14 Dec 2004

Malay Language and Tamil Language Curriculum and Pedagogy Review Committees Set Up

1.      The Ministry of Education has appointed Committees to review the curricula and pedagogy for Malay Language (ML) and Tamil Language (TL) learning in schools.  The committees will officially start work in January 2005 and are expected to complete their reviews by August 2005.

2.      The Malay Language Curriculum and Pedagogy Review Committee will be chaired by Associate Professor Dr Hadijah Rahmat, Asian Language and Culture Department, National Institute of Education/Nanyang Technological University. The Tamil Language Curriculum and Pedagogy Review Committee will be chaired by Dr N Varaprasad, Chief Executive Officer, National Library Board and former Deputy President, National University of Singapore. The full list of committee members are in Annexes A and B.

Rationale for Review

3.      As the ML and TL curricula were last reviewed in 1999, it is timely to re-examine the fundamentals of teaching and learning of ML and TL.  Further, there have been shifts in language use at home for Malay and Indian students.  58% of Indian students who entered Primary 1 this year came from homes that speak predominantly English (EL).  Although a majority of Malay students entering Primary 1 still use ML as their dominant home language (78%), the proportion using EL is gradually increasing.  Among Primary 1 Malay students who have at least one parent with a university qualification, the proportion using predominantly EL at home is much higher, close to 60%.

4.      The review of the ML and TL curricula will be fundamental, as with the recent review of the Chinese Language (CL) curriculum, although the curriculum, assessment and pedagogic issues will not be identical to those addressed by the Chinese Language Curriculum and Pedagogy Review Committee (CLCPRC). The objective is to nurture and sustain in all children an interest in learning the mother tongue languages to the highest level they are capable of, and in using the language well after they leave school. 

Background

5.      At the Parliamentary Debate on 24 November 2004 on the report of the CLCPRC, Minister for Education Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam announced that two high level committees would be set up to review the ML and TL curricula.

                                                                                             Annex A

Malay Language Curriculum and Pedagogy Review Committee