Don’t rush through change

I REFER to the reports “English boost from abroad” (The Star, Oct 5) and “Give us the guidelines to new content” (The Star, Oct 6) on the Education Ministry’s plan to use imported English textbooks from next year.

I am currently studying in university and the news came as a shock. I was among the first batch of students who went through the school-based assessment system (PBS) and I would like to share my experience as a student in this country.

I can’t understand why the education system and the materials required for teaching/learning must be changed constantly. When I was in Form 3, my seniors called my classmates and me “white rats in the laboratory”. There were a few reasons for this.

Firstly, it was because we would be the first batch of students sitting for the PT3 exam. The exam for Form 3 students was changed from PMR to PBSMR to PPMR and finally to PT3 in less than one year.

Secondly, due to the Education Ministry’s lack of preparation, both the teachers and students had to rush through the syllabus for that year because it was being changed again and again.

Thirdly, the teachers had to spend time getting the students to sit for tests instead of teaching.

My point here is that we need time to prepare for change and we shouldn’t rush or else we will spoil everything.

I am well aware that our nation’s education system needs to be transformed in order to produce individuals who are well equipped with knowledge and critical thinking to compete on the international stage. Nevertheless, we cannot transform our education system without planning carefully or asking for public opinion.

The move to use imported books will begin in less than three months. Why the rush? Won’t this burden the teachers and also create confusion among students?

I know that in the past few years, numerous changes have been made to our education system, such as the syllabus change in the Primary School Evaluation Test or UPSR. Have these changes done much to improve our academic performance?

As the saying goes, “Persistence is the key to success”. If we keep on changing, our students will end up being victims because they would not be able to cope with the ever-changing system.

On the other hand, it is good that the Education Ministry is aligning the Malaysian curriculum with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CERF). This will definitely be better than using the current English textbooks from the aspect of content, grammar and vocabulary.

I have a few questions, however.

1. How much would it cost to implement this new system? If this plan does not work out the way it should, would the default system be restored?

2. How about the English teachers? The higher standard of textbooks means we need more experienced and highly qualified teachers. Where can we find all these teachers, considering we only have a short period of three months to go?

3. How about the students? They have become used to the Malaysian standard of English after so many years and suddenly they need to follow the CERF. Will they be able to cope?

We can’t deny that using the imported books will improve our language skills but isn’t it a bit of a rush to start in less than three months?

Despite all these, I still have confidence in our nation’s education system and I believe that education is the key to success.

REX CHONG

Rawang