FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE EXISTENCE OF FIRST LANGUAGE IN LEARNING MALAY LANGUAGE AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

Learning the malay language as the second language is important among chinese students. from initial surveys made in sjkc batu14 hulu langat, selangor, the percentage of malay language paper decrease in upsr. these results showed that the chinese students face problems in learning the malay language as a second language. thus, this study aims to analyse factors that contribute to the existence of first language influence among chinese students while learning malay language. the sample of the study included 77 chinese students in standard 4, 5 and 6 who failed in their malay language examination. the interaction theory by halliday is used. according to halliday, children master the language because they have a need to interact with members of the public in their environment. this means that the child will interact with the public at an early stage to meet their basic needs. this phenomenon does not occur in the sample. so, the chinese students who only speak chinese will not learn the malay language well, even chinese influence in learning the malay language would be more significant. the instrument used in this study was questionnaire. the data collected is calculated in percentages. the results are displayed through tables and graphs with descriptive description. results from this study showed that there are four factors which contribute to the influence of chinese language while learning malay language, which are exercises, environment, interest and attitude. this research is important to the education system, parallel with the government’s efforts to uphold malay language as the national language, official language and the language of knowledge. every walks of life in malaysia should channel their efforts together towards uplifting the status of malay language in malaysia. therefore, malay language should be mastered by all individuals, including chinese students in sjkc.