MALAYSIA lacks trained local English teachers capable of implementing the Education Ministry’s new Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) aligned curriculum, said the teachers’ union and an education group.

National Union of the Teaching Profession secretary-general Harry Tan Huat Hock said in some schools, English teachers were chosen because they “knew a little more English” than their colleagues, not because they were specifically trained in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) or possessed similar qualifications.

He said those who had the TESL qualifications or who were specifically trained to teach English would be able to handle the new textbooks and alignment with CEFR, but he feared that those who did not receive such training would struggle.

“It is unfair to teachers who are forced to teach English just because they know a little more English,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

To add to the problem, Tan said, English was taught in Malaysia as a subject instead of a language.

The rote-learning method of teaching in public schools has been proven not to be a good technique for teachers seeking to help students apply the language in everyday life.

Tan said schools needed teachers who did not rely on textbooks to teach, but who could make English “come alive” as a language and interest students in using it.

He called such teachers “optionists”, the urban slang for a person who is able to provide options for others.

“The lack of these optionists, or teachers who are trained to teach English, is the problem.”

He was asked about the Education Ministry’s plan to use imported English textbooks starting next year instead of locally produced ones so as to align the English curriculum with the CEFR, a guide developed by the Council of Europe to gauge foreign language proficiency and to standardise the levels of language exams in different regions.

The new textbooks will be used starting with the 2018 cohort of preschoolers, Year One and Two pupils, and Form One and Two students.

The rote-learning method used in public schools was also not helping students apply the English language, said Tan.

“Everyone wants to see ‘A’ achievers, resulting in teachers teaching English as a subject rather than a language.

“(They teach using) rote learning and textbook learning, rather than focusing on the application of the language, which involves listening, speaking, reading and writing.”

This results in students who have learned English, but are unable to use the language effectively, which is one of the causes of unemployment among graduates and students’ poor performance in universities.

“When the UPSR results were announced last year, everyone was lamenting the lack of As, but the question should be whether our students have mastered the skills.”

Parents need assurance

The CEFR is structured along six levels of English-language ability, beginning with basic communication at the lowest level. Developed using Cambridge-level English, it has been adopted in Europe and other countries as a way to benchmark language ability.

Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia chairman Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim said the ministry’s plan to align the national English curriculum with the CEFR was not a sudden decision, and had been mentioned in the English Language Roadmap 2015-2025 last year as part of implementing the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025.

The roadmap to upskill teachers uses the CEFR, and was produced by the English Language Standards and Quality Council.

“We were one of the stakeholders consulted on the implementation of the blueprint,” said Noor Azimah.

“The public is not aware of what CEFR is. It may appear as an ad hoc move, but the teachers have been, and are being, prepared,” she said, adding that the ministry had been upskilling teachers in batches.

However, she said, the ministry must explain clearly what kind of training was being provided and how it was being carried out, as there was a “genuine concern among parents that Malaysian teachers are not up to the task”.

“The ministry has to come out and say what upskilling is, and whether it will be done in time.

“There is a lot of work being done, but the public needs to know what is being done and parents need an assurance that teachers will be able to manage this.”

The move is also expected to impact local textbook publishers, who have asked the ministry for guidelines to produce books locally along CEFR standards.

Tan said currently, no existing book by local publishers met CEFR standards.

“The reality is that textbooks in Malaysia have been regimented by the ministry all these years and are not adaptable to current times.

“If schools are allowed to choose textbooks in the open market, then the best textbooks will prevail.” – October 13, 2017.