DLP not mandatory, parents’ group tells critics of new English programme

There are no plans to force schools to adopt Putrajaya's latest English programme, the Dual Language Programme (DLP), an education group reminds critics planning a movement to abolish the initiative. The pro-DLP Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE) said the programme could only be implemented in schools with the consent of parents. This is in line with DLP's philosophy which wants to give parents the option of how they want their children educated, said PAGE chairman Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim. She said the philosophy behind DLP stemmed from the Education Act 1996, which states "pupils are to be educated according to the wishes of their parents". The Malaysian Insider reported that groups against DLP were claiming the programme would be eventually made mandatory. Azimah said under DLP, the parents must sign a form stating whether they wish their children to be taught either in Malay or English in four subjects, Mathematics, Science, Information Technology and Creative Design. "This was done at the start of the year for Primary One, Four and Form One. A class will be provided where there is a minimum of 15 students in either language. "There is no plan to have all close to 10,000 schools offer DLP next year or any point in time as long as parents do not consent," Azimah said. DLP, along with HIP (High Immersion Programme) are among Putrajaya's latest moves to radically arrest the decline in English proficiency among school students. This year, some 300 schools will use DLP after getting consent from parents, teachers, administrators and students. However, a coalition called Mansuh DLP (Abolish DLP) wants the programme scrapped as they believe it was another attempt to resurrect  the controversial policy to teach Science and Maths in English, known by its Bahasa Malaysia acronym PPSMI. Mansuh DLP claimed DLP would eventually be forced on 10,000 schools nationwide next year. But Azimah (pic, left) said DLP was the result of numerous planning sessions organised by experts from Putrajaya's Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) and the Education Ministry. Stakeholders such as the country's largest private sector employers' groups, the British Council, think thanks and professors from public and private universities were also engaged in these sessions. "International research indicates that students cannot achieve operational proficiency through the 15-20% English hours that are currently offered in classrooms," Azimah said. The solution is to increase the amount of hours students are exposed to in learning English, and HIP and DLP were initiatives that would do this, she added. Putrajaya approved HIP and DLP this year with a budget allocation of RM38 million. – February 10, 2016.]]>