Learning Of Chinese Language Amongst Form 3 And Form 5 Malay Students In Confucian Chinese National-type Secondary School Of Kuala Lumpur In Malaysia

Malaysia has a unique education system which comprises many types of vernacular schools that began since the time of the British governance.The system has undergone many changes and government schools are growing exponentially.However,the vernacular system remains.At present,citizens of Malaysia are free to choose the type of school to send their children to.One of the most popular choices amongst parents of Malaysia is the Chinese vernacular schools.Due to China's 'One Belt One Road' policy,the importance of the Chinese language has become irrefutably increased.Realizing this trend,many Malay ethnic groups in Malaysia have opted Chinese vernacular schools for their children's primary education.Not only that,many of these parents also continue to send their children to Chinese national-type secondary schools for their secondary education to allow their children an immersive environment as far as learning Chinese language is concerned.Up to the time of this research,there are 1298 Chinese primary schools and 80 Chinese national-type secondary schools(will be henceforth referred to as Chinese conforming schools)in Malaysia.In recent years,the number of Malay students in Chinese primary schools and Chinese conforming schools is on the rise.Parents of Malay ethnicity are showing greater trust in the performance of these schools.Their intention is very clear:they want their children to learn Chinese language and have a good command of the language as it is now widely believed that being proficient in Chinese language provides a competitive edge in the future working world.Despite the acceptance and the increasing number of Malay students in Chinese primary schools and Chinese conforming schools,there is a worrying trend whereby the Malay students show a sudden drop in interest in learning Chinese language when they begin their secondary education.Despite the conducive learning environment as far as learning Chinese language is concerned,their deteriorating results speak otherwise.Some even show extreme boredom and rejection and refuse to learn further.The writer of this paper carried out an investigation on 43 form 3 and form 5 Malay students of SMJK Confucian to study their learning attitude and environment.Ten teachers who are currently teaching Chinese language in the school were also involved in the study to gain insight into teaching Chinese language to the subjects of study.Through in-depth discussions and interviews and relevant research,it is hoped that this study will identify the pressing issues faced by the students and teachers,and subsequently come up with constructive suggestions and solutions to overcome the problems.The findings from this study can be used as a guide for assisting students of conforming schools to change their learning attitude and improve their methods of learning,and teaching for the teachers.This study consists of five chapters:Chapter One is about the background of the study and its reasons and methodology.Chapter Two is the result analyses of the 43 students' mid-year exam and final exam.Chapter Three is the data analyses based on the respondents' answers in the study questionnaires and the interviews carried out with the ten teachers involved in this study.Chapter Four comprises in-depth discussion related to the findings of the study;and Chapter Five is the conclusion and suggestion pertaining to the study.It is hoped that this exploratory study on the issues relating to Chinese language learning among Malay students in this country will further inspire similar future studies so as to help bring betterment in the learning and teaching of Chinese language in conforming schools.