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The Bilingual Education Policy in Singapore: Implications for Second Language Acquisition
Abstract
This paper examines assumptions about second language acquisition, bilingualism, and language planning that underlie Singapore's bilingual education policy, noting how the experience in Singapore illuminates current theories in second language acquisition and language planning. In Singapore, English is promoted as the "working language," while Mandarin, Chinese, Malay, and Tamil are considered mother tongues of the major ethnic groups. In the late 1970s, the government adopted a bilingual education policy which requires that all students study their subject matter curriculum in English and all students achieve proficiency in their mother tongue. Singapore's national exams usually show upward trends for all ethnic groups, though there is an achievement gap between the Chinese majority and the Malay and Indian minority groups. Although Chinese students consistently outperform the other groups, and a greater proportion move on to higher education, each ethnic group shows strengths in different areas. Singapore's language policy reflects many common assumptions about language learning (e.g., beginning a second language early leads to higher proficiency). It also reflects many assumptions concerning language planning (e.g., language is a tool that should be carefully chosen for its utility to the national interest). (Contains 38 references.) (SM)
... Until 1932, there were about 23 English Boys' and Girls' school in Singapore, under the supervision of both government and Christian missionary groups. In 1959, once Singapore was granted its independence from the British, Singapore decided to become a multilingual state; a state with four official languages: English, Chinese, Malay, and Tamil (Dixon, 2003). ...
... Having the same point of view, Singapore took the same step as Malaysia and initiated its compulsory bilingual education in 1966 immediately, following its removal from Malaysia in 1965. The Singapore's Bilingual Policy allows the students to learn from one of the four official languages as the medium of instruction but they have to learn Mathematics and Science compulsorily in English (Dixon, 2003). An addition to the policy, students in English-based and non-English-based schools are also required to learn an additional language which they can choose from the four official languages. ...
... An addition to the policy, students in English-based and non-English-based schools are also required to learn an additional language which they can choose from the four official languages. Later, the Singapore government modified the language policy where students are no longer given the privilege to choose the medium of instruction, but rather to learn all subject through English language (Dixon, 2003). The mother tongues, however, can be learnt as a second language. ...
Language planning influences how the language will be deliberately used, functioned and acquired by a local speech community where thoughtful consideration of the language image, learning opportunity, and social standing of the proposed language are required. The aim of this paper is to describe the language planning and language policies adopted by Malaysia and Singapore and what sociocultural factors had been taken into account in crafting the policies. The study provides an overview on the language planning process prior and after the independence of both countries, followed by the struggles to ensure the survival of the newly-embraced policy. In addition, the recent significant changes in the policies will also be discussed. The paper concludes that the language policy of Singapore was driven by the economic utility of the language, while Malaysia, at first, was based on the population identity preservation and cultivating nationalism among its citizens. However, Malaysia followed the footsteps of Singapore decades later.
... In 1979, despite English being a non-native language for the majority of Singaporeans, the Singapore government embraced a unique bilingual education policy for all children who attend formal schooling [51,53]. Since the inception of this policy, the Singapore education system mandated all curriculum be taught in English; with students also required to study their official 'mother tongue' (Mandarin for Chinese, Malay for Malays and Tamil for Indians) as a single subject [54]. At the same time, the Singapore government promoted Mandarin through the 'Speak Mandarin Campaign'. ...
... Starting from preschool, curriculum guidelines mandate that teaching be conducted in English, with mother tongue preliteracy skills taught for 25% of the instructional time [51,57]. Thereafter, students receive their primary and secondary education in English and must concurrently acquire second language proficiency in their official mother tongue [54]. For the Chinese students, they are required to read, write and speak both an alphabetic (English) and a logographic (Mandarin) language system [54]. ...
... Thereafter, students receive their primary and secondary education in English and must concurrently acquire second language proficiency in their official mother tongue [54]. For the Chinese students, they are required to read, write and speak both an alphabetic (English) and a logographic (Mandarin) language system [54]. Three decades since Singapore's language-ineducation policy was mandated, there has been an apparent dominant language shift for bilingual Chinese Singaporean school-aged children aged 14 and under [58]. ...
The main objective of the present study was to examine THE EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE SKILLS and obtain a prevalence estimate of expressive language IMPAIRMENT (not skills) in Chinese Singaporean preschoolers with nonsyndromic cleft lip and/or palate (CLP).
A group of 43 Chinese Singaporean preschoolers aged 3 to 6 years with a diagnosis of nonsyndromic CLP was assessed using the Singapore English Action Picture Test (SEAPT). The SEAPT is an English Language screening tool standardised on typically developing English-Mandarin Chinese Singaporean preschoolers that assesses expressive vocabulary and grammatical usage. A grammar and/or information score below the 20(th) percentile on the SEAPT is indicative of an expressive language impairment. In addition, the medical records of this cohort were examined retrospectively for documentation of surgical timings, audiological history, articulation and resonance.
Based on the results of the SEAPT, 33% of the preschoolers with CLP were identified as having a-possible expressive language impairment. Hence, the likelihood that a child with CLP with normal cognitive functioning will have an expressive language impairment is between 3.9 to 12.7 times more likely than in the general population. There was no statistical significance when comparisons were made between dominant language groups or CLP groups on SEAPT measures of information and grammar content. Significantly more males than females were identified with language difficulties, relative to the sex ratio in the sample. No significance was found for the other participant variables.
The findings of this study suggest that Chinese Singaporean preschoolers with CLP have more difficulty in the expressive use of grammar and vocabulary than their peers of typical development, with significantly more males affected than females. As language performance was not related to hearing, articulation or resonance; these early results suggest that a comprehensive investigation of cognition, literacy and family aggregation of communication disorders is urgently warranted to study other possible aetiologies for language impairment in children with CLP in Singapore.
... The underpinning assumption to this belief is that no one will be discriminated against or disadvantaged because of his/her race, language or religion in a positive, competitive environment that inspires individuals to continuously improve themselves, ensuring continual progress and growth (MFA, 2010). Based on this ideology, English was chosen as the 'neutral' language as it does not give an ethnic group an advantage when the students start primary school (Dixon, 2005). The official MTLs assigned to its respective ethnic groups ensured such parity. ...
... In a population that is predominantly Chinese, the use of English was found to increase steadily, inversely, the use of Chinese dialects has fallen from 18.2% in 2005 to 12.2% in 2015 (Lee, 2016). Language differs from a dialect as only standardised languages are recognised as mediums of instruction in education (Dixon, 2005). Thus, for the Chinese community, this has important implications on the loss of dialects as one of the unintended outcomes of the English plus one MTL policy. ...
... English is used as the language of inter-ethnic communication while the other three official languages are considered mother tongues of the major ethnic groups. Singapore adopts a bilingual language policy for education (Dixon 2005). From the first years of schooling, the medium of instruction is English in all content areas (World Bank 2011), and the official mother tongue is studied as a subject. ...
... Singapore teaches its children, from a very young age, to take pride in their "national identity … have a sense of belonging to their country … (and be) committed to nation-building" (Ministry of Education 2012b, p. 5). Singapore remains a peaceful nation (Institute for Economics and Peace 2017) and has so far been successful in fostering national unity while preserving cultural differences in a plural society through its bilingual language policy and Value and Citizenship education (Dixon 2005). ...
Language has been attributed a causal role with regards to social discord, and language policies that govern media of instruction in schools in multilingual communities such as Sri Lanka have undoubtedly contributed to the disruption and distortion of social relations and structures in otherwise stable ethnically, culturally, and religiously diverse communities. However, abundant historical and contemporary examples suggest that language policy is not usually the sole basis for social disharmony, nor can language policy alone be an adequate response to the need to ameliorate tensions or to repair social fractures following discord or conflict. In Sri Lanka, where postcolonial changes to language policy are commonly argued to be the catalyst for a civil conflict lasting 30 years, hopes are pinned on recent language policy changes which promote language learning to achieve trilingualism (Sinhala, Tamil and English) throughout the country. This chapter considers the potential of the Trilingual Language Policy to achieve political goals of reconciliation and coexistence in the post-war Sri Lankan context given the larger geo-political circumstances, arguing that the promotion of language learning aligns with socioeconomic aspirations of Sri Lankans although trilingualism is a necessary yet, in itself, insufficient prerequisite for the achievement of social harmony.
... However, only 13.6 and 15.5% of the future secondary mathematics teachers in Singapore and Taiwan, respectively, did so. In Singapore, this practice reflects its constitution of multiple ethnic groups and the bilingual combination of the home language and English (Dixon, 2005). However, every future teacher is required to undergo training on "language enhancement and academic discourse skills" to develop the skills of using English for communication, especially for academic professional purposes (Wong et al., 2013, p. 201). ...
... In the United States, the indicator items for leisure predicted the readiness of future teachers. Unexpectedly, home language exhibited negative effects in the United States as it represented immigrant status (Dixon, 2005). Further in-depth analysis is required. ...
This study explores and compares the predictors for the readiness of future secondary teachers to teach mathematics in Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States, using a hierarchical linear model and multivariate linear regression model. On the basis of data from the Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics at the individual and institutional levels, it examines the relationships between the teaching readiness of future teachers and their demographics, entrance quality, motivation, knowledge performance, opportunities to learn (OTLs), and teacher education quality. The findings include that the intrinsic motivation of future teachers to become teachers and their OTL in general education positively predicts their teaching readiness across the three countries. Course consistency in a university and the continuity between university instruction and practicum instruction also positively predict teaching readiness in Taiwan and the United States, respectively.
... According to Chew (2007) [8], Singapore is one of the few non-native English-speaking countries that has adopted English as a working language. It is able to construct its language policies into building a population that is highly fluent in English and other official languages (Dixon, 2005) [13]. Hence, Malaysian LPP makers can imitate what Singapore has done in line with language policies. ...
... According to Chew (2007) [8], Singapore is one of the few non-native English-speaking countries that has adopted English as a working language. It is able to construct its language policies into building a population that is highly fluent in English and other official languages (Dixon, 2005) [13]. Hence, Malaysian LPP makers can imitate what Singapore has done in line with language policies. ...
Language policy and planning (LPP) is defined as large-scale national planning, usually undertaken by governments, meant to influence, if not change, ways of speaking or literacy practices within a society (Baldauf, 2006 [5]). As a multilingual society, Malaysia is determined to preserve its linguistic diversity through its LPP. So far, Malaysia is still struggling to draw up a policy that encompasses the demands of all its linguistic groups across the country, which is shown by its constant policy revisions. Therefore, this paper aims to trace the development of LPP for English in Malaysian education, and it examines the reasons as well as the impacts of language planning and language policy to the competency and proficiency of English among Malaysians. The study is conducted based on secondary research, whereby materials such as journals, books and dissertations are used as references. Apart from gaining an insight of the implemented language policies in Malaysia, the findings reveal the social reality of contrasting LPP initiatives in Malaysia, in which English proficiency levels among students are experiencing a sharp decline, contrary to the amassing significance of the English language in the global arena. Indeed, the effects of LPP, such as the strengthening of nationalist ethos as well as the increasing burden of teaching staff, should be taken into consideration while drafting up and revising LPP to ensure the sustainability of a just and fair society.
... Language policies can restrict language learning rights, affecting bilingual education inclusivity (Blommaert, 2006). Alternatively, other perspectives, such as Dixon's (2003), advocate for selecting communicative and expressive languages as the primary language policy. In Singapore, English is the second language in bilingual education, enhancing national benefits and cultural diversity, despite it not being the mother tongue. ...
... According to the study of Dixon (2015) Singapore is known of its Bilingual Education System that has been hailed a great success due to its first-place mean score in mathematics and second-place in science compared to 38 countries on TIMSS-R in 1999. Also, in the study of Launio (2015), it shows that there was a progress on the students' mathematics performance taught in bilingual medium of instruction (English supplemented with Hiligaynon) than in English only. ...
This study investigates the effects of using a bilingual medium of instruction (Meranaw-Filipino) on students’ conceptual understanding, problem solving performance, and interest in mathematics. It employed a quasi-experimental design. Participants of the study consisted of two intact classes of Grade 7 students matched based on their Mathematics 7 grades during the second grading period of the school year 2016 – 2017. The researcher constructed three research instruments such as Conceptual Understanding Test (CUT), Problem Solving Performance Test
(PSPT), and Mathematics Survey (MIS). Findings revealed an increase of the number of students from the experimental group from low to moderate in terms of their level of conceptual understanding and from interested to very interested level in mathematics. In the aspect of problem solving performance, both groups shows no increase, however there is a significant difference between the control and experimental groups of students’ conceptual understanding, problem solving performance and interest in mathematics before and after intervention in favor of the experimental group. Students’ perceived that they had better comprehension; learned fast, and were more interested in learning mathematics using bilingual medium of instruction in teaching mathematics. This suggests that the use of the bilingual medium of instruction was found to be beneficial in improving students’ conceptual understanding, problem solving performance, and interest in mathematics than using English only as medium of instruction in teaching. Thus, the school administrator should encourage their teachers the use of bilingual as medium of instruction in teaching mathematics.
... Previous research provides evidence showing that cognitive mechanisms supporting nonnative speech perception/learning differ across different age points in adulthood (Ingvalson, Lansford, et al., 2017;Ingvalson, Nowicki, et al., 2017). Further, we note that the contextual and demographic factors influencing Perceptual Sensitivity may differ across younger and older bilinguals in this study, mainly due to language planning and policy changes in Singapore across the decades Dixon, 2003). By contrasting between age groups, we can gain a more comprehensive understanding of how Perceptual Sensitivity impacts nonnative speech perception at different time points of the life span and to further understand the extent to which variation in contextual factors influence Perceptual Sensitivity. ...
Purpose
We investigate in this study how individual variability in native language speech perception (termed Perceptual Sensitivity) influences nonnative speech perception in Singaporean Tamil–English bilinguals. Further, we assess if and how contextual and demographic factors influence Perceptual Sensitivity in the acquired languages and if the influence of Perceptual Sensitivity on nonnative speech perception is different across younger and older bilinguals.
Method
Perceptual Sensitivity in the native languages was examined by implementing Tamil and English gating tasks in 87 Singaporean Tamil–English bilinguals from two age groups (younger: 19–33 years; older: 55–70 years). Mandarin lexical tone discrimination was implemented as a measure of nonnative speech perception.
Results
There was a wide range of variability in Perceptual Sensitivity scores in both languages across both age groups. Perceptual Sensitivity in the first native language (L1 Tamil) was a robust predictor of nonnative speech perception across both age groups, especially for the older bilinguals. However, general intelligence emerged as a stronger predictor than Tamil Perceptual Sensitivity in younger bilinguals. The influence of Tamil Perceptual Sensitivity on lexical tone perception was not tone-specific, supporting a general enhancement of lexical tone perception with better Tamil Perceptual Sensitivity. There was an influence of demographic factors on English Perceptual Sensitivity in older bilinguals, but not for Tamil and not in younger bilinguals.
Conclusions
Our findings corroborate with previous studies in showing that native language Perceptual Sensitivity is positively associated with and predicts nonnative speech perception in younger and older adulthood regardless of language similarity but to varying degrees. Specifically, the influence of Perceptual Sensitivity on nonnative speech perception is stronger in older adulthood, suggesting a possible shift in reliance on crystallized language knowledge with age. Proficiency and use, among other demographic and language variables, do not appear to influence L1 Perceptual Sensitivity in a lesser used language (Tamil) as significantly as previously assumed.
... What of the other languages? In 1957, the census reported a diversified array of 25-50 languages spoken in Singapore, and since then much has been documented about how the bilingual policy (Bokhorst-Heng, 1998;Dixon, 2003Dixon, , 2005Silver, 2005), the Mother Tongue Policy (Gupta, 1997;Kwan-Terry, 2000;C. Tan, 2006), and the "Speak Mandarin Campaign" launched in 1979 pushed out all the other languages. ...
Singapore English is one of the best‐researched varieties of English in Asia, given E. L. Low's calculation that at that time there were over 200 studies of various aspects of Singapore English, and many more have been published since then. This chapter provides a snapshot of what Singapore English is. It gives a description of Singapore's past around the turn of the twenty‐first century, which is characterized by the type of superdiversity reported by present‐day scholars working on Europe, to show a form of “reverse‐superdiversity” at work in the past five decades which has resulted in transforming present‐day Singapore into a country where English holds the predominant place in the linguistic repertoire of all Singaporeans. Singapore English has been said to have phonological features that are more similar to British than to American English. The development of Singapore's bilingual education originated during colonial rule.
... When it was dissolved from the British and gradually became an independent country in the 1960s, the four official languages were legally established: English, Mandarin Chinese, Malay, and Tamil (Lee 2012). However, English has been the 'working language' for government administration, education, commerce, science, technology, and communication between different ethnic communities (Dixon 2005;Lee 2012;Li and Rao 2000). The other three official languages are designated to Chinese, Malays and Indians (Tamil) as their mother tongue languages (MTLs), which are indeed the heritage languages in the country. ...
This study elicited and analyzed all the Chinese and English interrogatives from the Singapore Early Child Mandarin Corpus (132 children aged 2;6, 3;6, 4;6, and 5;6) to examine the effects and predictors of early bilingual development in Singapore preschoolers. The results indicated that: (1) there was significant age (but not gender) effect in the production of Chinese and English interrogatives; (2) relatively more types of English interrogatives were produced and more preschoolers produced English interrogatives; (3) Parent Language Input Pattern significantly predicted the increase of Chinese interrogatives, whereas Parent Language Input Pattern and Language Spoken by Child jointly but negatively predicted English interrogatives; (4) the pattern that both parents only speak Chinese was associated with the highest production of Chinese interrogatives and the lowest production of English ones, whereas the pattern that both parents only speak English had the highest production of English interrogatives; and (5) the ‘one-parent-one-language’ pattern was found to have a balanced but reduced production of Chinese and English interrogatives, indicating a subtractive bilingualism in Singapore preschoolers.
... In Singapore, among the resident population aged 15 and over who are literate (95.9%), 78.6% speaks either English only (11.1%) or English and at least one other language (67.5%). English is the first language in school for all Singaporeans since 1959 [24]. ...
Background
The WHOQOL-BREF is a widely used questionnaire for measuring quality of life. It is important to establish the measurement equivalence of various language versions of WHOQOL-BREF so that scores from different language versions may be pooled together. The primary aim of this article was to evaluate the measurement equivalence of the English, Chinese and Malay versions of the WHOQOL-BREF.
Methods
We analysed data from the previously published, cross-sectional, WONDERS study and used linear regression models to adjust for potential confounding variables. Based on equivalence clinical trial methods, measurement equivalence was assessed by comparing 90% confidence interval (CI) of differences in scores across language versions with a predefined equivalence margin of 0.3 SD. Equivalence was achieved if the 90% CI fell within 0.3 SD. Data from 1203 participants, aged above 21 years, were analysed.
Results
Participants who completed the different language versions of WHOQOL-BREF expectedly differed in age, ethnicity, highest education level, marital status, smoking status and Body Mass Index (BMI). The English and Malay language versions were definitely equivalent for all domains. The English and Chinese language versions were definitely equivalent for physical and environmental domains but inconclusive for psychological and social domains. Likewise, for Chinese and Malay versions.
Conclusion
The English, Chinese and Malay language versions of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire may be considered equivalent, with evidence being more robust for some domains than the others. Given the large number of people who speak/ read Chinese and Malay, this study has widespread relevance.
... This marked the beginning of the decline of Chinese dialects in Singapore. 1 By 1981, the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation, today's MediaCorp, had done away with programs in every dialect except Mandarin. Scholars have discussed the effects of this Campaign on language acquisition (Dixon 2005). ...
Singapore is a multiracial, multicultural island nation; three quarters of its population is ethnic Chinese. This paper examines the phenomenon of code-switching between the younger generation and their parents, and grandparents, focusing on the English, Chinese dialect and Malay elements present in this variety of spoken Mandarin. The data is taken from university students who have recorded their conversations with their parents, grandparents, siblings and friends. Many of the older generation in their 70s still speak southern Chinese dialects such as Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese, Hakka, and Hainanese as well as Bazaar Malay (which was a lingua franca with Hokkien). Their spoken Mandarin consists of code-switching with these dialects. The middle generation in their 50s is the generation that is able to communicate both with the older generation and younger generation in the various languages. Their spoken Mandarin consists of English, dialects, and even some Malay. The younger generation in their 20s can hardly understand or speak these dialects as a result of the Speak Mandarin Campaign which was launched in 1979 to replace all dialects with Mandarin. As such, the younger generation’s spoken Mandarin consists mainly of English code-switched elements. This paper argues that code-switching takes place mainly due to convenience to fill in the gaps when younger speakers do not know the Mandarin equivalent of the words in certain domains, given the changes in language policies in the nation. In this case, it is not necessarily a choice of code but rather filling the gaps with the language that they know out of necessity.
... Chart 2 shows the rapid increase of English as the dominant language at home for Pri-1 students (age 6-7), with a decline in Mandarin and almost extinct Chinese dialects. This is significant as there is evidence that knowledge of Chinese dialects helps learning of Mandarin (Dixon 2005). Research shows that the handful of younger generation who can speak dialect attributes it to their grandmothers who were their caregivers, hence dialects have become 'grandmother's tongue' (Lee 2015). ...
Singapore?s multilingual and multicultural sociolinguistic ecology probably makes it one of the best places in the world to nurture strong bilingualism. However, English is fast becoming the mother tongue of Singapore Chinese children. This is due to the fact that over the years of building the country?s economy, English has taken over as the medium of instruction in schools and the working language of the society, as well as the main language spoken in the homes. This paper examines the Chinese language education in Singapore preschools and explains how a change in preschool education policy can help children lay a better foundation for bilingualism, giving them a higher chance of success in later years (Yip and Matthews 2007.
... The mother tongues are therefore deemed important, worthy of study, and as being in need of protection in the face of the potential shift towards English, given the elevated position of English in the country. Mother tongues are, as a result, taught at a high level in school, under a policy of bilingual education (Pakir 1991;Pakir 2001;Dixon 2005). ...
This chapter examines the sociolinguistics of the Indian community in Singapore, with a particular emphasis on the use of the -ing marker among Tamils. The Indian diaspora in Singapore is of interest because the community differs from others in many respects: although a minority of less than 10 percent, Indians enjoy constitutional recognition, primarily through the use of Tamil as one of the four official languages. Furthermore, they are a firmly established ethnic group within the country, both socially and economically, having been instrumental in early colonial times and during the foundation phase of present-day Singapore English. Our study, drawing on data collected from 96 informants coming in equal parts from the Tamil, Chinese, and Malay communities, investigates the use of over-extension of -ing as a marker of all imperfectives, including statives and non-delimited habituals. We found the Tamils rating -ing as acceptable significantly more frequently than the other two groups in the case of statives and non-delimited habituals. As this parallels the Tamil aspectual system, our findings strongly support a substratist explanation for the Indian Singapore English aspect system.
... Given the multitude of languages in the Singaporean society (English, Singlish, mother tongues), the population is best described as 'multilingual' rather than 'bilingual', but in this paper, we will be using the term 'bilingual' to capture the basic Malay-English competence of the children we study here. The Malay-English children we study here are generally characterized as simultaneous bilinguals, given the mandatory bilingual education policy since 1966 in Singapore (Dixon, 2003) In fact, Stroud (2007) described Malays as being more resistant to a language shift towards English in Singapore. Above and beyond the differences in low SES Malay and high SES Chinese populations in Singapore, all share the 'Asian milieu' of the Singapore culture. ...
Thirty-four 4 to 6-year-old Malay–English bilinguals (both balanced and dominant) characterized as low SES on income and parental education were tested on the child-Attentional Network Task (ANT) (Rueda, Rothbart, McCandliss, Saccomanno & Posner, 2004) measuring executive attention. Although SES measures fell below the Singapore median, Malay children's performance on the child-ANT remained high when compared to other age-matched monolingual and bilingual children previously tested with the child-ANT (Yang, Yang & Lust, 2011), and Chinese–English Singaporean bilinguals (Yang, Yang & Kang, 2014). None of the three SES measures – father's and mother's education, and income – significantly correlated with child-ANT components. Regression analyses confirmed that none of the SES measures significantly predicted performance on the child-ANT. Both balanced and dominant bilinguals displayed high executive control. We consider the possibility that cultural variations, (e.g., simultaneous and pervasiveness of bilingualism in Singapore, or pervasive code-switching), may ameliorate potential negative effects of SES on executive control development.
... Assumptions affecting Singapore Chinese-language education policy Authorities in charge of language policies made certain assumptions on language acquisition (see Dixon, 2005). These assumptions had led to present-day Chinese-language education policy. ...
Three-quarters of Singapore's population consists of ethnic Chinese, and yet, learning Chinese (Mandarin) has been a headache for many Singapore students. Recently, many scholars have argued that the rhetoric of language planning for Mandarin Chinese should be shifted from emphasizing its cultural value to stressing its economic value since China's economy is on the rise. Others have proposed that there be a wider use of Mandarin in domains outside the classroom. Given that Singapore's language planning uses a top-down model, these are issues that can only be left to the discretion of the authorities. This article traces the policies that have led to a decline in Chinese-language proficiency in Singapore. It then suggests how some changes can be made to help students have a chance to learn Mandarin in a progressive and effective way, thus saving Chinese-language proficiency in Singapore.
... It is referred to as "Mother Tongue" in the education system. While mother tongue is normally thought of as the language learned by children and passed from one generation to the next (wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn), it is not so in Singapore as many children do not speak or learn to speak Chinese anymore at home [7]. The rise of China as an economic superpower, however, has pushed education authorities to improve students' standard of Chinese. ...
... According to this policy, every child should learn English and one of the mother tongues. English is recognized as a "working language" in education and work, while the rest of the official languages are "mother tongues" of major ethnic groups (Dixon, 2005;Pakir, 1999). ...
This paper explores whether English–Mandarin bilingual children have mastered discourse skills and whether they show sensitivity to the discourse principle of information status of referents in their speech and gestures. We compare the speech and gestures produced by bilingual children to those produced by English- and Mandarin-speaking monolingual children. Six English-speaking and six Mandarin-speaking monolingual children, and nine English–Mandarin bilingual children (who were more dominant in English) were videotaped while interacting with their caregivers. Monolingual Mandarin- and English-speaking children produced null arguments and pronouns respectively to indicate given third-person referents, and nouns to indicate new third-person referents. They also gestured new third-person referents more often than given third-person referents. Thus, monolinguals’ speech and gestures followed the discourse principle. English–Mandarin bilingual children's speech and gestures also followed the discourse principle but only when they were speaking in English. They produced nouns more often to indicate given third-person referents than to indicate new third-person referents in Mandarin, indicating the violation of the discourse principle. It is interesting that they gestured new third-person referents more often than given third-person referents in Mandarin. Thus, our findings suggest that gesture precedes language development at discourse level in the less-dominant language in bilinguals.
... If one's father is ethnically Chinese, for example, Mandarin is the assigned 'mother tongue' even if the first language one learnt from infancy was, in fact, English or Hokkien. 2 For many in Singapore's Chinese and Indian communities, it is, in fact, quite likely that an individual's assigned 'mother tongue' is actually a completely foreign language rather than one learnt from infancy or even spoken by one's ancestors. Chinese immigrants to Singapore, after all, were predominantly speakers of Hokkien, Teochew, and Cantonese -not Mandarin -and only 60 per cent of Singaporean Indians come from Tamil-speaking family backgrounds (Dixon 2005). It is, therefore, not terribly surprising that an ever-increasing number of Singaporean Chinese and Indians are eschewing their assigned 'mother tongues' and embracing English. ...
With English use extremely prevalent in Singapore, young Singaporeans are increasingly abandoning the use of their ethnic languages. The Singapore Malay community, however, is frequently depicted as an exception to this trend, proudly keeping Malay as their dominant language and an integral part of their cultural identities despite the overwhelming dominance of English in present day Singaporean society. This study seeks to obtain a sense of whether this is indeed the case by investigating the relationships Singaporean Malay university students (ages 18–26) have with Malay along the dimensions of language expertise, language inheritance, and language affiliation. Fifty survey participants reported on their proficiency in, use of, and perceptions of Malay and English. The results indicate that participants’ relationships with Malay are indeed strongly characterized by all three dimensions – expertise, inheritance, and affiliation – despite their prevalent use of English in all but a few domains and, by the majority, identification of English as the language that best defines them as Singaporeans.
... In general, Chinese perform the best in math and science, and a greater proportion move on to each higher stage of education (Ministry of Education, 2002a). However, interestingly, Indians actually perform the best on the English exams, while Malays perform best on Mother Tongue exams (Malay for them) (Dixon, 2002, in press). ...
Thesis (Ed. D)--Harvard Graduate School of Education, 2004. Inludes bibliographical references (leaves 98-104).
Once Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Founding father of the modern State of Singapore, offered the Singapore’s political experience to Vladimir Putin during their meeting. He was not heard and Putin claimed that Russia must have its own way in Eurasia, dissimilar with the Singapore’s one. Almost twenty years have passed since those times. Russian political elites did not opt to learn anything from the Singapore’s socio-political experience. Now Russia faces the situation to be disregarded as a Eurasian power and thrown at the border of new Eurasian communication routes withal. An analysis of possibilities to use Singapore’s rich legal and cultural achievements in the modern socio-political Russian realities, is proposed in the paper.
This chapter discusses some of the language issues and challenges that deaf and hard of hearing students (DHH) face in the school environment and argues that successful bilingual and multilingual education programs are necessary for DHH students, including professional training in deaf education around of the world. The chapter includes subtitle topics such as the historical development of bilingual education, deaf learners and deaf bilingual education, multilingual and multicultural education. The author concludes the chapter by making recommendations regarding the effectiveness of bilingual and multilingual education for DHH students. The goal is to support educators and professionals in the deaf education field to pay attention to bilingual deaf education through teacher professional development based on the field needs.
According to Lee Kuan Yew, late Prime Minister of Singapore, “language policy is a vital instrument for achieving national interest objectives and meeting the needs of governance… unite a population that is racially and linguistically diverse” (Lee in My lifelong challenge: Singapore bilingual journey. Straits Times Press, Singapore, p. 224, 2012). Based on this belief, Singapore has adopted an “English plus one” policy with English as the first language for all Singaporeans and one of the mother tongue languages (Mandarin, Malay, or Tamil) as the second language (Chua in Current Issues in Language Planning, 12(2),125-145, 2011; Pakir in Round table on languages and linguistics: Language in our time. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, pp. 341–349, 1999). International students who wish to enroll into the mainstream schools are required to take the Admissions Exercise for International Students (AEIS), a centralized test of English and Mathematics. English, a former colonial language, has become the main medium of instruction in Singapore’s mainstream schools (Ministry of Education (MOE) in Singapore: International students admissions, 2020a), and proficiency in English is tested in all high-stakes national examinations, such as the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). This chapter discusses how supra-macro-language policy, i.e., bilingual policy and context-based micro-planning strengthens the coexistence between TESOL and multilingualism in Singapore (Chua and Baldauf in Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning. Routledge, Vol. 2, 2009). It illustrates the importance of local or micro-language planning in ensuring macro-language planning is successful and effective. The chapter highlights the assumptions, successes, challenges, and tensions in promoting diversity in languages through a unified English language approach in modern Singapore.
The Tyranny of Writing: Ideologies of the Written Word Constanze Weth and Kasper Juffermans (eds) (2018)
Content and language integrated learning (CLIL) has become popular in bilingual educational contexts around the world. In Hong Kong, medium of instruction (MOI) in secondary schools has received great attention among teachers, students and parents over the years. After the handover of Hong Kong to China, the local government launched the mother-tongue language policy. However, many parents believe that English as a medium of instruction (EMI) secondary schools are better than Chinese (Cantonese) as a medium of instruction (CMI) schools. After years of discussion, the government implemented a ‘fine-tuning’ language policy which allows more schools to offer EMI curriculum. These development of language policy have prompted policy makers and educators to rethink whether monolingual instructional approach benefits students the most in CLIL classrooms. Reviewing the language policy in Hong Kong, this paper suggests that English-medium CLIL programmes, with purposeful use of Cantonese, should be promoted in Hong Kong secondary schools.
Language loss is a phenomenon of practical concern to traditional language communities and of academic interest to language researchers. Language loss has resulted in communication gap between generations and a sense of loss in culture (Hinton, 1999). Over the years, a similar phenomenon has been observed in Singapore, and it is the focus of this article to forecast what may happen to the Chinese Language (referred to officially as a mother tongue) among Singaporean Chinese vis-à-vis English. This is a phenomenon similar yet different from language loss experienced in other countries, including America, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. This article will take a brief overview of language loss in the world and then looks into the situation of Chinese Language in the Singaporean Chinese community.
The language question in post-democratic South Africa continues to take centre stage in the field of education. A recent announcement by the University of Natal (UKZN) that it would be mandatory for all first year students in 2014 to study isiZulu indicates a vision that could gradually usher in a tertiary education system that is bilingual in the KwaZulu Natal Province in South Africa. A related development in the Ministry of Basic Education which makes it mandatory for all primary school children to study an African language as from 2014 is also supportive of bi/multilingual education. Notwithstanding the fact that in the South African context, English has greater currency than African languages, this paper makes a strong case for promoting regional bi/multilingualism in South African universities. Drawing on the Singaporean socio-linguistic situation, innovative national and international tertiary initiatives aimed at promoting ‘epistemological access’ through bi/multilingualism and the ecology of language metaphor, the paper argues that whereas language was used to create artificial divisions and boundaries in the apartheid era, it can be used to promote student success, economic prosperity, social cohesion and human rights in post-apartheid South Africa.
There is no formal music therapy training available in Singapore. All Singaporean music therapists are trained in a socio-cultural context different from their home country, resulting in readjustment issues when they return. This phenomenological study, comprising interviews with four Singaporean music therapists, found that the music therapists’ readjustment back to Singapore was marked by transition blues as they took on responsibilities of a professional with added reverse culture shock. The different socio-cultural contexts between their country of training and Singapore also meant that clients sometimes responded in an unexpected manner, finding some music therapy approaches less effective in Singapore. Participants also struggled to fit their professional aspirations with the local environment, yet felt at home as they understood the social context upon return as music therapists. Embracing advocacy, finding supportive networks, and being adaptable while finding ways to stay true to one’s professional beliefs helped overcome challenges of readjustment.
In this chapter, we will investigate how reading comprehension
skills and creativity develop in children raised in a bilingual environment. The chapter reports a case study on a small group of 17 pre-school students in Singapore that explores several dimensions of creativity and some possibly of language ability. The study hopes to identify areas for further investigation on a larger scale. Children explore the world around them from the moment they are born. The experiences are shaped by the culture they are born in. Plasticity of the children’s brain to retain experience and its ability to reproduce them ensure the passing down of culture (Vygotsky 2004). Vygotsky (2004) pointed out that if the brain merely passively reproduces previous experiences, human beings would always be looking backward. What makes human beings future oriented is the brain’s ability to combine elements into new ideas and concepts. The combinatorial ability, which is also known as imagination, is the basis for creativity. If experience is the basis of imagination, then broadening children’s experience will provide a fertile ground for imagination, and hence, creativity, to flourish (Vygotsky 2004). The more enriched children’s experiences are, the more elements they will have to operate their imagination. Reading, which allows children to explore the world vicariously, is an effective way to enrich children’s experience. When children read, they construct meaning from what they read, augmenting and enriching the representations they build from when they explore and make sense of the physical world. It allows greater opportunity for imagination and for creativity.
This chapter examines the possibility of a Singapore Standard English. It suggests that it is no longer appropriate to predetermine what is and is not standard by the methods adopted in the 1980s. It considers the definition of standard English for Singapore applicable in the twenty-first century and proposes a concept of International Englishes. The analysis of Singaporeans' usage of English indicates that Singaporeans experience the same uncertainty about standard English as users of English from other English-using nations.
Existing models of variation for Singapore English, with the possible exception of Alsagoff's cultural orientation model, are largely unsatisfactory in accounting for the high degree of Singlish–Standard alternation found in everyday speech. The occurrence, for instance, of Singlish elements in otherwise Standard speech is a challenge. An approach based on indexicality enables a less code‐based, more inclusive analysis, allowing for a multitude of codes from various languages to be taken into account. Thus, the clear separation of ‘varieties’ such as Singlish, Standard English, Mandarin, Hokkien, etc., is deconstructed, and their interplay highlighted. The data presented herein shows the strength of such a model, and raises questions as to the appropriateness of independent, distinct ‘varieties’ in the speech community at hand.
This paper examines Singapore's bilingual policy, i.e. English and one other designated Mother Tongue,1 its second language acquisition policy (i.e. Mother Tongue), and its 'Speak Mandarin Campaign'. The bilingual policy has successfully transformed Singapore into an English-knowing country, and its 'Speak Mandarin Campaign' has effectively replaced the Chinese dialects with Mandarin (or English) at least among the younger members of the Chinese community in Singapore. Thus, language policy and planning in Singapore have played an important role in the country's education and in its socio-linguistic makeup, but more importantly, in its nation-building process. Although English was the country's colonial language, it was chosen as its lingua franca because of its importance as a communicative tool in world trade. While the government's deliberate interventions have succeeded, as evidenced in its high literacy rate, they have also created unplanned side effects, such as a decrease in the desire to learn the Mother Tongue languages. With globalisation, the rise of the economic importance of India and China and the freer movement of skilled individuals, the traditional concepts of individual bilingualism and societal multilingualism have had to change to include learning other languages and relearning Mandarin. Thus, the government and the Ministry of Education have taken a prestige planning approach to the 'Speak Mandarin Campaign' and have introduced a series of changes to the educational second-language policy in an attempt to encourage Singaporeans to move beyond mother tongue bilingualism and to become trilingual instead.
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