Johor Baru – On the implementation of PPSMI (Teaching Science and Maths in English), Dr S.Ramakrishnan, the DAP EXCO member for Johor and State Assemeblyman for Bekok has called for thorough consultation or discussion with the representatives who have been against this and also education experts and policymakers before rolling out the implementation.
The following is the full text of the press statement issued by S.Ramakrishnan on the on-going debate about PPSMI :-
“Much has been said about the re-introduction of PPSMI into the education system by the Prime Minister since his latest announcement as the acting Education Minister.
While there are many naysayers and supporters alike, the main issue discussed was the implementation of the PPSMI and how it would affect the teachers, books publishing, students, and such.
I would like to bring the attention to a matter which needs to be resolved before all those issues are reflected.
The Prime Minister who is also the acting Education Minister needs to re-evaluate the main reason of his maiden implementation of the PPSMI being stripped out of the education system 10 years after it was mooted.
It may not seem much, but to avoid the same scenario from repeating, we must go back to the root cause and try to make sense of it and solve it, if possible.
This is vital so that any government initiatives won’t be mocked and overturned after its’ implementation.
The problem among the hard liners, teachers, and politics fraternity about rejecting English as the language to teach Science and Mathematics is also a main cause that the Prime Minister must look into.
We should never dismiss protests against government policies as just “white noise” and disregard them as it would create more feelings of unrest to fester among the people.
Each government initiatives must be researched thoroughly on its implementation and how it will impact positively on the people of its nation.
Moreover, the government must be forthcoming about all its policies and take the initiative to explain to the public about it so that they would have a general understanding about it and will uphold the policies from their end.
Pakatan Harapan has always regarded itself as “people’s government”, and it is time the people are in the know of government initiatives before they are implemented to ensure a smooth transition in their everyday lives.
For PPSMI, there must be a thorough consultation or discussion with the representatives that have been against this and also education experts and policymakers before rolling out this implementation.
At the end of the day, the government needs to ensure the people understand and accept its policies for the betterment of the nation.”
