26 Aug 2006 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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WHEN the Govern-ment decided to make the teaching of science and mathematics in English compulsory in schools, Jemaah Shaari knew that she would have a tough time conducting lessons in class.

The teacher from Sekolah Kebangsaan Sendayan in Rantau, Negri Sembilan, has been teaching science to Year Three and Six pupils for many years but the lessons have always been in Bahasa Malaysia.

"I worry because my English wasn’t good to begin with. How am I supposed to teach my pupils when I am also struggling with the language?" asks Jemaah.

But her confidence in using English in class grew after she began attending a two-hour lesson daily to improve her proficiency in the language.

Jemaah is one of 91 teachers in Negri Sembilan who are in the Project to Improve English in Rural Schools — a nine-month programme that is currently conducted by the Centre for British Teachers Education Services Sdn Bhd (CfBT).

The project is funded by the Negri Sembilan Royal Family Trusts — the Tuanku Ja’afar Educational Trust, Tuanku Ampuan Najihah Foundation and Tuanku Naquiyuddin Foundation — and the Negri Sembilan Foundation. Twenty five schools in Kuala Pilah and Rantau are involved in the programme which began in January.

"I realise that if I don’t use the English language, I’ll never be able to master it. I learned that it’s all right to make mistakes, mispronounce or use the wrong words in a sentence. It’s all part of the learning process," Jemaah says.

When in class with her trainer, Mark Baldwin, Jemaah has no choice but to converse in English.

Baldwin, a British who has spent seven years in Malaysia, imposed a rule that those who don’t speak English in class will be fined.

"I know the teachers struggle sometimes but they have to speak in English. It’s not that they don’t know (and understand) the language. It’s just that some are shy and afraid that they will be laughed at if they make mistakes when they speak in English.

"But to make mistakes is the way to learn (a language)," Baldwin explains.

To make the lessons more fun, he uses music, role-plays, worksheet, computer and books in class.

"The teachers had their reservations, initially. They said their pupils will not be able to understand the lesson if they use English.

"That is not the case. When explained properly, pupils have no problems learning science and mathematics in English."

He says the idea is not to make these teachers an expert in English. Rather, it’s about helping them improve the methodology of teaching science and mathematics in the language.

Hence, Balwin and another trainer, Charles Clennell, make it a point to visit the teachers in school regularly to see how lessons are conducted and to make sure that English is being used in class.

"The lessons must be interesting enough for pupils to want to learn more. So we tell the teachers to get the pupils to speak up," Balwin says.

CfBT Southeast Asia director Mohd Arif Abdullah says Malaysian pupils must improve their English because the standard has declined over the years. Teachers who can conduct lessons in English are much needed to help pupils.

Mohd Arif, who has been in Malaysia since 1977, teaching English in rural areas such as Simpang Ampat, Alor Star and Rembau, adds a research conducted in 2000 showed that the standard of English among Malaysian secondary students was even lower when compared with those in Brunei.

The study, conducted in collaboration with the British Council and Reading University (United Kingdom), involved 2,500 Form Three students in one district in Belait (Brunei) and another in Miri.

A common test was given out to the students to test their proficiency in English and those in Brunei outperformed Malaysians by 15 per cent.

"In Brunei, pupils start learning science, mathematics and geography in English at the age of 10. When they get to secondary school, most of the subjects are taught in English.

"That is not the case in Malaysia," says Mohd Arif.

While he lauds the steps taken by the Education Ministry to train more teachers to be proficient in English, he adds that more could be done to monitor their progress.

"When thousands of teachers are trained at the same time, it’s difficult to visit every one to see how they conduct lessons in class," he says.