Edunation: ‘Anyone can DLP’
For readers who have been following the Dual Language Programme (DLP) crisis, PAGE has thrilling news to share. On Dec 4, 2023, certain parents of students attending SK Convent (1) Bukit Nanas, SK Bukit Damansara, SJKT Vivekananda, SJKT Ladang Edinburgh and SJKT Segambut were informed by their respective principals that the recently appointed director of the Kuala Lumpur Education Department had consented in writing for the schools to again proceed with their DLP classes. After a six-month battle, the parents are elated and convey their gratitude to Roslan Abu Hassan for his wisdom, expediency and kindness.
These parents also wish to convey their heartfelt appreciation to members of parliament Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah (Indera Mahkota), Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong (Ayer Hitam), Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin (Putrajaya) and Teresa Kok (Seputeh) for raising the DLP concerns in Dewan Rakyat with such finesse, poise, eloquence, calm and composure in finding a solution to the crisis.
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The DLP guidelines are contained in the Surat Pekeliling Ikhtisas (SPI) Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia (KPM) Bilangan 3 Tahun 2020: Penambahbaikan Garis Panduan Pelaksanaan Dual Language Programme (DLP) KPM Tahun 2021 dated Nov 26, 2020, endorsed under the leadership of then Senior Education Minister Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin.
The objectives of DLP are three-pronged:
To give students the opportunity to enhance their English language proficiency through the teaching and learning of science and mathematics;
To give students the opportunity to further access and explore numerous fields of scientific knowledge in order to compete at the global stage; and
To enhance the marketability of students in the work place.
Educators who fail to see the importance of DLP should think again. The DLP guidelines clearly spell out the four criteria for application for DLP:
The school must have adequate resources;
The principal must have a comprehensive plan to conduct DLP;
Parents must provide written consent;
The school must have at least met the Bahasa Melayu (BM) national average or shown an increase in the past three years (which, in hindsight, has made DLP exclusive, and that was never the intention).
Reasonable conditions were added on for a smooth flow in that:
The students must have the capacity to continue being in a DLP class at the secondary level;
There must be at least 15 students to open up a DLP class; and
Students who opt for non-DLP should not be deprived (of the option to not choose DLP).
The last condition has been a point of contention. The mantra regurgitated by principals and education officers to parents was that even when the 15-student condition has been met, priority would still be given to the “imaginary” student who must not be deprived of non-DLP.
The other point of contention was that a non-DLP class must be made available for the benefit of students who do not choose DLP. However, in the case of schools that have been DLP since the programme’s conception — for example, the five schools mentioned above — where not a single student wants to be in the non-DLP class, having to provide a non-DLP class means having to sacrifice one DLP class. Parents have scrutinised the DLP guidelines and have failed to find this condition as claimed by the education minister in Dewan Rakyat.
And lastly, some six-year-olds may have difficulty reading and writing. Therefore, a language assessment may be inaccurate and pointless. Had the DLP guidelines been adhered to with integrity and without bias, a crisis could have been averted.
Where the student appears to be weak in his/her mother tongue, then the focus should move towards improving BM/Tamil through the existing subjects, namely, BM, Seni, Pendidikan Jasmani, dan Pendidikan Kesihatan, Pendidikan Islam/Pendidikan Moral, and Bahasa Tamil comprising 55% of the syllabus. Shift the responsibility to teachers teaching in BM/Tamil, rather than deprive students whose parents have chosen DLP for their children.
In fact, the bigger task for the Ministry of Education is to target the schools that have not been able to meet the BM national average, in order for these schools to meet the criteria for DLP.
The education minister has indicated that she plans to enforce a supposedly “existing” condition by insisting that all schools must have at least one non-DLP class from 2024. In essence, the abolishment of 100% DLP schools will be her legacy, for which parents who are voters will remember her. Effectively, a primary school of 12 classes conducting 100% DLP would in six years’ time be slashed to 50% DLP or even less.
Currently, only 20.74% of primary schools and 33.21% of secondary schools offer DLP.
Subtracting the number of Sarawak schools, the primary schools offering DLP significantly drops to only 5.3%. In terms of pupils, only 7.44% of primary and 12.17% of secondary school students are eligible to enrol in DLP classes. The imposition of a non-DLP class will further erode the number of students who want to progress in the English language. On the flip side, to appear democratic, equal and equitable, the minister should insist that all schools have one DLP class in order to not deprive any one student from that option.
The justification for a non-DLP class is therefore baseless.
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