Malaysia: Another viewpoint

[Francis Hult]

Via lgpolicy-list at ccat.sas.upenn.edu ...
 

Another viewpoint

I REFER to Daniel Azmi's "Let it be English" (StarEducation, March
15). The writer states: "I cannot understand why people would want to
stop the teaching of Science and Maths in English." The reason is
simple - time. Time is limited, so one has to make the best use of it
to achieve goals.
To learn a language really well takes many hours of study and effort.
If a country's goal is to have a population which is united and has a
strong identity, a one-language policy is imperative.

I would like to point out that all developed countries had a single
language policy until recently. In these countries, the choice to
learn a second language is usually made by the individual and not the
government. The United States, Britain, Australia, Canada, and New
Zealand achieved economic progress because of their one-language
policy. Italy, France, Germany and Japan are not English-speaking
countries, but achieved social and economic prosperity by favouring
one-language policies.

Full story:

http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp?file=/2009/3/29/education/3547416&sec=education



_______________________________________________
Edling mailing list
Edling at lists.sis.utsa.edu
https://lists.sis.utsa.edu/mailman/listinfo/edling
List Manager: Francis M. Hult