KUALA LUMPUR: Parents are calling for the Cabinet to support the continuation and expansion of the Dual Language Programme (DLP) as the 2024 academic term approaches in March.
Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim, chairman of the Parent Action Group for Education (Page), urged Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek to seek feedback and address the intricacies of the program within the Cabinet and with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“We have been informed that there will be a Cabinet retreat on Jan 17 and 18, and one of the discussion topics will be education,” said Noor Azimah. “We have written a memorandum seeking for full DLP schools to remain, and the expansion of DLP schools, along with the addition of classes and pupils where the specified criteria are met. We support the SPI.”
“We hand-delivered the memorandum to 31 Cabinet ministers last Thursday and Friday. We have the stamps of all the 31 ministries,” she said, adding that the memorandum was also emailed to relevant parties.
Noor Azimah referenced Anwar’s statement last year, emphasizing the need for students to improve their English proficiency skills while also mastering the Malay language, and she highlighted the DLP’s objectives as being in alignment with this vision.
“We strongly urge the Cabinet to table our memorandum at the retreat. We are merely seeking the guidelines for the DLP to be strictly adhered to. Do not add further restrictions to undermine the success of the DLP,” she said.
She also expressed frustration at the lack of an official channel for parents and schools to appeal the directive, citing examples of schools that wrote to the Ministry without acknowledgement.
Noor Azimah criticized Fadhlina’s statement about the ministry reviewing DLP appeals on a case-by-case basis, calling it superficial and highlighting the low participation rate in the program.
On the private sector front, Royal Selangor International Sdn Bhd chairman Tan Sri Yong Poh Kon emphasized the importance of English proficiency for employability in the digital age, while also recognizing the significance of Bahasa Malaysia.
“In 2017, 60% of our Form Five school leavers had an English proficiency level at primary school level and below. This is not the level of English for a country like Malaysia to progress into the digital age,” said Yong.
