KUCHING, May 29 — Sarawak will start using English as a medium of instruction for Mathematics and Science in primary school from January next year, making it the first state in the country to do so.

State Minister of Education, Science, and Technological Research Datuk Seri Michael Manyin Jawong said the implementation would begin with the pupils in Year One.

"A total of 1,265 primary schools throughout the state will start using English for Maths and Science, and a total of 2,657 of teachers need to be trained by next year.

"This is a programme which is very similar to the Dual Languages Programme (DLP) that has been done before,” he told a press conference here today.

Manyin said the idea to implement this programme was to make the children more competitive and confident to speak up and express themselves in English.

Thus far, he said, only Chinese schools will not be using English in teaching the two subjects and will continue using Mandarin as the medium of instruction.

"The ministry respects their decision and they have the right to choose,” he added. — Bernama