KUALA LUMPUR – The compulsory three pages on Jawi script identification in the Malay language textbooks for Standard 4 will continue to be taught in government schools next year, the Dewan Rakyat was told.
The decision, said Deputy Education Minister Muslimin Yahaya (Sg Besar-Bersatu), is in line with the cabinet consensus of the previous Pakatan Harapan (PH) government on August 19, 2019 – that said it needed to be taught.
“We are only following through with what has been decided,” he said to a supplementary question by Sabri Azit (Jerai-PAS) over the continuation of the syllabus for next year.
Muslimin said that students will only learn how to discern the Jawi script, adding that they will not be taught the script’s letters, vowels and consonants.
“They will be taught that at the back of our ringgit has the word Bank Negara Malaysia and Ringgit Malaysia written in the Jawi script. This is the kind of identification that they will learn.
“The script is also part of the country’s art and we want to enrich our cultural artistry and the history of the Malay language.”
The inclusion of Jawi script syllabus as part of the Malay language curriculum for Standard 4 was first announced on August 2 last year. The decision had stoked controversy among vernacular educationist groups.
On Sabri’s poser over the lack of continuation of the Jawi script in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) level, Muslimin said the script is still widely used in Islamic Education textbooks despite the lack of an exclusive assessment in SPM.
“The reading and writing proficiency of the Jawi script in secondary schools are still being emphasised via the Islamic Education subject. The script is used in the subject’s textbooks from Form 1 to 5.
“In fact, the proficiency of the script is also tested in PT3’s Islamic Education assessment,” said Muslimin. – The Vibes, December 7, 2020
