PETALING JAYA: The country must not delay efforts to make English proficiency an important part of its education reforms, said G25 co-founder Tan Sri Mohd Sheriff Kassim.
“While the rich and the elites can afford to send their children to international schools locally and abroad, the majority of Malaysians depend on the public education system to prepare their children for the future by giving them a strong foundation in English so that they can secure good jobs and have wider choices to lead a productive life,” he told theSun.
The former Treasury secretary-general also said the education system should train more teachers who can teach in English so that students can stay interested in the subject.
“There are complaints in schools which adopt the Dual Language Programme that the children lose interest in subjects because of their teacher’s inability to express themselves well to explain the concepts.”
Mohd Sheriff said current teacher training institutions must be upgraded to produce good English teachers in large numbers so that they can be sent to all rural and urban schools.
Asia-based event solution company Arena Group’s head of Human Resource Srithren Krishnan said the ability to converse well in English would help Malaysians secure better jobs both local and internationally.
“My company is an international British company and my bosses are British. I need to communicate with them in English daily. We have some employees who are very good in their daily tasks, but we are unable to promote them to senior level due to their inability to speak or write in British English.”
Srithren said if the organisation was a local company, the level of English usage may not be that demanding.
“However, in Malaysia, our general office communication is still in English compared with other Southeast Asian countries.
“The present generation of Malaysians do not speak or write in English as they communicate via social media using short messaging apps, where they use shortcuts in their spelling.”
Srithren added that social media was further deteriorating the use of the English language with improper usage.
“The reading habit through newspapers and books has significantly reduced since the introduction of smartphones.”
He suggested the government reintroduce English as the medium of communication in primary schools first, followed by universities, with no less importance given to our national language.
“Introduce more subjects in English, organise more English Language Club programmes such as the Interact Club and inter-university debates. (Students should also) participate in international English programmes organised outside Malaysia.”
He said overall, many Malaysians can speak basic English while they are at work, adding that employees would be able to improve their ability to read and write better with daily use of English via emails and other forms of correspondence.
