A teacher from a rural secondary school (SMK) in Johor has taken to social media to express concern over the low proficiency of Chinese students in the Malay language, highlighting a significant communication barrier within the school.
In a Reddit post, the teacher shared their frustration after discovering that nearly 80% of Chinese students in the school struggle with basic Malay.
Unable to form basic sentences
Some students, the teacher noted, are unable to form or understand simple sentences, making everyday communication difficult.
In many cases, we need a translator—usually a Malay prefect who can speak Mandarin—just to communicate with them when issues arise,” the teacher wrote.
The situation was particularly shocking to the teacher, who had studied in Selangor, where many of their Chinese peers spoke Malay fluently.
The language barrier is especially concerning for educators teaching subjects such as Sejarah, Bahasa Melayu, Moral, and even Mathematics, as students struggle to understand key terms.
The teacher suspects that the issue may stem from their primary education in Chinese national-type schools (SJKC), where Bahasa Melayu is often taught in Mandarin.
It’s incredibly frustrating for teachers… It makes teaching and learning so much harder than it should be,” the teacher ranted.
Netizens’ reaction
The post quickly sparked discussion, generating more than 200 comments discussing their experiences.
Some said it was due to one’s upbringing, where they weren’t exposed to a Malay-speaking social circle or chose to mingle with peers of their own race only
Others said that it wasn’t fair to generalise all Chinese students, arguing that the teacher probably faced the problem with a handful of students who didn’t bother to study the language.
What do you think of the teacher’s post? Share with us in the comments!
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