THERE has been much discussion in newspapers about reasons why Singaporeans are not as proficient in Chinese as other peoples. I would like to offer my views here.
Singapore is a multi-racial country with several languages and cultures. Ethnic Chinese account for 75 per cent of the population, but their native language is not proportionately important or useful.
English has been designated as the working language in Singapore, and hence the most important medium in communication here. With the successful Speak Mandarin Campaign now in its 20th year, the government has achieved remarkable progress in popularising Mandarin. Now you can hear the language spoken everywhere, which is totally different from the colonial years. But this is not to be equated with a high proficiency in the Chinese language.
For the past decade, students have been required to take courses in their mother tongues. Chinese is mandatory for ethnic Chinese pupils, and they must sit for exams in the subject. Primary pupils who do badly in the language cannot expect to enter the reputable secondary schools of their parents' choice even though they do well in other subjects.
Then, if they do badly in Chinese for O-Level examinations, they will have difficulty getting into good junior colleges. They also have to pass it in A-Level examinations, which is a must if they aspire to study in NUS or NTU.
For that reason, parents take the language subject seriously. Some engage tutors to help their children at home.
I have found that many pupils take Chinese just for the sake of passing those required examinations. Once they leave school or enter university, they cease to study or use the language unless they major in it. Most students majoring in sciences, engineering, medicine or other fields, especially those who speak English at home, will not need Chinese any longer.
Most people work with English, either on administrative, commercial, or clerical jobs. Even those traditional ethnic-Chinese institutions have turned to English as their working language. It is not rare now for an old-style grocer's or pawnshop to give invoices or receipts in English. Maybe in another decade Chinese medicine practitioners will make prescriptions in pinyin instead of Chinese characters.
In Singapore, those who are good at Chinese but poor in English cannot compete with those who know English well. This is an indisputable fact.
Here Chinese is not so useful as English. Or, frankly speaking, those who earn a living with Chinese make less money than those who work with English. In a society where money is all but everything, who would take pains at studying Chinese, which is not lucrative？ It is no wonder at all that Singaporeans are poor speakers or writers of Chinese as compared with other peoples.
Hong Kong and Taiwan are part of China. In both places, Chinese is the working language and medium of education except for students majoring in foreign languages. Of course, people in Hong Kong and Taiwan are more proficient in Chinese than Singaporeans.
Malaysia still keeps primary and secondary schools in which Chinese is the language of instruction. Pupils are taught in Chinese except for the subjects of English and Malay culture.
Therefore, it is the social environment, not lower IQ, that makes Singaporean pupils less proficient in Chinese. They can't be blamed for spending most of their time studying English and other subjects.
Given the situation, how can the stardard of Chinese of our pupils be improved？
我們的華文為何達不到水平？
最近有讀者在報上問：我們的華文程度為什么不如人？“根據(jù)本身的經(jīng)驗和觀察,謹提出本人的意見,就教于關心此問題的讀者們。
我國是多元種族、多種語言、多元文化的國家,以人口來論,雖然華人占了75%,但是華文的實用價值和重要性,并不成為正比例。
我國是以英文為工作語文,也是最重要的媒介語。政府推動講華語運動已經(jīng)20年,頗有成效。在社會上到處可聽到華人以華語交談,這跟殖民地時代迥然不同。但是華語的普遍應用,并非意味著華文程度也相應提高。
十多年來,我國的教育政策強制學生修讀母語,華族學生修讀華語,同時也是必考科目。小六離校會考,如果學生的英文、數(shù)學、科學取得優(yōu)異成績,但是華文成績太差,必定把積分拉下來,不能進入父母為他們選擇的特選或較好的中學。
到了中四會考時,如華文成績差,也難以進入較好的初院,這將會影響他們升學的前途。初院會考母語也必須及格,這是升入國大和南大深造的必要條件。
為了這個原因,家長們莫不重視這一點,有的還請補習老師來指導孩子。
依照筆者的觀察,有好多學生在中小學修讀華文是為了應付考試,一旦離?；蜻M入大學深造,除了少數(shù)進修華文者外,其他都是選修與華文無關的理科、醫(yī)科、工程等學科。接觸華文的機會很少,尤其是那些在家中說英語的人。
大部分的人士到社會上工作,不論是做行政工作,商業(yè)會計或擔任文書,大都是用英文。本來一般傳統(tǒng)的華人團體,所應用的文字也逐漸改為英文,傳統(tǒng)的雜貨店發(fā)票用英文已不稀奇,當?shù)暌灿杏糜⑽牡?。依照這種趨勢發(fā)展下去,再過十年八年,中醫(yī)師開藥方也可能用漢語拼音了！
在新加坡不懂英文或英文不好的人,即使華文程度高,在學以致用方面來說,也是難以跟英文好的人爭一日之長,這是客觀的現(xiàn)實情形,毋庸爭論的。
在新加坡華文的實用價值比不上英文。說得坦率一點,靠華文來謀生所得收入比較靠英文者為少,在金錢掛帥的社會中,誰還要拼命用功來苦讀華文呢？華文的程度當然會不如人了,不足為怪。
香港是中國的領土,臺灣是中國的一部分,新加坡是獨立國,環(huán)境不同,它們的工作語文是華文,學生在學校求學,除外語外,其余都是用華語教學的,當然他們的華文程度會比我們高,理所當然。至于馬來西亞,還有華文小學、獨中,學生除學習英文和馬來文化,其余都是華文。
綜上所述,我們的華文程度的不如人,是客觀環(huán)境使然,并不是我們的學生資質(zhì)較差。他們把大部分的時間用在修讀英文和其他科目,方便日后深造,求取專業(yè)和科技知識,無可厚非。在這樣的語文環(huán)境下,華文程度如何能提高呢？
Singapore is a multi-racial country with several languages and cultures. Ethnic Chinese account for 75 per cent of the population, but their native language is not proportionately important or useful.
English has been designated as the working language in Singapore, and hence the most important medium in communication here. With the successful Speak Mandarin Campaign now in its 20th year, the government has achieved remarkable progress in popularising Mandarin. Now you can hear the language spoken everywhere, which is totally different from the colonial years. But this is not to be equated with a high proficiency in the Chinese language.
For the past decade, students have been required to take courses in their mother tongues. Chinese is mandatory for ethnic Chinese pupils, and they must sit for exams in the subject. Primary pupils who do badly in the language cannot expect to enter the reputable secondary schools of their parents' choice even though they do well in other subjects.
Then, if they do badly in Chinese for O-Level examinations, they will have difficulty getting into good junior colleges. They also have to pass it in A-Level examinations, which is a must if they aspire to study in NUS or NTU.
For that reason, parents take the language subject seriously. Some engage tutors to help their children at home.
I have found that many pupils take Chinese just for the sake of passing those required examinations. Once they leave school or enter university, they cease to study or use the language unless they major in it. Most students majoring in sciences, engineering, medicine or other fields, especially those who speak English at home, will not need Chinese any longer.
Most people work with English, either on administrative, commercial, or clerical jobs. Even those traditional ethnic-Chinese institutions have turned to English as their working language. It is not rare now for an old-style grocer's or pawnshop to give invoices or receipts in English. Maybe in another decade Chinese medicine practitioners will make prescriptions in pinyin instead of Chinese characters.
In Singapore, those who are good at Chinese but poor in English cannot compete with those who know English well. This is an indisputable fact.
Here Chinese is not so useful as English. Or, frankly speaking, those who earn a living with Chinese make less money than those who work with English. In a society where money is all but everything, who would take pains at studying Chinese, which is not lucrative？ It is no wonder at all that Singaporeans are poor speakers or writers of Chinese as compared with other peoples.
Hong Kong and Taiwan are part of China. In both places, Chinese is the working language and medium of education except for students majoring in foreign languages. Of course, people in Hong Kong and Taiwan are more proficient in Chinese than Singaporeans.
Malaysia still keeps primary and secondary schools in which Chinese is the language of instruction. Pupils are taught in Chinese except for the subjects of English and Malay culture.
Therefore, it is the social environment, not lower IQ, that makes Singaporean pupils less proficient in Chinese. They can't be blamed for spending most of their time studying English and other subjects.
Given the situation, how can the stardard of Chinese of our pupils be improved？
我們的華文為何達不到水平？
最近有讀者在報上問：我們的華文程度為什么不如人？“根據(jù)本身的經(jīng)驗和觀察,謹提出本人的意見,就教于關心此問題的讀者們。
我國是多元種族、多種語言、多元文化的國家,以人口來論,雖然華人占了75%,但是華文的實用價值和重要性,并不成為正比例。
我國是以英文為工作語文,也是最重要的媒介語。政府推動講華語運動已經(jīng)20年,頗有成效。在社會上到處可聽到華人以華語交談,這跟殖民地時代迥然不同。但是華語的普遍應用,并非意味著華文程度也相應提高。
十多年來,我國的教育政策強制學生修讀母語,華族學生修讀華語,同時也是必考科目。小六離校會考,如果學生的英文、數(shù)學、科學取得優(yōu)異成績,但是華文成績太差,必定把積分拉下來,不能進入父母為他們選擇的特選或較好的中學。
到了中四會考時,如華文成績差,也難以進入較好的初院,這將會影響他們升學的前途。初院會考母語也必須及格,這是升入國大和南大深造的必要條件。
為了這個原因,家長們莫不重視這一點,有的還請補習老師來指導孩子。
依照筆者的觀察,有好多學生在中小學修讀華文是為了應付考試,一旦離?；蜻M入大學深造,除了少數(shù)進修華文者外,其他都是選修與華文無關的理科、醫(yī)科、工程等學科。接觸華文的機會很少,尤其是那些在家中說英語的人。
大部分的人士到社會上工作,不論是做行政工作,商業(yè)會計或擔任文書,大都是用英文。本來一般傳統(tǒng)的華人團體,所應用的文字也逐漸改為英文,傳統(tǒng)的雜貨店發(fā)票用英文已不稀奇,當?shù)暌灿杏糜⑽牡?。依照這種趨勢發(fā)展下去,再過十年八年,中醫(yī)師開藥方也可能用漢語拼音了！
在新加坡不懂英文或英文不好的人,即使華文程度高,在學以致用方面來說,也是難以跟英文好的人爭一日之長,這是客觀的現(xiàn)實情形,毋庸爭論的。
在新加坡華文的實用價值比不上英文。說得坦率一點,靠華文來謀生所得收入比較靠英文者為少,在金錢掛帥的社會中,誰還要拼命用功來苦讀華文呢？華文的程度當然會不如人了,不足為怪。
香港是中國的領土,臺灣是中國的一部分,新加坡是獨立國,環(huán)境不同,它們的工作語文是華文,學生在學校求學,除外語外,其余都是用華語教學的,當然他們的華文程度會比我們高,理所當然。至于馬來西亞,還有華文小學、獨中,學生除學習英文和馬來文化,其余都是華文。
綜上所述,我們的華文程度的不如人,是客觀環(huán)境使然,并不是我們的學生資質(zhì)較差。他們把大部分的時間用在修讀英文和其他科目,方便日后深造,求取專業(yè)和科技知識,無可厚非。在這樣的語文環(huán)境下,華文程度如何能提高呢？