©The
Star (Used by permission)
Along The Watchtower by M. Veera Pandiyan
We cannot just stand by and watch idly as the standard of English competency
continues to slide.
BAD English (I certainly don’t mean the rock band) provides good laughs among Malay–sians. We tend to titter over badly constructed sentences, grammatical blunders and malapropisms.
We are also not expected to take pains to speak proper English among friends.
If we do, chances are someone is likely to chide in Manglish: “Wah, your England so powderful!”
As such, the much–blogged about advertorial on the conferment of an honorary doctorate was deemed to be highly hilarious. As a howler, it takes the cake.
But seriously, it is no matter of mirth. The citation published by an English daily on Aug 23 – no doubt inadvertently – is a clear reflection of how low our standard of English has fallen to.
What’s more appalling is that the atrocious use of the language came from a university.
And one that bears the name of the country’s illustrious third Prime Minister Tun Hussein Onn, whose son is the current Minister of Education.
With apologies to recipient of the doctorate, Her Royal Highness Raja Zarith Sofiah (who happens to be a fellow columnist in The Star), here are some excerpts:
Yang Amat Mulia Raja Zarith Sofiah binti Almarhum Sultan Idris Al–Mutawakil Alallahi Shah has born on 14th of August 1959 in Hospital Batu Gajah, Perak.
YAM Raja Zarith is a third son to Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Sultan Perak Darul Ridzwan and Duli Yang Maha Mulia Raja Mazuwin binti Almarhum Raja Arif Shah.
In the month of September 1972, YAM Raja Zarith Sofiah have set forth to England for further education in Chaltenham Ladies College, Gloucester–shire to form six.
Then, YAM continue learning it in Davies College London in September 1977 and his following year in receive enter to Somerville College, London after having passed Oxford Entrance Examination.
After graduated at Oxford University with Bachelor of Art in June 1983 and follow the traditional University of Oxford, YAM Raja Zarith will receive Master of Art after three years in 1986.
YAM also is a linguist follow several courses including language Mandarin at the tertiary level, French and Italy language.
As his father, YAM Raja Zarith is a person that talented in picture arts. Refinement of soul, YAM always watching natural beauty environment immortalize in the form photograph and painting to make look and reference.
YAM performance become guide to deliver the message education to general public. YAM concern on women and natural world and it custody aspect in become deep theme in painting.
And that’s just a part of it. One cannot imagine the anguish and embarrassment suffered by the learned princess as a result of its publication.
It was obviously written by someone trying to translate the original citation in Bahasa Malaysia without having any basic grounding in English, the difference between genders included.
Of late, there has been much bickering over the teaching of science and mathematics in English. The more compelling issue is the rueful state of English and its continuing downslide.
What is the competency level of teaching and using English in schools, colleges and varsities out there? Can they speak English without errors in grammar or pronunciation? Or write decent paragraphs without bloopers?
We need honest answers and the Education Ministry’s policy wonks must be sincere in accepting that it is a grim problem.
We cannot seriously hope to earn respect as an educational hub, if the command of our English continues to be lampooned.
It is indisputable that English is the lingua franca of science and technology, global business and ICT. Young Malaysians have no other choice but get a better grasp of it to understand the world and the future that it holds for them.
Over the past weeks, some have suggested bringing back English medium schools as a solution, noting the language competency among older ministers and senior civil servants who went to such schools. But that is wishful thinking.
There is nothing wrong with progressing with the National Language in the long–term advantage of unifying all Malaysians, although many ministers, MPs and top government officers are inclined to send their own children to international schools and tertiary education abroad.
Given such hypocrisy, there shouldn’t be so much narrow mindedness and jingoism linked to the usage of Bahasa Malaysia at the expense of English. Gnashing teeth over this just to score political points can only result in Malaysians lagging further behind.
It has been 11 years since the Education Ministry set up two high–powered panels to plan programmes to improve proficiency levels among secondary school and university students.
Among the strategies were better training and development of teachers, progressive teaching and learning methods, diversifying resources, innovative testing systems, effective monitoring and research and development.
It is plain that these plans have not worked. We have to wake up to reality and catch up with the rest.
Associate Editor M. Veera Pandiyan likes this assertion by 1992 Nobel laureate Derek Walcott: “The English Language is nobody’s special property. It is the property of imagination: it is the property of the language itself.”