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(The Borneo Post) - SMK Kapit No. 2’s seven top achievers in last year’s Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) hope the teaching of Mathematics and Science will continue in English.

Avina Melia Balai (12As), Sonia Sandah (11As, 1B), Mading Nyalang (10As, 2Bs), Dura Nyambong (9As, 1B, 1C, 1D), Kiumman Puso (6As, 2Bs, 2Cs), Grace Dema Eli (6As, 1B, 1C) and Seni Empangau (5As, 1B, 1C) were among the 21 top SPM candidates from the Kapit Division.

When met at the school, all seven girls said they enjoyed learning Mathematics and Science in English because they felt it made the subjects easier to understand.

Responding to media reports of organisations calling for the government to abolish teaching Science and Mathematics in English, the girls said the issue had been politicised.

“We are Ibans, it doesn’t mean that by learning Bahasa Malaysia or English, we forget about our mother tongue – Bahasa Iban. Nowadays in this competitive world, the more language one know, the better, especially for us living in a multi-racial society.

“We call on the government, the Education Ministry, to be firm on its stand.

“Don’t give in to these groups of people, who are so called champions for education. The government has made the right move to introduce English as the medium of instruction for Science and Mathematics because it is an international language,” said Avina.

“The public shouldn’t waste time arguing on the subject any more. Adults should spend more energy working productively. Teaching Science and Mathematics in English or mother tongue should best be left to us – we are the students and we know best what is good or bad for us and our future,” said Sonia.

“Maybe it is time the government listen to our voices, we are disappointed with the argument. Why not let us, the students decide what is best for us,” she added.

To improve their command of English, Kiumman and Seni said they simply read more storybooks written in English and surf the Internet.

Last year, 278 candidates from SMK Kapit No. 2 sat for SPM and 92.54 per cent of them passed.

Overall in the Kapit Division, six schools entered a total of 1341 SPM candidates and the average school pass rate was 93.54 per cent.

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