Problems in School

Education is the most important factor for the development of human civilization. It is one of the ways
that can help us to achieve our goals in the future. However, there have been many problems raised
throughout the year in regarding to what our school system should be practicing to improve
education. These problems consists of self-discipline, longstanding bullying and the case about
school uniforms should be lessen in order to have a positive dispositions on education.

Discipline and balancing is important in a student's life. Sometimes, the person who has the freedom
to do anything she wants will have the tendency to lose self-discipline and balance between
extracurricular activities and academics. There was a time in my life when I thought I would not be
able to finish high school because I got distracted by the social life around me. We could only be
young once, as the cliché goes. Indeed, I truly lived my teenage life to the fullest, to the point of over-
living it. In fact, I was still in my early teens when I started going steady with my social life than school.
My mother had a hard time straightening my head.

However, the consequences of my actions had sadly taught me a lesson. I failed some of my classes
when I was in freshman. Also, I joined volleyball and cheerleading in my junior year which completely
gave me a hard time catching up with our lessons. I was forced to attend the after-school tutoring.
Stumbling upon of having no discipline and balance between school, sports and social life are
regrettably sad. Yes, I have a lot of learning, and acknowledge that school must be prioritized.

Second, bullying has a real negative effect on the victim's life. Those who are constantly bullied can
be pushed to the breaking point, where they could end up hurting themselves or others. I have a
school mate back when I was senior, and he had trouble coping with things since his parents got
divorced. Over the last few months, he has neglected his school works, and gotten a few face
piercing that were prohibited in our school. A few of his classmates have become hostile towards him
because of the sudden physical changes, and his lack of social etiquette. The controversy have
suddenly escalated as they have pushed him onto the ground, kicked him in the stomach, and locked
him in the bathroom.

Also, a few of the school jocks were standing in the hallway joking around when they spot their
smaller classmate struggling to carry his school books. One of the jocks sticks his foot out and
deliberately tripped the boy. They all laughed and called the boy names such as, "clumsy" and "dork".
Bullies pick on students who they think are physically weak, and unpopular with their peers. So,
whether bullying comes in many different forms: both from cyber bullying to physical bullying, it is
consider wrong and it has to stop.

Lastly, clothing has become a way of self-expression on how a person dresses, and it usually reflects
on their personality. The most common issue is some students being harassed by other students for
the way they dress, and how they appear. When I was sophomore, gang violence has become a big
concern throughout my high school. Gangs choose colors to wear which lets people know to which
gang they belong to. Students, who do not know of this issue, wear that certain color during dress
down day, and some of them got hurt because they were not aware of the specific gang colors. Then,
I noticed all students nowadays must go out and have the new fashion trends, and style.

However, not all parents are able to go out of their way to buy their children clothes. So, uniforms
save not only the students for getting harass base on what they wear, but also for the parents who
are already busy working to give and support our necessities. Uniforms cause children to be more
civilized and mature in what they are doing. It is great for schools to implement a policy on school
uniforms because it provides more focus to learning, reduces peer pressure, and increases school
pride.

Attitude can alter every aspect of a person's life, including his or her education. Student's attitudes on
learning determine their ability and willingness to learn. Furthermore, it is never too late to improve
our educational system. Every school should be more advance and provide a good learning
environment first because a highly effective school profoundly enhances student's prosperity.

Challenges Facing Public Schools

The fundamental purpose of education is to gain knowledge, inculcate the forms of proper conduct
and acquire technical competency, (Oak, 2010). These skills and abilities are considered important in
our world so as to have socio-economic growth and development individually and in the community.
Goel (2007) observes that it is because education is so important that the US Department of
Education aims to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by
fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.

Thus in countries such as the US, children who may not be able to afford the cost of schooling can
access education in public educational institutions subsidized by the government. Though noble, the
concept of public education unfortunately has a number of fundamental challenges that must be
investigated for lasting solutions. These challenges are highlighted below, their problem statements
and the arising hypotheses: Problem Statement 1 One of the greatest concerns in public schools is
violence.

Lede (2010) notes that violence in public schools is a growing concern of parents, teachers, school
administrators, politicians and community leaders. Lede (2010) continues to observe that “many
communities in the United States of America are faced with the dilemma of how to protect the integrity
of the education by eliminating violent behavior among the school’s constituency and the environment
where learning takes place. ” What are the determinants of violence in public schools? What is the
effect of parental involvement and violence in public schools? Is there any relationship between poor
teacher training and violence in public schools?

Hypothesis Economic and social issues are affiliated with violence in public schools. Parental
socialization at the home front influences students’ propensity to violence in public schools. Teacher
training does not impact on the existence of violence in public schools. Importance of the statements
and hypothesis in the research The statements and hypotheses in this research would assist the
researcher in investigating the problem of violence in public schools and begin to explore solutions
that address the root cause of the problem and not the symptoms of the problem
Problem statement 2 Another one of the core challenges faced by public educational institutions is
that of insufficient funds. By virtue of the fact that public schools depend on the government to meet
their budgets, more often than not, the schools find themselves without enough money to carry out
their activities. What is the effect of lack of sufficient funding on the quality education in public
schools? What is the effect of programme prioritization on budget management in public schools?
What are other sources of funding that can be explored to ensure constant funding of public schools
programmes? Hypothesis

Lack of sufficient funds compromises on the quality education offered in public schools. Budget
rationalization can be successfully achieved through programme prioritisation of the programmes at
public schools. Diversification of the sources of funding to meet budgetary needs at public schools
has ensured sustainability of the schools’ programmes. Importance of the statements and hypothesis
in the research A research on this issue would ensure that sustainable solutions to budgetary
constraints are met that translate to operational efficiency (Maguad, 2007) and a high quality of
education is constantly high in public schools.

Problem statement 3 Public institutions of learning are faced by the problem of low or no parental
involvement. Since many of the students in public schools come from middle and working classes in
which both parents have to earn a living to sustain the families, it is rare that the parents find time to
be actively involved in their children’s school life. What is the effect of parental involvement on student
achievement in public schools? What is the correlation between parental aspirations and expectations
for their children and student achievement in public schools?

Do parents give away the right to educate their children when they place them in public schools?
Hypothesis A student’s performance is influenced by his/her parents’ interest and participation in his
school work. Parental aspiration and expectation for children determines the achievements of the
children in school. Parents of children in public schools forfeit any right to determine what or how their
children are educated. Importance of the statements and hypothesis in the research The research
would find out whether parents have an active role to play in their children’s well being for assured
achievement in school.

The issue of parental involvement could also form the basis of understanding other challenges facing
public schools such as student violence (Alliance for the Separation of School ; State, 2008). In
conclusion, public educational institutions experience many challenges ranging from budgetary
constraints, student violence and low parental involvement. Much research needs to be done to
establish why these problems exist in the first place and lasting solutions for these institutions.

The Problems Faced By Students In Malaysia

Education in Malaysia is an on-going effort towards further developing the potential of individuals in a
holistic and integrated manner, so as to generate individuals who are intellectually, spiritually,
emotionally and physically balanced and harmonious, based on the belief and devotion to God. An
effort is designed to yield Malaysian citizens who are knowledgeable and competent, who possess
high moral standards, and who are responsible and capable of achieving a high level of personal well-
being and contribute to the harmony and betterment of the family, community and nation generally
stated by the Ministry of Education Malaysia on February 9, 2013. Since 56 years ago, the national
education policy Malaysia has rapidly transformed many times. It begin to change when the Razak
Report 1956 and the Education Ordinance 1957, which was dubbed 'The Era of Consolidation' was
introduced and the most recent one is the introduction of the New Education Policy (Education
Blueprint 2012-2025), which was approved by Cabinet on 30 January 2013.

Rahman Talib Report and the Education Act 1961 which saw the 'Review Era', ‘Features of the 1979
Cabinet Report’, stressed on basic education in 3Rs, reading, writing and arithmetic, a strong spiritual
education and discipline elements as desired. It also placed emphasis on Malaysia-oriented
curriculum. The policy adjusted education management procedure to enhance the overall quality of
education. Education Bill which was introduced in 1995 was designed to generate world-class
education in terms of quality to reach national aspirations. It also saw the increase of technical
education ; Polytechnics and introduces provisions to regulate private education. The recently
Cabinet-approved New Education Policy (the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2012-2025) will be
presented to the King for His Majesty’s approval before it is implemented.

Despite all the changes made to the country's education policy has always been to maintain the
essence of the educational philosophy of the MOE, no changes made resulted in improving our
standard of educational, as a matter of fact, it continues to fall and still dropping even further. This is
because the English language plays a vital role in the area of globalization. People need to become
proficient in English in an effort to compete on the international platform. English language is also
identified to be one of the factors that many graduates are unemployed. Unemployed graduates are
prompted to polish their English language skills and communication to equip them better. MOE
recognises that Bahasa Malaysia, as the national language, promote unity and also the main
language of communication while English is the language of international communication and it is
necessary to explore knowledge globally.

English is now the language of instruction at all levels of education in Malaysia, from primary to
tertiary level. Communications have enabled mankind to progress and become a developed nation.
Communication is very important not only for the smooth running of a business enterprise but it also
similar, if not more, important to the success and growth of professional and individual executives.
Deficiency in proper communication skills creates barriers and distortions that bring to
miscommunication and a breakdown in meaning can have some very negative consequences for any
company or business set-up. Proficiency in English is a prerequisite for any professional working in a
global business environment.

Although the profession may vary, the need to become proficient in the English language is a core
skill for any global workers. Employers expect labour have excellent communication skills apart from
knowledge and expertise in their respective technical field. In today's workplace, people need a
variety of specific job knowledge and skills, personal qualities and attitudes, the ability to transfer
knowledge and skills to different situations, and others the ability to speak English is a must in your
work no matter where you work for because everything you do at work is in English. Apart from
promoting yourself, we have to use English language skills to communicate with some level of
business.

Communication is most powerful tool in the workplace, and improve our spoken English will help us to
communicate successfully in the workplace. We will not forge ahead at work if we do not SPEAK
English because it will hinder our potential. Successful organizations and companies know that
effective communication is crucial to their success as it boosts productivity and promote creativity.
This report will discuss the problems faced by students in learning the English language and practical
suggestions for improving the English language proficiency of students in higher education institutions
in Malaysia.

Why students facing problems

Many of our graduates have trouble finding jobs locally, particularly because their poor command of
English Language and there are now more than 10,000 of them are still unemployed, a few after three
years since they graduated. According to English experts, the reason why student’s poor in this
subject includes: the lack of reading and writing English, poor attention given to the subject,
vernacular speaking in schools and environmental conditions among a host of others.

Lack of reading and writing English

Majority of students poor in English because their inability to write and read in English. This is
because reading provides a logical understanding of the language and hence, improves one's ability
to speak and write the language. As a result of this, students who do not have the feeling to read
ultimately failed the subject. Now most of the students admire more entertainment from the study.
They dislike flipping the newspaper or article. They only use the street language when communicating
with people. This is so, as writing allows one to combine the right words to construct meaningful
sentences and lack the ability to formulate ideas and write cohesive texts. The more this is done,
more gets to grasp the language and eventually became a very good in writing English. For this
reason, those who do not heed this thought just finally failed subjects.

Poor Attention given to the subject

Said that success go with interest. In a learning environment where students are not paying attention
to the English, they lastly scored low marks in the subject area and subsequently, they become
victims. Although facts that English are the main language but most students think that learning
English is a waste of time on the grounds that they have a lot of notes to learn. Students need to
know that English granting them access to enter in any of the universities or colleges across the
world. So students pass all subjects with the exception of English is the same as nonentity. This is
because nearly all English teachers use textbooks. And it makes their job easier. They are not
prepared for every class. They just do the next unit in the book. And they make learning boring and
ineffective. It makes students to think that learning English is boring.

Vernacular speaking in schools

Not speak English in schools is another reason why the students who are poor in English. To this
disgraceful act, they began to build a very poor vocabulary. This would lead to a drop down in their
performance in English. Most of the students may prefer to speak in their native language with their
friends and family members. The problem is they never hang out around and just be with their ethnic
because they do not realize the importance of English language.
The condition of the environment
English is a subject that requires a very calm environment and attentive. Creation of educational
environments a conducive to their academic success and the use of educational strategies known to
be effective with these students should be prepared for. There are normally 20-30 students in the
class, so there is less time for students to speak English. Ordinary English class is very poor practice
speaking. Teachers do not have time to go and teach them one after one and this cause they do not
know their students' understanding of the English language.

SUGGESTION
Many of us already familiar with how people feel about the appearance, but the manner in which we
speak are also important. Even if we dress well, using poor grammar will indicate that we are a wolf in
sheep clothing. We might look good on the outside, but we're not so good on the inside. To be
successful, we must focus on our appearance and the way we talk with people. The collective work of
the teachers, parents and students are the success of students towards English language. Students
should play a greater role in this aspect as to whom much is given, much is expected. Mahatma
Gandhi quoted that "an ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching" means that the
teacher should clearly verbally tell students what and how to do something, but the students will learn
much more by actually doing it. We should practice more to get success in it. Here are some
suggestions for improving the English language:

Speak and read the language whenever you can.

First, talk as much as you can, find someone to practice, and speak only English with them. Speak
English with our friends and family. Do not be ashamed to try to speak the language. Do not fear that
other people will tease you. In fact, they will admire you because of your courage and confidence.
Whenever you are out and around, or even at home, think and also SPEAK OUT loud, the things you
do the things that you see. Constantly keep in mind it is good to make mistakes, because you can
learn from them and improve with what you did wrong and improve that. Reading can improve our
speaking. Read as much as possible, look for English books, English articles and newspapers, and
use a dictionary when you find words you cannot understand .Reading a lot is a good way to improve
one’s grammar and learning new vocabulary and language structures.

Start a blog in English.

This is one way for you to practice your writing. Blog at something you like. If you are a fan of the
movie, start a blog and write about your favourite films, your favourite characters, what do you think
could be improved in the film, what new movie to look forward to next year, and so on. In addition to
the blog, try joining an online forum, join the online community or a similar debate, and engage in
online chat and more. It can help you practice your language skills too, and you can find a "pen pals"
in chat rooms and message boards. Via conversation we can learn how and where to use the word.
There are many web tools to help you learn English. Language Central, Live Mocha is a few of the
best. Classes are too expensive, if you want to get free (or very cheap education), the Internet is a
great place for learning this language.

Write in your diary/journal in English.

This is where you can write down any in it. But if you write something that you don’t want other people
to read, make sure you hide in a safe place! Or try to not write any offensive at all in case one does
not find it. You can also write about neutral stuff like places you go that day, what you ate, who you
met, what you do, etc. Find someone who you consider have good English language to review your
written work and have a sensible conversation with people. In this way, we can improve our writing
skills in English.

Watch English movies with subtitles

This will be the most favourite way for students to learn English. Not only do students get to have a
fun time watching the movie, they will learn new words at the same time and know how to pronounce
them. Usually, students may get the movie with English subtitles on DVD. Apart from film students
can watch CNN International or other English channels for example Oh My English programme. They
will get a lot of perfect sentences in excellent English. Watching a TV show can help, but are only
listening, not as good as it then follows up with practice. In addition, it may seem strange, but listen to
popular music and then sang the songs helpful. Listen to English songs as much as possible and try
to sing along. Go to karaoke.

Learn a new word new phrases, idioms or proverbs a day

Keep your own vocabulary notebook and write a new word and meaning in it every day. Refer to as
frequently as possible so that new words will stick in your head. For example idioms like kick in the
teeth, sitting on the fence, make a clean sweep, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, a man's
home is his castle, etc. When you find any new wording or sentences, write it down and meaning in
your notebook. Learn a proverb a day. Poetry and humour is a good way to learn the language
because they are short and full of meaning. We can use these idioms in our everyday conversations.

CONCLUSION
Crystal (2005) claimed that Standard English are not easily threatened by regional developments as
standard and non-standard varieties share common core of linguistic identity that unites them.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE IS emerging As the NEW GLOBAL FOR COMMUNICATION. When you
improve your vocabulary, you will attract the attention of people. Depends on who you attract, the
number of doors can open doors that would be closed to someone who uses the common vocabulary
level. People would see you as a person with intelligence, and it will be clear that you are also
knowledgeable. The industry's most significant bit worried about noticeable GAP in Spoken and
Written English. The other core competency of their employees is ANALYTICAL SKILLS or CRITICAL
THINKING arises as main concern among employers. BE confident. Give yourself auto suggestions
that you have good English trust me, it really effective. Suggestion for increase interest on English
language begins with the creation of the school climate that cultivates academic success and
empowers students.

Such environment reflects the philosophy that all students can learn and teachers are responsible for
helping them to learn. A positive school environment is characterized by strong administrative
leadership, high expectations for student achievement, suitable curriculum and instruction,
environment save and organized, systematic assessment of student progress, and share decision-
making among teachers and parents; Share knowledge based among educators about effective ways
in which students learn English. Students listen to what the teachers say in English, and they might
need to figure out the words in their native language to really process what has been said.

Later they would decide on response in their native language, to adapt that in response to the English
language, think about the reaction to ensure that it makes sense, and eventually respond. It
frequently takes years of exposure to English before students can intercept translation step and
actually "think in English”. As Clyne (1992b) said that national identity is seen through national
varieties and English in Malaysia is Malaysia's identity. Being independent, English is the accretion
and growth of every dialect, race, and range of time, and both the free and compacted composition of
all quoted by Walt Whitman.

REFERENCES
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hussaini-abdul-karim. (2013, February 20)
2. Rajandran, K. (2011). English in Malaysia: Concerns facing Nativization. Journal for the
Advancement of Science ; Arts, 2. (Online). Available:
www.ucsiuniversity.edu.my/cervie/pdf/paperV2N12.pdf (2013, March 1)
3. Halimah Badioze Zaman(n.d.). Glimpses into Research on Literacy in Malaysia. (Online).
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4. Johnson, S. (2008). Why Students Fail English Language. (Online). Available:
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5. Josette. (2009). 10 Simple Ways / Tips to Improve Your English. (Online). Available:
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(2013, February 22)
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