The Taiwanese government's effort to make the island a bilingual (i.e. English and Mandarin Chinese) nation by 2030 is doomed to fail.
And it won't be because we don't have enough resources such as English teachers or we are learning English the wrong way like not listening to more English--these are valid and important issues indeed, but they can be solved with relative ease.
And it won't be because we don't have enough resources such as English teachers or we are learning English the wrong way like not listening to more English--these are valid and important issues indeed, but they can be solved with relative ease.
Not enough teachers? Pay more and hire better ones.
Not enough language input? Make it compulsory that school kids listen to English for 30 minutes every day.
The real reason why our language education has failed (and will continue to beyond 2030) is that we have got so used to using language to gain power, to judge, and to earn a competitive edge that we have forgotten about the sole purpose of language.
That is why in Taiwan a fluent American accent impresses people more than an inspiring idea put in simple English does.
That is why in Taiwan speaking Chinese earns more respect than speaking Taiwanese does.
That is why in Taiwan Hakka-speakers, despite taking pride in their own cultural heritage, choose to educate their kids in Chinese.
That is why when an Amis, or anyone who belongs to any of Taiwan's indigenous groups--which traditionally doesn't use Chinese characters or even speak Chinese--register their real names in romanization, they get frowned upon.
Language is for communication. We all know it. We just don't do it. Saying it is like saying, "Be kind to people and they will be kind to you."
Language should--if it has any purpose at all--help us understand each other's thoughts and needs and feelings. And then we can use these shared understandings of differences to create a society that embraces more diversity and possibilities, which ultimately lead to more innovations, opportunities, and hopefully a better world.
The bilingual policy, which literally aims to enhance Taiwan's competitiveness, will fail because the government will spend the tax-payers' money to encourage the younger generation to learn a foreign language to COMPETE, not to COMMUNICATE.
The bilingual policy, which literally aims to enhance Taiwan's competitiveness, will fail because the government will spend the tax-payers' money to encourage the younger generation to learn a foreign language to COMPETE, not to COMMUNICATE.
To defeat, not to cooperate.
To speak, not to listen.
To convince, not to understand.
沒有留言:
張貼留言