English Frenzy in Rural Malaysia?

Well, yes, according to the regional newspaper, AsiaTimes on 25th August.

The frenzy to catch up with English in rural Malaysia is more than just palpable and nowadays second only to the craze for English football and the popular "Malaysian Idol" contest, a reality-type TV show.

Signs of the frenzy are everywhere. Bookshops are stacked high with volumes of dry English grammar, and these include familiar reprints from the1960s when English had better status than in the intervening years.

English tuition centers are mushrooming in shop houses, schools and homes - wherever space is available.

Newspapers are promoting English by giving out free copies to schools and businesses are donating millions of dollars to adopt entire schools, picking up the tab so that students can have an English education.

Yes, newspapers together with corporates and individuals are indeed sponsoring English papers for the Malaysian national schools (see blogpost here on how you can do your part). But a "frenzy"? I wonder where the source(s) of this information is/are from.

[Writer's note: I have a bias against AsiaTimes because their reporting tends to be sensationalistic and have a strong editorial tendency to portray Malaysia in a negative light, irrespective of facts and circumstances. The "facts" quoted are often generalisations and not well-supported.]

On a more serious note, the article did highlight some of the earlier oppositions to the switch in the language of teaching for the subjects of Mathematics and Science in primary schools:

"English has to be learned as a language, it can't be acquired by learning science and mathematics in English," said a school headmaster then who had opposed the scheme and asked not to be identified. "Mahathir's scheme, now into its second year, is a mess."

Yes, strictly speaking, English "can't" be acquired by learning science and mathematics in English. However, having more subjects (whatever they may be) can certain help towards achieving mastery in the language due to the simple fact that there will be greater exposure to the language.

How is it "a mess", I'd really like to know. Of course there will be the expected hiccups such as delayed textbooks, not fully trained teachers etc. But these are all teething problems which has to be faced. Over time, we expect the syllabus and the teaching of the subjects to improve and I believe that in a couple of years' time, the conduct of lessons in English for Mathematics and Science subjects in the classrooms will become the norm.