KUALA LUMPUR – The terms attached to the dual language programme (DLP) for science and mathematics in schools must be adhered to, said Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek.
She said this after an engagement session between the Penang Education Department and other stakeholders, reported Bernama.
“We want to emphasise that the guidelines must be complied with, that’s why the engagement session is very important. The department has provided an explanation and the engagement session is an ongoing process.
“Feedback from the engagement session was very good,” she was quoted as saying after an event in Bertam, Penang, today.
She added that the engagement session was aimed at understanding the needs of all parties to comply with the guidelines and reaffirming the policy of elevating the Malay language and strengthening the English language.
Earlier this week, school boards and the parent-teacher associations of 11 national type secondary schools and Chinese secondary schools in Penang urged the ministry to respect the wishes of parents and return to the original intention of DLP for the two subjects.
DAP national chairman Lim Guan Eng also said that most parents, including Malays, support DLP being implemented in schools unconditionally and that they should be allowed to decide if they want their children to learn the two subjects in English.
In a ministry circular dated March 19, 2024, the DLP programme requires schools to have at least one class per standard or form that teaches in the national language. – June 9, 2024