January 28, 2013
File photo of PAGE members protesting outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya in October 2011 in support of the PPSMI.
PETALING
JAYA, Jan 28 — Disgruntled parent groups are planning to hold a rally
on February 19 in front of the Ministry of Education in Putrajaya to
voice their dissatisfaction over the politicising of education.
As Election 2013 looms, the groups are calling for the Malaysian
Education Blueprint (MEB) to be put on hold until after the elections,
and for an educationist to hold the ministerial post.
“All this year we’ve been saying that the problem should be redressed
... It shouldn’t be politicised by people from both sides,” said
Shamsudin Hamid, co-ordinator of Concerned Parents of Selangor (CPS).
Together with three other groups — Parent Action Group for Education
(PAGE), Malacca Action Group for Parents in Education (MAGPIE), and
Herald of Penang for Education (HOPE) — the rally, organised by CPS,
will start at 10 am, and culminate with a memorandum being handed over
to the ministry.
The memorandum will also push for the Teaching of Science and
Mathematics in English (PPSMI) and English-medium schools to be
available as options for students.
Commenting on the possibility of having a non-politician head the
ministry, the groups pointed out that there has been a precedence of
professionals being appointed senators and made a minister, such as the
two ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Idris Jala
and Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop.
They also named Tan Sri Sulaiman Daud and Tan Sri Musa Mohamad who
have headed the Education Ministry before, as examples of professionals
who have been appointed to the post.
Leaders
of the parent groups speaking to the press on January 28, 2013 about
their proposed rally. From left are Mak, Shamsudin, Noor Azimah and
Krishnan. — Picture by Zurairi AR
The groups hope that the
gathering will convince the government to not rush into implementing the
MEB, which will be discussed by the Cabinet in a special session on
Wednesday.
“Our message to the Cabinet is that we hope that you’d deliberate the
blueprint,” PAGE chief Datin Noor Azimah Rahim told reporters.
According to the groups, although the MEB presents an opportunity for
the government to address the ills and shortcomings of the education
system from scratch, it has been squandered by only developing on a
system which is already in place and fraught with weaknesses.
The groups asked the government to consider the independent reports
which were part of the blueprint drafting process, including the
findings of an independent education review panel which, the groups
said, were conveniently left out of the blueprint framework.
A 12-man review panel was chosen by the government in September last
year to aid in the forming of MEB. It included people from the public
and private sectors such as AirAsia founder Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and
UKM vice-chancellor Prof Tan Sri Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan
Shahabudin.
The panel, said CPS’s Shamsudin, has been reported to be in favour of
the continuation of PPSMI, and he blasted the blueprint framework for
only mentioning PPSMI in one sentence despite the furore its
cancellation has caused.
The groups also expressed their concern over the transition between
the abolishment of PPSMI up until now. The ministry had promised a “soft
landing” — where students already in PPSMI would continue to do so
until they finish school — but textbooks in English are already not
being distributed, while school heads have taken it upon themselves to
abolish PPSMI straight away.
“From what we see, the government just wants PPSMI to die a natural death,” said MAGPIE chairman Mak Chee Kin.
HOPE deputy chairman Krishnan Sreenevasan echoed Mak’s view, alleging
a conspiracy to undermine the resolve of parents who prefer that their
children learn science and mathematics in English.
PAGE has previously delivered seven memorandums to the ministry,
while thousands of individual letters from parents on the issue have
also been delivered.
The MEB 2013-2025 promises 11 shifts or areas of reform to produce
students with six key attributes over the next 13 years. It will be
implemented in three phases, or “waves”, with the first being over three
years, while the second and third being five years each.
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