STU: Trust local English teachers but review curriculum

KUCHING: Sarawak Teachers Union (STU) hopes the government recognises and trusts the abilities and quality of local English teachers.

Its president Kullin Djayang said however, improvements are necessary and that a review could be conducted to enhance the curriculum for English language studies in Teacher Education Institutes (IPG) and Teaching of English as a Second Language (TESL) programme at local universities.

“STU expects that the government genuinely aims to strengthen the use of English among the younger generation as it is an international language,” he said.

“However, bringing in teachers from abroad is not the only effective solution. It is well-known that a few years ago, we brought in mentor teachers from abroad, which incurred significant costs.

“Given the current economic challenges the country faces, it would be prudent for the government to adopt cost-saving measures by selecting alternative mechanisms that could also effectively improve the quality of English language education in the country.

“For example, employing retired English teachers as mentors could be a viable option, as they are still experienced and highly skilled in English teaching.”

He was prompted for comments by former minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz that the government should bring back retired teachers with English language teaching experience rather than getting Singaporean teachers.

Kullin said the issue of recruiting English teachers from Singapore should not be a matter of concern for the local English teachers in the country.

“At the Madani Aspiration Gathering of Public Service Counselling Associates (AKRAB) held in Kuala Lumpur on Friday (June 14), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim clarified that his statement about discussions with the Singaporean minister was misinterpreted.

“In fact, he was discussing the proposal to enhance the quality of English language teaching in Malaysia.

“It does not imply that the current local English teachers are inadequate, but by inviting experts and English teachers to share their perspectives, exchange views, and offer suggestions to the existing local teachers, a more effective impact can be achieved.

“By incorporating valuable ideas from both sides, there will undoubtedly be more engaging teaching methods to be applied in teaching and learning sessions. This is what he clarified, rather than suggesting the hiring of English teachers to teach in Malaysia,” he said.

Therefore, he said no issue should arise concerning the competence of local English teachers.

Meanwhile, the Association of Aided Chinese Primary Schools in Kuching, Samarahan, Serian president Datuk Jonathan Chai agreed with some of the proposals put forward by Rafidah, in particular that the government should revise the teachers training’s syllabus to include competency in English language and the school syllabus to include proficiency in English language.

“However, bringing back the retired teachers with English language teaching experience would not help to resolve the root of the problem,” he said.

“In the long run, the relevant authority should revise the recruitment process for teachers and comprehensively evaluate and revise the syllabus for English language.”

He added the Ministry of Education (MoE) should look into the root cause for the deterioration of the standard of English across the board.

“Why do those who attended only Form 3 during the sixties and seventies speak better English than the university graduates these days?

“Obviously something has gone terribly wrong in the system,” he said.

As a Sarawakian, he said he is grateful that the Sarawak government has realised the problem and started to address problems by training teachers to improve their proficiency in English as well as setting up its own international schools.

“While we acknowledge the importance of mastering Bahasa Malaysia as our national language, we cannot disregard the importance of mastering English as an international language which allows us to access the knowledge and understanding of science and technology,” said Chai.