WHERE DID MALAYSIANS GO WRONG IN THE LEARNING OF ENGLISH?
Most educators in Malaysia got it wrong.
When learners embark on the journey of learning English, they must learn the rules of grammar to help them speak and write English proficiently.
It is more important for non-native speakers as their environment doesn’t allow them to use English fully at their workplaces or in the social environment.
“ENGLISH AND INFORMATION ARE INEXTRICABLY INTERWOVEN.”
One’s proficiency in the English language does not indicate that one is more intelligent than others who are not proficient in the English language.
Nevertheless, one must strive to be proficient in the English language as it is sorely needed in an ever-changing world where things move at a very fast rate. Most of all, the English language and information are inextricably interwoven as stated very aptly by a British educationist before 1970. His quote, which is the title of this article, rings true till today.
VALUE FOR MONEY
Value is “the usefulness or importance of something”.
Ordinary people always cherish what is useful or important as they don’t have the luxury to choose willingly.
In the field of education, many people and educational institutes promise a lot of value to what they offer to the general public. Sometimes, their promises can be very bold and out of reach for a sane and sensible person. At the end of the day, their bold promises must manifest in the form of right results that can be observed by ordinary people.
ENGLISH GRAMMAR (A 3-DAY PROGRAMME)
Do white-collar workers in the Malaysian workforce really need to learn grammar to upskill or reskill themselves in the current challenging economic environment? Yes, they really do.
White-collar workers in Malaysia cannot just brush off the need to learn grammar if they are really serious in getting recognition from their employers, peers or organisations which are on the lookout for talent. As the economic scenario in some sectors in Malaysia become even uncertain, it is mandatory for Malaysian white-collar workers to remain relevant in a global economic environment which places a lot of emphasis on people to be proficient in spoken and written English. Malaysians who think that they do not need to be proficient in spoken and written English, which are the Transmission Skills, run the risk of dropping out of the rat race.
WORDS COMMONLY
CONFUSED
Advice or Advise? Bear or Bare? Licence or License?
Are you confused when to use these words?
I don’t blame you. Do you know why?
Since 1970, Malaysians have been using the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) Approach to teach and learn English. The CLT approach places a lot of emphasis on “Communicative English” and it is not based on the study of grammar. As a result, most Malaysians cannot speak and write English proficiently today.
THE MERITS OF THE STRUCTURAL APPROACH
Although there are many approaches to teach and learn English in the world today, their effectiveness in delivering the vital results in the form of proficiency in all the four skills of a language for a learner is very much disputable.
Learning English Using The Structural Approach, on the other hand, equips a learner in all the four skills of the language – listening, speaking, reading and writing – thoroughly, thereby empowering the learner to achieve the most in his career.
The effectiveness of the Structural Approach has been proven in the past when it was widely used in English-speaking nations and also in the former British colonies. Its effectiveness has been proven by the generation who learned the English language with little difficulty. As a result, that generation proceeded to make an impact in the respective fields of endeavour. All this was only possible with the help of the tool of expression, the English language. By learning the English language through the Structural Approach, they were able to convey their ideas and groundbreaking researches flawlessly to the world.
It is not enough for people to be possessed with inquiring minds. They must have the power to express their convictions too.