In the recent months, there has been a heated debate over the teaching of mother tongue in Singapore’s public schools, culminating in Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s and Education Minister Ng Eng Hen’s assure that the weightage of mother tongue in the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) will not be reduced.

These assurances come with the concern on the part of parents and educators that diluting the importance of mother tongue in examinations would lead to students neglecting them, and eventually, paying less attention to their cultural roots.

Bilingualism remains as important as ever, it is a valuable asset in a globalized economic environment. Concerns about the ability or willingness of our nation’s youths to keep in touch with their cultural heritage are also very valid.

Tweak the exam weightings because students find a particular subject difficult, and we will be slowly inculcating a culture of problem avoidance, rather than harnessing the creativity of our students through comprehensive educational campaign.



Afterthoughts
I feel that many parents in Singapore are neglecting the importance of the need of Bilingualism, as the two Superpowers in the world, China and America are the leading economies in the world. Not to forget India, the next growing economy. Bilingualism gives Singapore the edge to compete in this competitive world. It is an advantage that Singapore cannot afford to lose.

Singapore being a cosmopolitan, has the capabilities to groom its youths outstandingly for the present and future. If Singapore were to lose it's ability of bilingualism, it may forever lose its edge in the future.

Cosmopolitan is a city/place or person that embraces its multicultural demographics

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