Learn Chinese?
There has been alot of talk about the changing the way Singaporean youths learn chinese nowadays. I've read countless news reports about it over the past few weeks.
The old way of teaching chinese is by drilling students, making them practice reading and writing chinese characters. This can make students dislike the chinese as they are usually forced into doing those. Ways of making the learning of chinese more interesting are also being talked about and some teachers interviewed say that they are not able to make lessons more interesting because of the syllabus which revolves around 4 or 5 values I can't quite remember.
Therefore, now the government is planning to review the syllabus and change the way chinese is being taught in schools. Instead of focusing on drilling of students and writing, they will be concentrating on reading and speaking instead and will even allow electronic dictionaries to be used during exams!
I used to dislike chinese terribly as I am one of the victims of the intense drilling by my school teachers and especially tuition teachers. My dislike of chinese was also caused by having a group of friends in secondary school who didn't give a d**n about chinese. Now I am neutral to it.
I think that the learning of chinese is up to the individual. I have heard many times that I am a chinese and I must learn to speak chinese, but the thing is, did I choose to be chinese? I just happened to be born in this part of the world. In this modern time, I think the concept of needing to learn chinese because you are chinese is not very liable. You have to learn what is necessary to comunicate with most people or what you are most comfortable with, in my case its english.
Like PM Lee said, it's hard to master both languages, more english, less chinese and vice versa. He also said parents should make decisions which language they want their kids to be better at. I believe that is ok, but when the kid grows older, let him or her decide what he wants.
If you have any comments, feel free to reply, click on the 'comments' link below.
The old way of teaching chinese is by drilling students, making them practice reading and writing chinese characters. This can make students dislike the chinese as they are usually forced into doing those. Ways of making the learning of chinese more interesting are also being talked about and some teachers interviewed say that they are not able to make lessons more interesting because of the syllabus which revolves around 4 or 5 values I can't quite remember.
Therefore, now the government is planning to review the syllabus and change the way chinese is being taught in schools. Instead of focusing on drilling of students and writing, they will be concentrating on reading and speaking instead and will even allow electronic dictionaries to be used during exams!
I used to dislike chinese terribly as I am one of the victims of the intense drilling by my school teachers and especially tuition teachers. My dislike of chinese was also caused by having a group of friends in secondary school who didn't give a d**n about chinese. Now I am neutral to it.
I think that the learning of chinese is up to the individual. I have heard many times that I am a chinese and I must learn to speak chinese, but the thing is, did I choose to be chinese? I just happened to be born in this part of the world. In this modern time, I think the concept of needing to learn chinese because you are chinese is not very liable. You have to learn what is necessary to comunicate with most people or what you are most comfortable with, in my case its english.
Like PM Lee said, it's hard to master both languages, more english, less chinese and vice versa. He also said parents should make decisions which language they want their kids to be better at. I believe that is ok, but when the kid grows older, let him or her decide what he wants.
If you have any comments, feel free to reply, click on the 'comments' link below.
posted by Fab at 1:30 PM
4 Comments:
I still think being a chinese, we should know chinese as this is our culture and heritage. If everyone don't learn chinese as they belief that english is enough.. one day, chinese will be endangered and be extinct..
Bleah! Want to start an arguement?
why b so serious?
haiyo...
well, I'm just putting down my thoughts up for a discussion
I'm into French instead ...
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