Ranjit Singh’s Post

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HRD Corp Accredited Trainer, Tutor and Writer at LOGOS English Services

The standard of English among most Malaysians is indeed worrying. How do I know this? When I teach English online, I can observe how most Malaysians (students and adults) struggle to even understand Basic English. It is even more worrying when I find out that most students are NOT TAUGHT grammar in school. Can Malaysians become proficient in spoken and written English, the Transmission Skills, without the vital knowledge called grammar? Just a few days ago during an online session, a learner, who is a secondary school student, posed this question to me: “What is the difference between ARE and WERE?” I was shocked to hear that. How could this learner not know this simple present and past tense of the verb TO BE? He is a secondary school student. What is he being taught in school during his English lessons? This example shows glaringly that the teachers who teach English are not really teaching their students how the English language really works. This example also shows glaringly that those teachers may not even know how the English language really works. Can one explain the atrocious standard of English among most Malaysians today? It is the result of using the wrong approach to teach and learn English and it is the result of hiring the wrong people to teach English. When Malaysians still use the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) Approach, which places a lot of emphasis on Communicative English, to teach English, the results will be negative. Malaysians must not only change the approach to teach and learn English. They must also demand that teachers who teach the English language in schools (public, private and international) are really competent to teach English. It is high time that the policymakers in charge of education change the approach to teach and learn English in Malaysia altogether. In addition, the policymakers must make it mandatory for all schools in Malaysia (public, private and international) to hire only Malaysians who are really competent to teach the English language. In the field of teaching and learning English, Malaysians have been running around in circles since 1970. Most Malaysians struggle to speak and write English correctly today as they lack the vital knowledge of grammar to be proficient in spoken and written English. #Malaysia #writing #english #education #grammar #English #englishgrammar #englishtutor #learnenglish #learningenglishonline #standardenglish #englishteacher #structuralapproach #writtenenglish

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