PETALING JAYA: The first step towards improving English proficiency among Malaysians is to set up an English Academy similar to the Malayan Teachers’ Training College (MTTC) in Kirkby, England, which was established in 1952.
English Speaking Union (ESU) Malaysia chairman Tunku Dara Tunku Tan Sri Naquiah Tuanku Ja’afar (pix) said although our mother tongue is important, Malaysians should all learn and be able to converse in English.
“I am willing to set up an academy similar to that of Kirkby, but we need the government’s support in this effort,” she told theSun, adding that she does not need the government’s money to do it.
She said ESU faced difficulties finding trained English teachers or tutors, not because of a lack of candidates, but due to scarcity of opportunities for them to train as tutors or teachers.
Tunku Dara said public schools overseas make it compulsory for students to study foreign languages, adding that Malaysia, as a multi-lingual country should do the same.
“Why can’t Malaysian schools offer Bahasa Malaysia, English and Mandarin as compulsory subjects and other languages as electives?
“English is used everywhere. So, we must know the language to be part of the global development movement. No one is saying Bahasa Malaysia is unimportant, but we must master English to move forward as a nation.”
She also said problems would arise if Malaysians speak Bahasa Malaysia abroad and it is not translated properly.
“The information or messages will not get across well, and we will miss out even more.”
Parent Action Group for Education president Datin Azimah Abdul Rahim said the public outcry over having English medium schools (EMS) has been so intense from ultra-nationalists in the past that it gets shot down at every turn.
“It has now culminated over the years into a critical point where even some English teachers fail to impart proficiency in this universal and crucial language of knowledge as we swiftly engage in the digital world.”
Azimah said while having EMS may be perceived as diluting the importance of the national language, it is these schools that will produce competent English language teachers, adding that Malaysians know the importance of the national language.
“Bahasa Malaysia is not under any form of threat. If there is a perceived threat, then it is perhaps from Bahasa Indonesia. So, learning and mastering English, Mandarin, Tamil, Japanese, French or German does not relegate Bahasa Malaysia but instead complements it.”
Azimah said a teacher in Subang Jaya revealed that there were 40% Indonesian immigrants enrolled in her school, of which six of eight classes are Dual Language Programmes (DLP) and the students enjoy learning science and mathematics in English.
“The challenge remains with some teachers who lack enthusiasm. The option is not to revert to Bahasa Malaysia but to ramp up the DLP and seriously consider EMS for future-ready English language teachers.”
