Reader Response (The final of the final, 4th Draft)

In Ndrahutse’s (2011) article entitled “Speaking up for the mother tongue”, she asserts that 'English language skills' are beneficial only in the short-run and it carries unexpected ‘negative consequences’ in the long-run for the non-educated and survival of racial distinctiveness. The ‘negative consequences’ are the growing disparity between the educated and non-educated, social problems that will arise because of this disparity and restricting more people towards contribution to ‘larger development aims’. The difficulty faced in learning languages in schools still prevails in many countries. Many efforts have been made to promote “mother tongue-based multilingual education projects” across school systems in an attempt to preserve and develop their unique cultural distinctiveness and at the same time encourage people to learn internationally recognized languages for economic and social purposes. Ndrahutse also points out that “mother tongue-based multilingual education projects” fail because the need of preserving cultural distinctiveness is neglected. Ndrahutse lastly asserts that teachers, education and finance ministries should work together to emphasize the need to learn both Mother Tongue and English language and improve education standards.

The above summary hence reflects the threat that the exchange of culture and mobility could undeniably pose towards preserving cultural distinctiveness, in this increasingly globalized world. I personally agree with Ndrahutse that Mother Tongue should be given more attention. However, I felt that the 'English language skills' that she discussed in this article mainly focused on the 'negative consequences' that prioritizing English encompasses. It could be discussed more positively. Therefore, while Mother Tongue language should be given more priority, English should not be totally credited for threatening the survival of racial distinctiveness and I hope that a country rich in racial diversity like Singapore, would uphold its unique feature of bilingualism.

As mentioned in the above paragraph, I agree with Ndrahutse that we should ‘speak up for the mother tongue’ and her claim that “mother tongue-based multilingual education projects” fails mainly because its importance is not well understood. Learning mother tongue language is important because it preserves the unique cultural identity and the language itself. However, in this globalized world, cultural distinctiveness had been slowly eroding because only ‘prestigious languages’ such as English are prioritized.  In the case of a bilingual nation such as Singapore, even though mother tongue remains a compulsory language in primary and secondary school, her priority is more inclined towards English. This is evident in the difference in the importance of English and mother tongue grades. It is important to pass English and less important to pass mother tongue. In fact, unlike English, passing mother tongue is not a prerequisite to enter tertiary institutions. It is hence important to ‘speak up for the mother tongue’ in Singapore because being bilingual is a distinct feature of our nation and we should work towards a more balanced bilingual education by inculcating the importance of mother tongue.

Even though it is true that ‘English language skills’ carries ‘negative consequences’ in the long-run, as Ndrahutse brought up in the article, the benefits of 'English language skills' should be looked at more positively. English is a universal language and it has both short-term and long-term benefits. As mentioned by Ndrahutse, it is true that English is beneficial for economic opportunities. Many jobs require ‘English language skills’ and it is beneficial for those who are climbing up the social ladder by acquiring a better job overseas. It is not necessarily fully harmful in the long-run. In the article, Ndrahutse mentions that ‘English language skills’ would widen the gap between the educated and non-educated which would cause social problems. However, I personally think otherwise. Learning a common language could improve social problems because many social problems arise due to misunderstanding between people with different backgrounds. Besides being able to better understand each other, learning English allows people of different backgrounds to have something in common. In the case of Singapore, I believe that English is important for social harmony in the long-run especially when it is a country filled with diverse racial and cultural identities. Without a common language, there will be a greater social gap between different racial group. Hence, I agree to a small extent that ‘English language skills’ would only bring harm in the long run.

In conclusion, this article brought up a social problem that prevails in many countries today. It definitely did its part in promoting the importance of mother tongue. I personally think that both English and mother tongue should be given equal priority as they are equally important. I hope that Singapore will continue to work hard towards a bilingual nation and inculcate the importance of our racial identity and distinctiveness to the younger generations.

Bibliography

Susy Ndrahutse, ‘Speaking for the mother tongue’, Guardian Weekly

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2011/feb/08/tefl-languages

Essay (Draft 2)

Introduction

Singapore is often described as the high wired society, the penetration of mobile telephony, PCs and the Internet is extremely high in Singapore. It has one of the highest mobile penetration rates in the world at 76 per cent (Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore, 2003). Yet, there still exist a ‘digital divide’ between the low income group and the rest of the society because this ‘digital divide’ has not been addressed comprehensively to fully bridge the gap between the low income group and the rest of the society. This leads to economic stagnation in both micro and macro levels. In micro level, these individuals will be stuck in the vicious cycle of poverty. In macro level, the economy have to sacrifice time and effort needed to make progress for helping the low income group integrate better in the world of technology. The problem of this ‘digital divide’ and economic stagnation in the micro level will only worsen and cause economic stagnation in the macro level if Singapore continues to propose ambitious plans without addressing this internal problem. Therefore, this essay will pinpoint the problem of economic stagnation caused by this ‘digital divide’, evaluate previous IDA’s efforts made to address this ‘digital divide’ and propose building computer hubs under HDBs which I believe would be more successful in bridging the gap between the low income groups and the rest of the society in Singapore.

Problem: Economic Stagnation

The ‘digital divide’ between low income groups and the rest of the society in Singapore results in economic stagnation at macro and micro levels. As technology has gradually become a necessity in a century so dependent on internet, the inability to access information using ICT leaves the low income group isolated from the rest of the society. The root causes of this isolationism are their inability to afford computers and broadband and the lack of knowledge towards the usage and the importance of technology. Hence, the economic stagnation of the low income groups as a result of their inability to stay connected has a significant impact on the society’s economy because the economy have to first bridge this ‘digital divide’ before further progress into the international arena. As technology is a key contributor to Singapore’s economy, registering a strong year-on-year growth of 23 per cent to reach S$102 billion in ICT revenue in 2012, this ‘digital divide hinders Singapore’s potential for further improvements (Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore, 2014). For example, many efforts have been made, by the IDA such as building a media hub, in aim to bring Singapore tech on the world stage (Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore, 2014). However, the rewards of these efforts will only be seen in full potential if the entire society is on the same page. Therefore, it is important to bridge the gap between the low income group and the rest of the society in Singapore before any ambitious proposal in order to reap the full capacity of its reward.

Previous IDA’s attempt

Besides putting the vision of bringing Singapore’s technology to international level into plans, IDA attempted to bridge this ‘digital divide’ by making technology more affordable for the low income group. For example, IDA's NEU PC Plus programme offers students from low income families the opportunity to own a new computer at a discount of up to 75 per cent. Adding on to that, IDA also has a broadband-only scheme for students who already own computers but cannot afford broadband subscriptions. They pay only $1.50 monthly for 36 months for a fixed-line or mobile broadband subscription. (Tham, 2014) However, the subsidy can be only be given to customers of specific telecommunication brand such as SingTel and M1. Furthermore, the connection rate provided in the broadband subscription is not fast for multitasking and may even have difficulty entering a school's secure portal to download assignments (Tham, 2014). Even though this attempt did address the root cause of the lower income group’s inability to afford technology, the services provided by this subsidy was definitely not enough to bridge this ‘digital divide’. The low income group are still at a lower level than the rest of the society in the world of technology. In order to successfully bridge the gap, efforts made should efficiently help the low income groups to be on the same level as the rest of the society so that they can escape the vicious cycle of poverty.

Proposed solution: Computer Hubs

With that, a comprehensive solution to this persistent problem could be to build a computer hub under HDB districts so as help the isolated low income groups integrate to a well-connected society. Similar to the implementation of building a mini lounge with a shared television and benches for the elderlies under HDB flats, it is feasible for IDA to build an exclusive computer hub for the lower-income groups. The hub would consists of computers, printers and a beginner’s guide book on the basic and fundamental functions such as Microsoft Word and E-mail. Unlike other IT courses introduced in Community Centres, the access to these computer hubs should be made free. The exclusiveness could be maintained through creating an exclusive access pass for the lower-income group to enter the room, so the middle and high income group will not make use of their privilege. To solve the problem of having limited knowledge especially for adults in the lower-income groups, workshops could be held once or twice a week. The workshop aims to demonstrate and teach them the basic functions of a computer such as sending emails and Microsoft word. Besides the technical skills, the workshop should also inform the low income groups of the importance of technology so as to prevent this ignorance from contributing to the vicious cycle of poverty.

Conclusion

In essence, the low income groups are isolated and stuck in the vicious cycle of poverty due to the inability to afford and understand technology. In order to effectively bridge this gap between the low income group and the rest pf the society in Singapore, the low income group must be at the same page of progression in the world of technology. Thus only by making exclusive privilege for the low income group, they will be included in the society.

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Bibliography

Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (2003). Decision Paper: Charging for Mobile Phone Services: Mobile-Party-Pays ("MPP") vs Calling-Party-Pays ("CPP"). Singapore, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore. 2003: 5.

Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (2014) 2013: Putting Singapore tech on the world stage. (2014, January 3). Infocomm News from Singapore. Retrieved September 30, 2014, from http://www.ida.gov.sg/blog/insg/featured/2013-putting-singapore-tech-on-the-world-stage/

Tham, I. (2014, March 14). Bridging the digital divide. Asia One Singapore. Retrieved September 30, 2014, from http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/bridging-digital-divide