By Zakir Hussain, Political Correspondent

IT IS not uncommon to hear disparaging remarks made about Malay pupils when it comes to mathematics.

They are said to give up easily when flummoxed by a complex problem, slow to grasp concepts and supposedly doomed to be bad at maths.

These are not just casual comments by members of the public. Parents and teachers alike share these assumptions, often citing them to explain the low passing rate in maths among Malays.

Malay underperformance in the subject was highlighted by Muslim Affairs Minister Yaacob Ibrahim earlier this month. He was dismayed that the passing rate of Malay pupils in maths for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) had declined over the past three years to 56 per cent. In 2006, it was 58.9 per cent, and in 2007, 56.8 per cent.

The slide of 3 per cent may appear insignificant, but seen against the grades over the past 15 years, it is clear the community's passing rate in maths has plateaued.

No doubt, there have been improvements. In 1980, just 28 per cent of Malay pupils passed PSLE maths. They did not fare too well in other subjects either.

To overcome this problem, community leaders formed Mendaki in 1982 to provide Malay students with affordable tuition. That effort helped to lift passing rates, which crossed the 50 per cent mark in 1992. Although Malays pupils still lagged behind Indian pupils (56 per cent) and Chinese pupils (85 per cent), it was nevertheless hailed as a psychological breakthrough.

Today, Indian pupils' passing rate hovers around 74 per cent, while that of Chinese pupils is near 90 per cent.

Further progress for Malay pupils has been slow because of the community's generally lower socio-economic profile compared to the other races.

Possible reasons for the underachievement of Malay pupils

1. Many Malay parents fail to see the importance of pre-school education

2. Belief that Malays are 'fated' to be bad in the subject

3. Prejudices of maths teachers

The issue must also be seen in perspective: Malay students' maths abilities are high by global standards. The 2003 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study showed that Singapore Malay pupils' skills in maths were above international averages.

At both Primary 4 and Secondary 2, they surpassed their counterparts in top-scoring European countries like the Netherlands, as well as in the United States - and nobody has accused the Dutch or the Americans of being congenitally weak in maths.

The finding suggests Malay pupils are not really underachieving - not internationally. But the reality is that they are competing against other Singaporeans, who are doing even better. And so Malay pupils have to level up if they are to compete successfully for places in tertiary institutions or in the labour market.

What then is needed for the next breakthrough in Malay pupils' maths results? Retired secondary school principal Johari Rais says there must be a drastic shift in attitudes.

'Mathematics is a subject that requires a great deal of stamina - sustained practice, attention and concentration. Many of our pupils who do poorly do not have this stamina,' he says.

Parents must be strict and ensure their children devote a few hours a day to maths drills, he says, adding that middle-class Malay parents who push their children see them doing as well as others.

When I asked Nuraina Ruzaina Abdul Rauf, a PSLE top scorer this year, for advice on doing well in maths, she said: 'Be consistent, seek help immediately, practise and practise. There is no short cut.'

That is the nub of the matter, it seems. The community needs to keep convincing pupils they can be good at maths. But in addition, parents must ensure their children keep up with their homework, and teachers have to motivate their charges to keep working at their maths.

A complex maths problem, after all, is best tackled by a determination to try harder and not give up.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.