KUALA LUMPUR: Hundreds of Tamil language teachers are needed in secondary schools to replace those who have retired, says the Tamil Language Teachers Association of Secondary Schools Selangor.
The group added that proper training programmes are now needed at Institutes of Teacher Education to address the issue,
“There must be a structured system to ensure that retiring teachers are replaced promptly to avoid disruptions in learning, and also a proper placement of graduates,” its chairman S. Sundaramurthi told a press conference yesterday.
Six non-governmental organisations (NGOs) were present at the conference to discuss concerns about Tamil schools and the education of Indian students.
Sundaramurthi said the recruitment of teachers should be streamlined so graduates are promptly placed in schools.
“When I retired in 2021, there was no replacement for me,” said the former teacher.
Due to long delays in finding a replacement, students lose interest in learning the language, a trend that risks shutting down Tamil language classes, he said.
He also said that in some schools, Pupils Own Language (POL) classes are closed due to a lack of students.
Sundaramurthi said that although Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had announced that the minimum number of students required to open a POL class would be reduced from 15 to 10, there was still no official circular on the matter.
To ensure the continuity of Tamil language education in secondary schools, he said the government should reinstate structured training programmes like the Postgraduate Teaching Course (KPLI) and Postgraduate Diploma in Education Programme (DPLI).
Centre for Vernacular School Excellence director Arun Dorasamy said secondary schools require approximately 500 more teachers, with the current total at 8,687 Tamil language teachers.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Tamil School Education Development and Welfare Association president M. Vetrivelan urged Anwar and Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek to allocate 0.2% of the national education budget towards repairs and maintenance at Tamil schools as well as their relocation.
Anwar said when announcing Budget 2025 last year that over RM2bil will go towards repairing and maintaining schools nationwide – with RM1bil specifically for maintaining all types of schools, especially with dilapidated classrooms.
