The National Curriculum for Science in England - Term Paper Example

 Abstract Issues related to education now traverse national boundaries and the national political will often desires excellence in science education. The school curriculum often holds much popular interest in all nations because parents desire the best possible for the future generation. Science education is a high priority for all nations because excellence in science is likely to influence national prosperity. Thus, after much consultation and soul searching, England recently presented its new science curriculum. The new science curriculum, the pride and joy of England, will guide the efforts to inculcate the right skills in children being educated at schools. The national curriculum for science in England is similar to that for Malaysia, a former British colony, despite the efforts made to try to adapt this to the local situation in Malaysia. This essay presents a discussion about the curriculum in the two nations and an examination of the issues related to education in Malaysia. Declaration I certify that, except where cited in the text, this work is the result of research carried out by the author of this study. _____________________________________________ Name and Signature of Author January 2009 This write - up is for an essay, which presents a comparison and analysis of the school science curriculum in Malaysia and England. Biographical Sketch Acknowledgments Contents Introduction 1 The National Curriculum for Science in England 3 Science Curriculum for Schools in Malaysia 7 A Comparison of the School Science Curriculum in England and Malaysia 12 Analysis, Criticism and Improvement of the School Science Curriculum in England and Malaysia 15 Conclusion 18 Bibliography/ References 19 List of Figures Figure 1: School years in England 4 (This page intentionally left blank) Introduction Several definitions of the word curriculum exist in educational literature (Guthrie, 2002, pp. 524). For some, this word means everything that takes place in a classroom, while for others it represents the topics of instruction that are defined in the instructional requirements in the official policy of an educational system. Still others prefer to consider curriculum in terms of the topics actually taught by teachers. Thus, although differences will always exist between what curriculum had prescribed, its implementation and the standard of education imparted to pupils, without the intended it is difficult to attain the prescribed standard. It makes sense to have a curriculum so that teachers and pupils can try to attain the standards desired and to achieve an adequacy in education. Curriculum is important. Without a decent curriculum, it is likely to be difficult to impart the education that can ensure a proper development for future adult citizens (Pinar, 2003, pp. 1 – 31). Nations and people cannot hope to solve complex problems of the future if they are lacking in knowledge and skills related to science and technology. Thus, it is important that due attention is focused on developing a decent science curriculum for schools. However, although the forces of globalisation now shape curriculum, teaching and peoples, the local must also influence curriculum because improvement in education depends on moulding that which exists into something better (Pinar, 2003, Chapter 1). Although accelerated improvement is desirable, rapid change is difficult to bring about in practice. Nevertheless, it makes sense to try to learn from what others are doing to improve and this means that it is useful to examine the curricula and educational systems of different nations to try to understand education and the processes of education. It is with the previously mentioned aim that this study attempts a critical analysis of the science curriculum for comprehensive schools in England and Malaysia. Although the Federation of Malaysia gained its independence from British rule in 1957, human habitation in the region dates back some 40,000 years (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2009, “Malaysia”). Many nations, cultures and religions influenced the present day Malaysia during its long history. Malaysian history presents strong influences from India, Portugal, China, Arabia and Britain. However, because Britain was the last colonising power, it has substantially influenced the educational system of modern Malaysia. Within England, itself, the credit for establishing a formal education system goes to Saint Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, who taught priests and tried to increase the knowledge of lay people between 597 and 605 AD (Marlow-Ferguson, 2002, pp. 1479). However, although many influences and needs in history will have shaped the curricula for schools in England and Malaysia, the present state of affairs is relevant for this study. The next section presents a discussion about science curriculum for comprehensive schools in England and a similar discussion for Malaysia follows afterwards. The National Curriculum for Science in England England and Wales have adopted rigorous prescribed curriculum for compulsory education with the 1998 Education Act and its subsequent amendments (Marlow-Ferguson, 2002, pp. 1483 – 1484). Science is amongst the compulsory subjects and although the curriculum is mandatory, teachers and school committees can select textbooks. Compulsory education ranges from the age of 5 to 16. Pupils attend primary schools from the age of 5 to 11and funding for state schools is from national taxation. At the age of 11, nearly all pupils move on to secondary schools to commence year 7 of their education as depicted in the figure below. Figure 1: School years in England (Wikipedia, 2008, “Primary and Secondary Education) The National Curriculum in England has categorised compulsory education into four key stages, presented in figure 1. Science is a core subject and four sections divide the teaching of science at each key stage (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, UK, 2008, National Curriculum”) and (Watt, 2004, pp. 130 – 131). Scientific enquiry, life processes and living things, materials and their properties and physical processes are the four sections into which the teaching of science is organised. The curriculum attempts to develop successful learners who enjoy learning, making progress and achieving. The curriculum and its teaching develop students into confident individuals who are capable of making a positive contribution to society. At key stage 1, students learn to observe, explore and ask questions about living things, materials and physical processes by collecting and evaluating evidence. Scientific enquire is encouraged in key stage 1. A broadening of the understanding of students at key stage 2 enables them to explore positive and negative effects of scientific developments and to carry out systematic investigations. The use of scientific ideas and models to make connections between different areas of science, the use of scientific ideas and models to explain phenomenon and a capacity for the conduct of quantitative work develops in key stage 3. Knowledge skills and an understanding of how science works is integrated into teaching at key stage 4, with students learning about a wide range of scientific ideas, the power and limitation of science in addressing industrial, ethical and environmental issues together with learning in depth about how scientists approach scientific investigations and develop new theories and ideas. Teachers in England use a variety of sources of information, including information and communication technology based resources (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, UK, 2008, National Curriculum”) and (Watt, 2004, pp. 130 – 131). It will appear that teachers have a wide leeway in developing their pupils and the curriculum places an emphasis on the intellectual development of a child. However, the assessment examinations, the General Certificate of Education at the Ordinary and Advanced levels determine if pupils have achieved the requisite standards. Syndicates consisting of representatives of prominent universities, including the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and London etc, conduct the previously mentioned examinations. There are no prescribed books in the curriculum, but the knowledge required to pass examinations and the past question papers establish the standards. Development of textbooks and other study material required to inculcate the skills that pupils must attain is up to the teaching profession, the senior academics in universities and senior teachers who carry on and develop a tradition of intellectual development through education. Thus, the emphasis in the curriculum is on the development of cognitive scientific skills rather than a prescription of textbooks that must be rote crammed to pass. These skills are of a greater value to the nation because these skills enable lifelong learning. The recently introduced new National Curriculum tried to incorporate criticism levied at the earlier curriculum (Donnelly, 2001, pp. 2 – 4). In 1972, the eighth report of the International Clearing House on Science and Mathematics Curriculum Development ran to over 800 pages and listed approximately 250 science and mathematics curricular initiatives. Esteemed and learned societies, including The Royal Society had expressed satisfaction that ‘Scientific Enquiry’ had been included in the attainment target for the National Curriculum (The Royal Society, 1999, pp. 1 – 2). The Royal Society had expressed concern that it was not possible to teach science adequately without devoting at least 20 % of the time devoted to the curriculum. In a more recent report on the state of the nation, The Royal Society has expressed a need for having a fully independent body to monitor and to coordinate improvement in the curriculum for the UK (The Royal Society, 2008, pp. 19). The Royal Society report mentioned a need for greater coordination between the various curriculum bodies, such as those for England, Scotland and Wales and a need for providing alternative year 14 – 19 qualifications beyond those that already exist to offer choices to students. Science Curriculum for Schools in Malaysia Preschool education in Malaysia outside of home commences at the age of four or five in kindergartens operated by government and private sector (Marlow-Ferguson, 2002, pp. 856 – 858). The government provides free education but it is not compulsory and an increasing number of private sector institutions now compete in the educational market, presumably by offering quality. Parents can select the type of school that they want their children to attend and Bahasa Melayu, or the majority national schools, as well as the so-called ‘nationalistic type’ schools for the Chinese and Tamil Indian communities, operate in parallel. Good grounding in science is the aim in primary education. There are four levels in the education system: primary, lower secondary, upper secondary and post-secondary schools. From lower secondary schools, the medium of instruction is only Bahasa Melayu and those who have attended the nationalist schools are required to complete a single additional year to learn the language of instruction to continue their education. Assessment examinations at the end of the third and the sixth year serve to assess the performance of students. Students who have performed exceptionally well in the third year examinations can skip a year and go directly to the fifth year. On completion of the primary school, students proceed to complete three years of the lower secondary school before appearing for the Lower Secondary Assessment Examination, which is the Sijil Rendah Pelajaran in Bahasa Melayu, or the PMR. Those who fail the PMR join the labour market, having concluded their education and cannot further their education (Marlow-Ferguson, 2002, pp. 856 – 858). Success in the PMR enables students to enter upper secondary schools in either the arts or the sciences streams and at the end of year 5, they appear for the Malaysian Certificate of Education examination (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia or SPM). Some schools offer the Malaysian Higher School Certificate (Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran or STPM) that is required if students are to proceed to universities, colleges or teachers training institutions. It is clear from the previous that the structure of schooling and the racial tensions discourage students to attain education and this reflects in the national inclination for doing well in business or a vocation rather than in educational attainment. The government has never seriously bothered to cater equally for all races that live together but are often miles apart and access to national economic opportunity is with discrimination. A desire to retain political hold on power has prevented the Malaysian Muslim Bumiputra, the Son of the Soil, from making sincere attempts to create a unified and inclusive society that caters equally for all (Wikipedia, 2008, “Issues in Malaysian Education”). Mahathir Bin Mohammad, the former Malaysian Prime Minister, motivated the UMNO, the majority Malay party in Malaysia to pass weird laws. These laws do not do justice to human freedom, human rights or equality for all regardless of race, religion or gender to promote inclusion and equal opportunity. The Malay, Chinese and the Indian chambers of commerce operate separately and the three races try to stay within the confines of their own communities. Discrimination in favour of the Malay Bumiputra, a refusal by racial groups to mix or to share, coupled with a societal view that education is only for the elite has impeded the progress of learning in Malaysia. The system breeds mediocrity rather than supporting attainment. Notions of lifelong learning were non-existent and education used to be about passing exams to gain a certain standing. Acquisition of knowledge for its own sake is not common in Malaysia and knowledge is certificates that offer returns on investment. Thus, it is only relatively recently that Malaysia has been able to produce decent intellectuals or academics. Most of the students who can afford to educate themselves prefer to proceed to Western countries because they are discriminated by a system designed to promote Malay Bumiputra Muslim Malaysians. Perhaps a tendency exists in the minorities to try to seek abroad what is not available to them at home and to try to outcompete to win. The colonial British White Rajas too had failed to provide a model inclusive administration for Malaysia because they too were commercially inclined and could not remove racial tensions, mistrust or bring about greater cohesion. Malaysia has had to make tough choices to develop peoples, many of who lived in abject poverty with only them and their families for support under authoritarian hereditary rulers (Wikipedia, 2008, “Issues in Malaysian Education”). Life in jungles without opportunity in an undeveloped economy and without a social security system in place under uncaring hereditary rulers can be tough. Thus, tough and discriminative laws were passed to encourage the Bumiputra or the Son of the Soil and to keep in check the immigrants who were often far more enterprising with a capacity for capturing political and economic power from the Bumiputra. Such laws were less than palatable to minority immigrant groups and appear to be weird to foreigners. Foreign observers face a dilemma when deciding if the Bumiputra thinking, legal structure or administrative policies are worthy of being described as decent. Perhaps the system can change when economic development renders everyone to be less vulnerable in Malaysia. Despite its limitations, the government in Malaysia has tried to work for the betterment of its people and to mould the best of the foreign colonial legacy of the former colonisers of Malaysia to fit local conditions. Thus, the comprehensive school curriculum in Malaysia appears to be similar to the curriculum in England with attempts to fit this into the local setting in Malaysia (Ministry of Education, Malaysia, 2008. “Search Results for “Curriculum for Science”). However, exposure to advanced topics takes place earlier in England. This is not something that should be surprising, because the education system that Malaysia had inherited as a colonial legacy from Britain after its independence was heavily reliant on textbooks, curriculum and teaching materials from England. Assessment examinations by educational boards in England were useful in Malaysia as they were in other British colonies. Although a tendency may have existed to translate and to try to adapt textbooks and educational materials from England into Bahasa Melayu, the government had decided that the teaching of Science and Mathematics would be in English from 2003 onwards so that Malaysia was not behind other nations of the world. This not only paved the way for the establishment of mixed race schools in Malaysia, but also for the use and adoption of textbooks published and used in England into Malaysia. A Comparison of the School Science Curriculum in England and Malaysia The new National Curriculum in England has provided more flexibility to teachers in their attempts to inculcate the skills that pupils at all stages must develop (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, UK, 2008, National Curriculum”). Thus, with regard to the requirements of assessment examinations that pupils aim to appear in, teachers can best select suitable teaching material and methods. A comparison of the material related to curriculum for science presented on the websites of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, UK and Ministry of Education, Malaysia suggests that instructors in Malaysia are more constrained in the choices that they can make about the teaching of curriculum. They receive more directed instruction about what they should teach (Ministry of Education, Malaysia, 2008, “Search Results for “Curriculum for Science”). As previously mentioned, it will appear that curriculum in England exposes students to more advanced concepts in science earlier. The science curriculum in Malaysia refers to inculcating “patriotism” amongst students when teaching science and this is something best left to citizenship or civic responsibility sections of the curriculum because the curriculum for science should best teach analytical thinking, problem solving and knowledge about the world. If people within a nation have made genuine contributions to the development of science, then such contributions will be a source of pride, but it is the skills are more relevant. Matters related to nationality, patriotism, affiliations to race or to religious thought can impede harmony in multicultural societies and individuals are now more inclined towards satisfying their wants, aspirations, getting just rewards for their honest efforts and being able to carve out a successful life with a future. Thus, individuals want something from a society in which they exist and it is not fitting that they are brainwashed rather than taught intelligence and skills. However, because children live within their immediate life world environment, they relate to things near them and this means that the presentation of the unique natural and scientific treasures of Malaysia will benefit. The science curriculum in Malaysia presents specific examples of activities, projects and experiments used for demonstrating science to pupils. This is appropriate when resource limitations and a lack of variety in scientific equipment prevent creativity in demonstrations related to science. However, such specific prescription of activities will result in the same practical experiments for all pupils in the system. The English curriculum provides for variety, innovation and creativity in the use of laboratory equipment for promoting interest in science and genuine exploration. Because Oil Palm is of importance to the Malaysian economy, the Malaysian curriculum uses this to present concepts related to chemistry. In a developing nation, that is not yet entirely information rich and in which new information and knowledge is not readily available to children, this is appropriate. However, the curriculum in England relies on the fact that children in this country have far more variety in information exposure. Thus, teachers have discretion about how they should present concepts about science from everyday life. Presenting variety encourages enquiry, curiosity and creativity in teaching and learning. It is important to understand that teachers in England have the support of an educational system which evolved over very many years and which has at its disposal very many creative and dedicated teachers who are constantly trying to bring about improvements in teaching and learning. A tradition that supports creativity and excellence is already established and thus teachers have a free hand to do more. However, in Malaysia, the core of teachers is relatively new, the right traditions of enquiry and improvement in teaching and learning are evolving and the same curriculum has to serve small isolated villages as well as the modern metropolis. Thus, the curriculum prescribes the basic minimum and there is nothing against any positive effort by teachers to do more. Thus, teachers in Malaysia too have the freedom to do more than the minimum to improve teaching and intellectual skills for their pupils. All schools in England may have well stocked laboratories in which creativity in the design of experiments may be possible, but it is a miracle that small village schools in Malaysia have the gear to present the basic prescribed experiments, projects and demonstrations. Analysis, Criticism and Improvement of the School Science Curriculum in England and Malaysia Educational reforms are often more difficult to implement compared to economic reforms because a fundamental shift in philosophy, values and goals is required (Zajda, 2005, pp. 422). At the national level, curriculum is a broad document that presents ideals about expected results from education. However, these results are possible if the teaching profession rises to the challenge and produces material, textbooks, practical project manuals, syllabus, pedagogy and web information resources that reflect change brought about in the world due to progress in science and technology. It is proper for the national curriculum to demand a shift towards enhancing effort in inculcating enquiry. However, such a shift requires that teachers shift emphasis, the right textbook material is produced, examination or test questions that can measure and aid enquiry are developed and the right project or practical material is developed. The teaching profession in the UK has been up to the challenge and many excellent textbooks, much learning material and many manuals produced over a prolonged period are available. Only the best of efforts are accepted and constant efforts made to create even better are ongoing. Globalisation and progress demands that selecting the best from around the world and modification of this for the local. The curriculum provides broad guidance to the very many teachers, educators and administrators involved with education and it is their efforts that presents improved pedagogy, textbooks, test questions and syllabus for bringing the goals of the curriculum into reality. Teachers in England will now have to make new efforts to improve on what their predecessors had accomplished and so will their colleagues in the profession in Malaysia. However, it is important to understand that knowledge is universal and there is nothing wrong with trying to examine the best from everywhere to tailor it to the local. Societies are dynamic and adapt. Nationalism is important because progress is only possible if the individual tries to give to those that are around, but nationalism should not mean disregarding the good from the outside in an attempt to create something for the sake of being different or unique. Thus, Malaysia too should try to get the best from England and around the world in the form of ideas, textbooks and learning material and improve on it, modify it and make it workable in the local. All parents are interested in ensuring that their children get the best possible for their resources and this means that national curriculums are of considerable interest to everyone in any community. However, it is only the constant effort by many to improve in all spheres, with due regard for the emphasis of the curriculum that beneficial practical change results. It is likely that with increased economic prosperity and development, the wrongs of the educational system in Malaysia will disappear and a more inclusive, egalitarian and fulfilling society will gradually emerge. Inculcation of dedication to learning is important and if educators are to deliver, it is important to provide and to motivate. Conclusion The national curriculum in England and Malaysia presents the broad aims related to education and acquisition of skills by all those who attend schools. 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