FACULTY OF EDUCATION

SEMESTER 1 2014/2015

GGGB 6012
ACADEMIC WRITING I
(SET 2)

ASSIGNMENT:
CONCEPTUAL PAPER
(FINAL PAPER)

PREPARED FOR:
PROF MADYA DR HAMIDAH BINTI YAMAT @ AHMAD

PREPARED BY:
TEO WEI LIN

P76137

THE LANGUAGE FACTOR IN TEACHING AND LEARNING MATHEMATICS IN

MALAYSIA
Introduction
Language plays a very important role to different aspects in our daily lives. It is the key factor
in our efforts to achieve effective interactions with another party. In the education context,
students and teachers utilize language to understand knowledge and communicate
information among each other (Nordin, 2005). In fact, language itself is not only limited to
communication; a range of studies such as Mathematics and Science also have their own
unique language such as mathematics register and scientific themes.
Being the current lingua franca, English has been used extensively on a global scale,
to the extent that certain courses are being taught in English even though it is not the first
language of that nation (Othman, 2012).

Take Malaysia for instance, an education

reformation was implemented in 2002 where we saw both Mathematics and Science being
taught in English as opposed to mother tongue languages which were formerly practiced in
the previous years. ETeMS (or English Teaching of Mathematics and Science) policy was
introduced by our then Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad when he realized that
English language skills among students of Malaysia were declining by the year. (Faizah &
Marzilah, 2008). The policy was put into action officially in 2003 where students of Standard
One, Form One and Lower Six were the first among others to experience first-hand the
change in instruction language of Mathematics and Science.
In 2009, Malaysia took part in a worldwide programme which evaluates the education
system of its participating nations through the scores of various assessments. PISA (or
Programme for International Student Assessment) is a survey conducted globally once every
three years in hopes of assessing education systems of nations worldwide based on the
comprehension and proficiency of fifteen-year-old students of the partaking nations. Mainly
focusing on subjects of Mathematics, Science, and Reading, PISA began its ratings since year
2000. The assessment is conducted in a way where fifteen-year-old students are randomly
chosen from schools globally to participate in tests of the aforementioned key subjects. The
students are then required to complete a series of questions consisting of a combination of
multiple-choice and open-ended questions within the time period of two hours. To prevent
cases of dishonesty, students are given different combinations of questions which are
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structured to emulate the process of a real-life situation. While the students fulfil their part of
the assessment, principal of the schools involved are given questionnaires as well so that the
programme committee are able to construct a better image of the participants background
and their education exposure along with the learning environment (OECD, 2000).
The main reason why PISA was developed fourteen years ago was to evaluate the
capability of students to implement their knowledge into real-life situations when needed and
whether if they were fully prepared to take part in the societys activities after they have
completed their compulsory education. The data collected through the tests and
questionnaires would allow analysts to clarify the meaning behind the results obtained, which
would then allow policy makers of the participating nations to determine the efficiency of
their education system. Up until now, more than 70 different nations around the world have
benefitted from their participation in the programme. The most recent one was just less than
one year ago, where the committee of PISA reported the evaluation results of the year 2012.

Since its first participation in 2009, Malaysia has been continuously engaged in the
preparation of the students for the next assessment in the year 2012. Less than a year ago, the
committee of PISA released the results of the tests and while Malaysias overall ranking did
improve over the last three years (2009s ranking: 55/74 compared to 2012s ranking: 52/65),
her performance was insufficient to save her from being at the bottom one-third of the
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rankings as in 2009+. Malaysias mean score for each individual subject was not on the
optimistic side as well; with the average score in Science declining from 422 in 2009 to 420
in 2012. The same goes for the average score of the Reading tests which saw it plummeting
from 414 in 2009 to 398 in 2012. The only bright side of the assessment for Malaysia was the
average score for the Mathematics subject where we saw it ascending from 404 in 2009 to
421 in 2012. Still, there were quite some distance between Malaysias score and the average
score of the programme, which stands tall at 511, 508 and 528 for Mathematics, Science, and
Reading respectively. In comparison to the neighbouring countries such as Singapore,
Vietnam, and even Thailand, Malaysias results were quite demeaning considering the fact
that Malaysia are considered of a much more developed country in comparison to the latter
two (PISA: Malaysia up in maths, down in science and reading. (Malay Mail Online, 2013).
After the results were published on the official website, accusations and blames
began to pour all over the education system of Malaysia and the failure of the nations
decision makers in preventing political interests from intercepting in the nations educational
policies. Education activists and parents alike put the blame of the underachievement on the
governments refusal to prioritize the usage of English in schools, thus causing the continuous
decline in quality of all the key subjects tested in PISA. This is mostly to be related to the
abolishment of the ETeMS policy in 2009, after only a mere six years of implementation as
the government felt students can learn better and much more efficiently using their mother
tongue language. (Science and Mathematics. Plan will boost BM, English. New Straits
Times, 2011)
The rationale behind the policy was that English mastery is considered as an
instrument necessary in acquiring knowledge and information in the field of mathematics and
science (Ainan, 2003). This could only mean that students who are more exposed to English
language attain more intelligence not only in the specific field of study but in their language
competence as well. Nonetheless, seeing that English has been considered to be a second
language and is taught only as a single subject in Malaysia for the past years, it is not difficult
to understand why students who are not proficient struggles to cope with their studies and
curriculums which is now being conducted in English. The inconsistency of instruction
medium for both Maths and Science has since baffled both teachers and students regarding
their priorities during lessons in classrooms: to focus on mastering English or to focus on the
understanding of the subject itself since both factors correlates one another. This is backed up
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by a study conducted by the Ministry of Education which found that only 27 percent of
Mathematics candidates answered questions of the compulsory Form Three national level
public examinations in English even though they have been learning the said subject in
English for the past three years. Most of the students in the end chose to answer the questions
in Malay language or a mixture of both Malay and English (The Star, 2005).
Hence, this study was conducted with the intention of evaluating the perspective of
teachers and students in regards to the appropriate instruction language specifically for
Mathematics. It is important to obtain the opinions from both the educators and learners on
the language they are most comfortable using during classes. The main objectives of this
study also includes determining the language preferences of teachers and students while
teaching and learning Mathematics and also to identify the challenges faced by both parties
when lessons are conducted in English. Finally, it is with great desire that the results of this
research would enable policy makers of the Malaysians education field to assess and
evaluate the efficiency of the current education policies and philosophies. After all, we are
just prepping the soil into a better place for the future generation to reap its fruits.
Importance of English language
In this diverse world of ours, people of different cultures, ideas and beliefs strive in hopes of
achieving the common objectives and goals of mankind. While these people may speak in
their different languages and mother tongues respectively, the English language still
dominates their options as the common international language (Lim, 2013). This is one of the
main reasons English language should be made compulsory in education curriculums all
around the world.
English language plays an essential role in ones life, especially in the education field.
Today, literatures of law, sociology, linguistics, philosophy and many other discipline
branches are mostly written in English. Most researches of medicine and space are written in
English and majority technical terminology and vocabulary are only available in English
(Thorpe, 2014). So if one does not command good knowledge of English, their knowledge
might be constrained by the limited references available in non-English mediums. Crystal
(2001) once referred to a research conducted on the language used by online sites and the
results showed that only 20 percent of the websites are published in languages other than
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English. This signifies that people that have poor knowledge of English language would miss
out 80 percent of information the internet has to offer.
Mahatma Gandhi once said, English is a language of international commerce, it is
the language of diplomacy and it contains many a rich literary treasure; it gives us an
introduction to western thought and culture. English language is said to be a window to the
world because of its role as a worldwide lingua franca. In addition to the global knowledge
exposure, a good command of English, both verbally and in writing, allows its owner to excel
in their career. This is because English has long been a prerequisite for careers in most
professional fields. It also enables one to perform better among their colleagues when it
comes to interacting with the upper management and clients alike (Wismono, 2013).
Moreover, proficiency in English also grants one the ability to cope well in this rapidly
changing technological realm since most technologies and knowledge development utilizes
English as the medium of instruction.
Usage of English language in Malaysian schools
Before the years of independence, Malaysia practiced a fragmented education system when
British still had a hold of the state governance. English medium schools were set up in
addition to the existing religious schools and English was made the main medium for
business interactions. However, only a minority number of people attended the schools due
to distance and economic factors. Hence, to reform the education system back then, the
Razak Report and the National Education policy were enforced and implemented after
independence. Bahasa Malaysia took over Englishs role as the main communication and
instruction medium and was made the national language of Malaysia.
The Ministry of Education adopted some of the agreements in the Razak Report
(1956: No. 20: p.14) in the education policy, slowly signifying the phasing out of English
language from the main curriculum. The said agreements included:
i)

Bahasa Malaysia to be made as a prerequisite for all career entries into the
government sector

ii)

Bahasa Malaysia to be made as the medium for all government bureaucracies;

iii)

Bahasa Malaysia to be a requirement for public scholarships applicants;

iv)

Bahasa Malaysia a compulsory subject in teacher training education.

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v)

Students proficiency in Bahasa Malaysia to be made as a levering factor to the

amount of funds and facilities granted to schools

vi)

Classes of Bahasa Malaysia are made complimentary for adult education

classes.

With the implementation of such policy that places a great emphasis on the national
language, it is only common to witness a decline of English languages exposure among
Malaysian students (Gaudart, 1987). From having the status as an official language, English
language has then been pushed down from its throne, being only a supporting language
behind Bahasa Malaysia. Despite its limited role in Malaysia, English was never forsaken
entirely because competency in English results in better job opportunities and future
socioeconomic factors (Zarina Mustafa, 2009).
Tun Mahathir Mohamad, the Education Minister back in 1979, was the first to see
through the importance of mastering English; in which he introduced an education
reformation that shed light on the importance of English education in schools. According to
Darmi and Albion (2013), KBSR for primary schools and KBSM for secondary schools, both
aimed in improving the proficiency of English among students so that they are able to cope
with their everyday life. The same person also introduced yet another policy in 2002 which
saw English language made into the medium of instruction for subjects of Mathematics and
Science. ETeMS (or English Teaching of Mathematics and Science) was deemed essential by
the then fourth Prime Minister, stressing on the fact that references and researches in the field
of Science and Technology are mostly written and conducted in English. Hence, the policy
was actually beneficial to the tertiary education of the people, especially if they decide to dive
into a more scientific field of expertise.
Issues Concerning the Implementation of ETeMS
However, there were a number of problems that occurred during the implementation of
ETeMS. Form One students, especially those that completed their compulsory primary
education in Bahasa Malaysia, were having problems catching up during classroom learning.
Ong (2004) mentioned that it was primarily due to their lack of proficiency in the English
scientific and mathematical concepts. It is also partially due to the incompetency of Science
and Mathematics teachers who were previously trained to teach in Bahasa Malaysia.
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A study was conducted in regards to the implementation of ETeMS and the findings
revealed that majority Science and Mathematics teachers were not proficient in English while
only a minority of them were said to be confident in teaching in English (The Star, 2006). On
the other hand, there were mixed preference among urban and rural students in learning
Mathematics and Science in English; urban students were very supportive of the policy while
their counterparts not so much. In addition to the factors mentioned above, Ihejieto (1995)
also stated about the lack of reference materials causing students inability to cope with their
studies. The students prior experience and knowledge in both Mathematics and Science may
also be resistant to change in accordance to the cultural shocks due to the sudden change of
instruction mediums (Gilbert et al., 1982).
Various solutions were conducted in order to counter the complications faced during
the new implementation. In order for the Science and Mathematics teachers function better
towards the success of the ETeMS policy, they require changes in their teaching practices and
also in their beliefs, according to Putnam and Broko (1997). Courses were organized to
enhance the teachers ability to converse in English and thus being able to share the
knowledge more efficiently. Rather than equipping them with what to teach, teachers
understood how to teach their relevant subjects better in English. Teaching courseware was
also developed in response to the shift of instruction medium to bring convenience to the
teachers in classes and also to encourage them to interact with their students using
multimedia means instead of the usual talk and write method (Ong & Tan, 2008).
While the implementation of teaching Mathematics and Science in English policy
came from a good intention, many disagreed on the time and manner it was conducted.
Faizah et al. stated that there were mixed feedbacks on the policy coming from the public and
academic parties alike (2011). There were many that agreed that the policy should be
continued because the policy succeeded in increasing the fluency of Malaysian students in
conversing and writing in English. The policy was in-line with the objectives of the
upcoming Vision 2020 which states that Malaysia hopes to be running at the same pace with
foreign countries in terms of economic and socially.
Abolishment of the ETeMS Policy
Regardless of the positive reviews and feedback given by the public and education activists
globally, the ETeMS policy was reverted back to using the national language in the
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instruction of both Mathematics and Science. In 2010, the government decided to abolish the
policy starting from 2012 because they felt that students would be able to understand
knowledge and command scientific terms and mathematical concepts more efficiently if they
were taught in their mother language (Tan & Ong, 2011). The ones that would be most
affected by such decision would be the students. The ETeMS policy was to facilitate the
fluency and proficiency of Mathematics and Science in English because technological
advances have always been conducted and recorded in English. Without extra lessons of the
global lingua franca, Malaysian students would lose out in the race against the rapid advances
of the world.
Research Methodology
A descriptive survey will be conducted in several secondary schools located in the urban area
of Klang Valley to obtain the students and teachers opinions regarding teaching and learning
mathematics in English. Purposive sampling method is used to choose sample students from
the population of the chosen schools. Students are chosen randomly given the fact that they
learnt Mathematics in other languages other than English in their primary education while
teachers are also chosen randomly provided that they were trained to teach Mathematics in
other languages previously.
Both quantitative and qualitative methods will be used in collecting the required data,
consisting instruments of questionnaires, observation and interviews. The questionnaire used
will be presented based on the Likert scale where a series of questions will be constructed to
gather information of students performance in Mathematics and their English proficiency in
comparison to when they learned it in their mother tongue. The questionnaire will also
include questions regarding the language preference for Mathematics targeting both teachers
and students.
Participant observation will also be arranged to observe the daily lessons in school
and the natural classroom environment. Video recording will be set up as to not disrupt the
general teaching and learning processes but this observation will primarily focus on the
communication between students, teachers language preference when explaining trivial
Mathematics questions and the students behaviour during Mathematics lessons. Interviews
will also be administered to find out the participants background, general preference of
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language in normal daily conversations and challenges faced while teaching and learning
Mathematics in English rather than their mother tongue.
The quantitative data collected through questionnaires will then be analysed using
indicators such as frequency, percentage and correlation coefficients. As for the qualitative
data obtained through observation and interviews, they will be sorted and coded into coding
categories before going through the quantitative data analysis as well.
Conclusion
There have been a number of researches conducted on the issues pertaining the instruction
language for both Mathematics and Science. Some have supported the abolishment of
ETeMS with valid facts proving that students performances in said subjects did indeed
deteriorated after the curriculum was changed into English medium. According to a study
conducted by Faizah et al., 56.8 percent of the students preferred studying Mathematics and
Science in their mother tongues as opposed to the 36.4 percent who enjoyed learning them in
English. They indicated the two main factors hindering their learning of the two subjects in
English was their own low proficiency in English and also their teachers poor command of
English (2011).
Nevertheless, there are still parties supporting the reimplementation of the English
medium policy, backing with facts that by learning Mathematics and Science in English, the
students have improved their competency in English language itself and this has open up
various opportunities and sources for the students to gather information from, especially in
the science and technology field. In the same study conducted by Faizah et al., almost every
participant in their study credited their improved mastery in English to the greater exposure to
the lingua franca brought upon by the implementation of ETeMS. In fact, 47.7 percent of the
students indicated that they performed much better in English examinations than before
(2011).
This goes to say that the implementation of ETeMS actually brought a wider range of
benefits to the students involved. Instead of just broadening the students knowledge on the
most updated global information (mostly written or published in English), students have also
benefitted in their fluency in English. The cons of the policy mentioned by the former can be
solved in time when Malaysians have a better command in English generally. Hence, it is
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essential that emphasis be put on the increasing the students proficiency in English before
they should be taught Mathematics and Science in English because both subjects, possessing
their own unique language in English makes the situation even more complex for students
who do not possess English as their mother tongues (Othman, 2012). Thus, it is also
important that teachers teaching Mathematics and Science be equipped with the necessary
skills and materials to be able to teach their subjects fluently and effectively in English. To
say the least, the policy was implemented too hastily judging from the students performances
before and after. Teachers and students were yet to be prepared in conducting lessons in
English due to the lack of training and materials, causing the abolishment of a prospective
policy only after six years of implementation.

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