PUTRAJAYA: Improving the quality of English language (BI) education is the top priority for the Education Ministry (MOE) this year, says Fadhlina Sidek.
The Education Minister said while elevating Bahasa Malaysia (BM) remains a key priority, there is a need to improve English proficiency, especially in terms of the quality of its teaching.
“We do not need to wait for the 2027 school curriculum to begin mastering English. Mastering English and (improving) English quality begins now,” she said during her New Year address to the ministry staff yesterday.
Her ministry plans to train 8,000 BI-option teachers this year and has projected that about 10,000 such teachers would be needed in the next five years.
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As of last year, just over half (52%) of BI teachers under the ministry had reached Level C1 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
Under the CEFR, language proficiency is measured in relation to the four communicative skills – reading, writing, listening and speaking – on a scale starting with A1 and progressing to A2 (basic user), B1 and B2 (independent user), and C1 and C2 (proficient user).
Fadhlina also said that about 96% of 10,000 schools have reached levels Three and Four in the ministry’s Highly Immersive Programme (HIP).
She said the ministry should use “whatever available resources” to ensure BI education is improved.
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She added that mastery of the language must happen not only among teachers, but also students.
She also said BI will be given importance in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) as this language skill is important to be competent and competitive in the sector.
On Dec 23, Bernama reported that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government will also ensure the mastery of Bahasa Malaysia and English continues to be empowered under the country’s educational system.
“Energy transition and digital transformation require a strong paradigm shift, including what I have mentioned about mastery in Bahasa Malaysia and priority to be given to English in the education system from next year,” he said during the Prime Minister’s dialogue session with chief editors and senior editors of the country’s electronic, print and online media.
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Earlier this week, Housing and Local Development Minister Nga Kor Ming said efforts will be made to strengthen the use of English among civil servants this year while upholding the use of Bahasa Malaysia.
He said his ministry will organise several initiatives, including holding English speech competitions, to ensure civil servants are sufficiently bilingual.
He said all civil servants need to be proficient in both languages to fulfil the government’s global ambitions.
“While Bahasa Malaysia holds an important place in Malaysian society, a good command of English is also an important factor for economic success,” he said.
He stressed that failure to nurture a good command of English will only hurt the government’s long-term efforts to become a regional economic hub.
Meanwhile, regarding the Dual Language Programme (DLP) in schools, Fadhlina reiterated that there are guidelines that must be followed.
“For me, this issue does not crop up anymore,” she said, adding that the ministry is firm in its stand on the matter.
On Jan 15, parents had sent a memorandum to 31 Cabinet ministers in hopes they would discuss the ongoing issue surrounding the programme at the recent Cabinet retreat, which requires schools conducting the programme to have at least one non-DLP class.
The programme was one of the initiatives under the Upholding the Malay Language and Strengthening the English Language (better known by its Malay abbreviation, MBMMBI) policy.
