It is in Australia's best interest to look beyond speaking only English.

Mon Apr 28 20:40:50 UTC 2008

Matthew Davies
April 28, 2008

THE 2020 Summit missed half of the problem: Australia's weakness in
foreign languages comes from widespread problems of attitude.
Overcoming bad attitudes is crucial to mastering languages. How could
Australians miss the publicity for Prime Minister Rudd's command of
Mandarin? And what does it say of Australian identity and our place in
the world when such pride and curiosity greet a public figure who has
mastered another tongue very different from his first language of
English? The paradox is extreme. Rudd's language ability contrasts
starkly with debate about Australia's foreign language education,
where leading professionals have long reported a worsening crisis.

Since the 1960s, Australia has plummeted in foreign language learning.
Strange then that the 2020 Summit really only restated much that has
been urged at different times in past decades: more foreign language
skill, covering Asia in general and Indonesia in particular. As a
domestic social issue, the state of our foreign language learning
suggests many of us have tunnel vision, if not stunted minds. Globally
it amounts to a major and long-term strategic weakness, comparing
poorly with most other countries. Overcoming the "language gap" is not
just a matter of sectoral policy and budgeting. The challenges of
learning a language are fundamental: even before the process starts, a
learner's own cultural background and personality help determine
performance in the new language.

Obvious signs of such weaknesses appeared in negative responses to
Kevin Rudd's Mandarin fluency, before he became prime minister. During
last year's federal election campaign, then foreign minister Alexander
Downer suggested that Rudd's public use of Mandarin revealed egotism
and traits of the "show off". Downer seemed under pressure by opinion
polls and unflattering comparisons, but he spoke volumes for many
Australians: speaking foreign languages in public must be asserting
yourself as "different" and better than "us". The previous government
also tried some 11th-hour trickle of pre-election sleaze depicting
Rudd's Mandarin proficiency as evidence of un-Australian activities, a
hidden badge of disloyalty, or contamination by alien powers. By that
simplistic language, "Sinophone" must equal "Sinophile".

Those awkward election campaign tactics indicated immature attitudes
among many Australians: a lack of confidence, overcompensated for by
mocking of identifiable difference, with strains of xenophobia. The
irony is that, in positive responses to Rudd, much commentary shows
how Australia's cultural weaknesses could undermine efforts to make us
more literate in languages other than English. Focus on the Prime
Minister's linguistic skill could allow passivity among language
advocates awaiting direction from above, but without effective
leadership ability of their own. That conclusion would hold some truth
if we reflect on Australia's ever-dwindling pool of Asia-literate
academics, a problem long acknowledged in those circles.

Positive spin over Rudd's Mandarin also bears policy risks. Some have
commented that Rudd's language ability will give him more influence
with the Chinese Government. That view would depict foreign language
skill as a special diplomatic tool for small Australia to "punch above
its weight". That is just as superficial and simplistic as the
Chinese-speaking-traitor paranoia. The lesson of that dark
pre-election spin is that we should not assume people lose their
identities or loyalties after learning foreign languages. And we
should not demand that such people make extra effort proving their
allegiance.

This carries another warning: not to count on citizens' loyalty if
they are made to feel like outcasts or even traitors simply because
they use a language other than English. Carried zealously to extremes,
such xenophobia against one's own citizens becomes at best a
squandering of useful, rare assets; at worst a self-fulfilling
prophecy. Rudd's example normalises foreign language skill for many
Australians, but others must now inspire the rest beyond English-only
comfort zones and half-hearted language education. Learning a language
is not like buying a commodity as one would a set of tools. It is not
like using a simple filter device as some hopefuls use "language
calculators" and software to swap words between languages in a
detached scramble for meaning. Languages demand involvement by the
whole personality, both for passive comprehension and active
expression. And they need humility too, as the innocent child opens
its eyes to its own ignorance. Language skill is another of our
internal learning processes, essential for strengthening our minds
along the path to maturity, looking beyond the surface gloss of
tourist brochures.

Matthew N. Davies is a Defence-trained Indonesian linguist, and author
of Indonesia's War over Aceh: Last stand on Mecca's porch.

This story was found at:
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/04/27/1209234652864.html

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