific subjects in English, sparking discussions about the equilibrium between linguistic preservation and leveraging English for comprehensive knowledge acquisition.
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A little curious, a little cynical, always trying to make sense of things.

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Teach Maths and Science in English Again, Says Mahathir | TRP

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Taking to social media, the former prime minister expressed his enduring conviction that English should be the medium for teaching science and mathematics.

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- The debate over the teaching of science and mathematics in Malay or English in Malaysia is raging again, in an issue that has pitted some schools keen to see their students master the two core subjects in a global language against the latest government policy seemingly pandering to Malay voters.

Education watchdog Parent Action Group for Education on June 12 blamed the move on Malay ultra-nationalists "continuing to suppress Malay children in every way they can from progress, prosperity, a global outlook and employment prospects".

The controversial change is especially pertinent in the northern state of Penang - Malaysia's "Silicon Valley" where many high-technology multinationals are based - as English is the main language for business and technology.

On June 5, the boards of directors and parent-teacher associations of 11 Chinese secondary schools in Penang reportedly stood up to oppose a new directive by the Education Ministry to have at least one class in each student cohort that teaches the two subjects in Malay.

The schools said that the two subjects would only be taught in English, as there was no demand for these to be taught in Malay, or in the students' Chinese mother language.

In response, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek on June 6 reiterated: "Schools implementing the DLP (Dual Language Programme) must ensure that opportunities are available for students who wish to study science and mathematics in either the national language or their mother tongue."

The directive, which she announced last year, kicked off with the academic session of 2024/2025 that started in March.

Students placed in the Malay-language classes have no option to choose otherwise. The rest of the students can continue to learn these two subjects in English.

Malaysia's Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek has been accused by her critics of trying to phase out the Dual Language Programme.

PHOTO: FADHLINA SIDEK/FACEBOOK

Malaysia introduced the DLP in 2016 to allow science and maths to be taught in English. The DLP aims to better prepare students in the fast-evolving fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem).

At a time when top carmaker Tesla and Chinese car brands, along with cloud giants Microsoft and Amazon, are entering or expanding in the country, Malaysia is grappling with a critical shortage of engineers as well as low Stem enrolment rates in schools.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on May 10 said "we lack about 30,000 engineers today" to meet industry demands and urged the Education Ministry to tackle the problem with immediate action.

But Malay nationalists fear that the DLP would sideline Malaysia's national language, and also worry that Malay students with a weak grasp of English would be left further behind in school.

Ms Fadhlina, 18 months into her first posting as a Cabinet minister, has been accused by her critics of trying to phase out the DLP in favour of the two subjects being taught in Malay only, especially for schools that have low passing grades in the national language.

The debate involving the 11 Penang schools has attracted the attention of politicians.

"Why are you so afraid of using Malay as the medium of instruction in only one class?" Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh asked in a June 5 Facebook post. "On this issue, we remain fully supportive of the policy implemented by the Education Ministry. Bahasa Melayu (Malay language) is the national language of this country."

But critics are also lining up against the Pakatan Harapan government led by Datuk Seri Anwar, who won the November 2022 general election on a multi-racial platform.

The critics are asking if the government is pushing back against the DLP, even in Chinese-majority Penang, in order to woo Malay voters who mostly back the Malay-Muslim-based opposition alliance, Perikatan Nasional.

"During the tenure of former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, if parents wished for science and mathematics to be taught in English, then students could learn these subjects in English," said former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng on June 6 at a news conference.

"There were no conditions requiring at least one class to be taught in Malay," added Mr Lim, who is chairman of the Democratic Action Party, a member of PM Anwar's ruling coalition.

Correction note: In an earlier version of the story, we said that the Malaysia general election was held on November 2023. This is incorrect. It should be in November 2022.

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Penang schools wrestle with Malaysian govt over science and maths classes in English

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PM Anwar's government appears to be pushing for students to learn the two core subjects in Malay. Read more at straitstimes.com.