The DLP is meant to give students in selected schools the option to study subjects like Mathematics and Science in English.

PAGE chairman Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim said several official letters sent to the education ministry were ignored, prompting them to submit a memorandum to all 31 ministers.

She urged the government to respect parents’ choice and to be fair and equitable to those who opt for DLP classes for their children.

“Give parents dignity and allow them to decide on the education they desire for their children,” Noor Azimah said at a press conference.

She added that students from schools which do not meet the DLP’s Bahasa Melayu (BM) criteria cannot be presumed to be weak in the national language when all other subjects are taught in BM.

“The problem lies in the overall learning. These students need intervention to improve their learning and multilingual skills.”

She was referring to one of the criteria for schools to have the DLP, which is for its students’ BM grades to be equal to or above the national average.

PAGE urged Putrajaya against forcing students to study certain subjects in BM when their schools have the resources for DLP classes.

With a Cabinet retreat scheduled for Jan 17 to 18, Noor Azimah anticipated the memorandum to be discussed.