Pass in English a must

There is a big debate raging at the moment about the teaching of Maths and Science in English and to make a pass in English compulsory to obtain the SPM certificate. This has been going on for a while now and I'm not sure why it is taking so long to decide. I for one am all for English to be used and can see no valid reason for it not to.

In today's newspaper, it is reported that an Ulama group have submitted a memorandum to abolish teaching of Maths and Science in English as it threatens the position of the "National" language. It also says that by making English a must pass subject for the SPM certificate would only discriminate students in rural areas, who were generally weak in the language.

Wouldn't making English a core subject by itself and teaching other subjects in English address this problem of students being weak in the language by forcing them to improve their command of it? Wouldn't having lower standards of English then discriminate against urban students who are not given the best possible education to have a chance to go to the top universities, join top international firms and climb up the corporate ladder?

How can the national language be threatened by teaching 2 subjects in English? There are so many other subjects that would still be taught in the national language. Learning Maths and Science in English is an advantage as most textbooks, research and theses are in English. For Malaysia to produce the best engineers, doctors, researchers, scientists etc, wouldn't it be an advantage to learn these subjects in English from young instead of having to re-memorize the whole periodic table again in English in the 1st year of uni as an example?

In all the job interviews that I have been to, all of them were conducted in English. English proficiency is one of the factors than employers look for when hiring someone. Those who hold top management positions are also usually fluent in English unless you are related to the boss or one of the cronies. In my job and dealing with others, everything is done in English. Therefore, to not discriminate against students who are poor in English is in essence a preparation for them to be discriminated against when they join the corporate world. By not making English a compulsory pass subject, this would ensure that the rural students who were generally weak in English remain so and thereby limiting their job prospects. To lift the living standards of rural people, would it not be in the best interests to give them the same chance of having a better job?

I do however agree that not all the teachers who are teaching English are up to standard. Some are rather poor to be honest. But this leads us to a chicken and egg situation, if English is not a must pass subject for students because the teachers are not up to standard, then our next generation of teachers will still not be proficient in the language and therefore future students will still be poor in English.

In our efforts to attain developed status, we should be looking forward to the future so that our students get the best education there is and to be proficient in a language that has become THE International language. We should be looking for progress instead of being stuck in mediocrity because we were afraid to discriminate against some rural kids.

Article from Kopblog

This is to share parts of a blog that I just read that I think is so true about Fergiescum. This is just a copy and paste job but it's too good not to share. :D

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In the 23 years he’s been in charge of the mancs they’ve been one of the wealthiest clubs in the world and despite his dubious record in the transfer market, he has always had access to unlimited transfer funds. But while they have won a lot of domestic silverware, they have only managed to win the top prize in Europe just twice and in both cases very fortunately. For most teams this wouldn’t be too bad but for a man the British media help to throw knighthoods at and dub the “greatest manager of all time”, it’s hardly eye-catching.

It’s only when you truly look at why he can be so dominant in the domestic game but fail to reach the same levels in Europe that you begin to see behind the truth behind the hype. In England Fergie has absolutely everything going in his favour both on and off the pitch. First and foremost, with occasional exceptions, he has always been able to outspend his rivals but beyond that he bullys smaller sides, intimidates referees, has manc director David Gill in a lofty position at the FA to ensure they remain on side.

He also enjoys the favours of some of his other manager buddies, as we seen recently with his lap dog Allardyce assisting him in a co-ordinated attack on Rafa, and to cap it all off he also has an adoring British sports media constantly singing the praises of him and his players and seemingly afraid to dare to write a single word of criticism lest they lose their place in his circle of trust. These things have all played a part in the mancs domestic success and if you don’t believe this to be the case then you only have to look at their record in Europe without them.

In Europe, the sides aren’t as easily bullied nor are the referees and Fergie has no “special friends” in positions at UEFA. Outside of Britain the media tends to be a bit more balanced and doesn’t look at him quite so adoringly and he has few if any buddies among the other European managers. So this leaves him with “just” a highly priced team and his ability to manage them and this has led to two fortunate victories in 23 years. Is this the type of record you would expect from a man some people in the media claim to be the “greatest” manager of them all?

Anyway, before I go here are a few interesting “facts” about last Wednesday’s game.

Michel Platini has announced that the next time United get to a European cup final, they will play with two balls so each team can have a kick.

For Sale: 30,000 Man United Final flags – good as new – only been waved for 10 minutes

For Sale: 70,000 Man United Champions League Winners 2009 t-shirts. Contact www.overconfidentb*st*rds.com"

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