Astonishing, ridiculous, but it’s true. part 2
a very interesting topic, being debated and discussed in my school’s forum. the current education status are being heavily discussed again. was it necessary to learn mathematics and science in english? the excuse was the two subjects was originated from that language. really? i thought the greeks came with the pythagoras theorem and a lot of other things that is based on the islamic era: algebra, the number zero, etc.
why don’t the two subject being taught in ancient greek or arab? we know that the europeans ‘mutated’ those knowledge and made them theirs. hence the terminology used in the modern world are from the language of the people who devised the modern method.
example are, all medical terms are in greek, botanical terms are in latin, musical terms are in italian. the only terms devised by our people are : amuk or english spelling ; amok. that was our achievement in human civilisations.
so, why is it good to study those subjects when the people who teaches them are not proficient in english themselves. it is like an elephant trying to teach a snake walk.(not really relevant).
actually,shallowness doesn’t show at only the lower level of society. regretfully,it also appeared in the upper echelon of state government executives. in a report, that was published widely, stated that the state is the most developed state in malaysia, taking also into account the federal amenities that lies in the state.that does not belong to the state and was initiated by the federal government. when we selected our political leaders, we don’t expect them to be that shallow. how about that?
does our geological conditions effect our peoples mentality? we know that the sea all around our nation are not that deep. the malacca straits are just around 28-30 meters at the deepest point. deep enough for a small canoe, but difficult navigation for a 330,000DWT very large crude oil carrier, with 26mtr draught. or is it the continental shelf on the other side, the east coast. maybe?
most civilisations are also sculpted by their surroundings. that is why we don’t wear heavy winter clothings here(unless you are a rap singer). that is also why we can’t just wear our baju melayu in reykyavik or vladivostok even in summer. therefore,
we must adapt. but then, when the world is changing, we must adapt too, but not blindly like those rap singer(in the dressing sense).
February 9th, 2007 at 2:51 am
My motto:
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails…
Explore… dream… discover…”
~ Mark Twain ~
February 11th, 2007 at 8:15 am
For all intent and purposes, I support the use of English in Math and Science. If it means that our children will get 6 additional hours a week interacting in English, where the subjects originated (Greece, Arabs, Jinjang) or what subject is taught does not matter. The current proficiency level is appalling and I should know - I was from Kg Gajah Perak where English is, literally, a foreign subject but by the age of 7 I could already speak, read and write reasonably well thanks to the residual English books that my elders had used when they were in Primary school (they were schooled under the English system even though that meant they had to be personally driven 30minutes away to the nearest English school).
So did that make a difference? The answer is heck yeah.
My school of thought is simple, if a child can be taught as many languages as he can, then go ahead. Multiple language skills are not like trigonometry that you will very possibly never use in your entire adult life. It is always an advantage no matter what profession you are in. You can read more books, understand more point of views, and say different versions of sweet little romantic nothings to impress the opposite sex — which is what life is ultimately all about, no? Peace out.
February 23rd, 2007 at 8:21 am
U’VE BEEN TAGGED! READ MY BLOG FOR DETAILS, HEHE…