Wednesday, June 10, 2009

The Queen’s English

English a must pass subject to obtain the SPM certificate? I am not going to write a lengthy write up on why we should make English a must pass subject. I'm sure there are a number of other bloggers who have done a much much better job at it than I ever will. We're all journalists now aren't we? Btw, that's a title of a book by Scott Gant

It's all very simple really. Until our universities stop accepting those with a C7 or is it F7, I can't remember, for their English during SPM into TESL programs and until the Ministry and all public universities in Malaysia stop producing teachers who come up with sentences such as those below and allowing them to graduate;

  • In the other hand
  • It's mean
  • "I want to get laid" instead of "I want to lay down"
  • Do you ever went to Singapore?

Then and only then, can the MOE have a say or the upper hand to determine whether English should be a must pass subject in SPM. I'm all for supporting the proposal, I know the advantages of being able to master the language, and the possibilities are endless. But we need to be fair to the students. The nation needs better English teachers. I rest my case.

Note;

There are many, many great English teachers around. They have done an amazing job educating and guiding their students. The writing above is not a reflection on the teaching profession as a whole, merely just on a small number of those teaching English and those that I have encountered personally. A Small but significant number if anything is not done soon.

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