PENANG vernacular school representatives have called on the Education Ministry to revoke a directive that jeopardises the implementation of the Dual Language Programme (DLP).

The new directive mandates that schools that wish to adopt the DLP must have at least one class teaching science and mathematics in Bahasa Malaysia (BM).

The DLP aims to allow schools to teach the two subjects in English.

Representatives of 11 national and Chinese secondary schools in Penang said the directive was impractical as none of the students were interested in taking these subjects in BM.

SMJK Chung Ling board secretary Foo Wan P’ng said every one of the 400 Form One students in the school want to learn science and mathematics in English.

“Some parents are worried that forcing this new requirement on their children would end up affecting their academic performance,” he was quoted as saying in The Star today.

SMJK Jit Sin PIBG chairman Laeu Boon Hui said almost 100% of parents did not want their children to be taught the two subjects in BM. The school has about 1,100 students.

“Based on our survey, 99.5% of parents were not in favour of the two subjects being taught in BM,” he said.

An April 15 letter from the Penang Education Department states that DLP schools must have a non-DLP class if they wish to participate in the programme.

The circular from the Education Ministry was sent to 36 primary and 52 secondary schools in Penang.

Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek had said in December that pupils in DLP schools did not have basic proficiency in BM. She said schools running the DLP programme had agreed to meet all criteria, including mastery of the Malay language.

The DLP was announced in Budget 2016. It aims to raise the English proficiency and employability of students. – June 6, 2024.