Should Singlish be recognized as an official language in Singapore?

Today, Singlish is spoken by almost every Singaporean, and is severely abhorred by the government it causes Singaporeans to appear to have a bad command of the English language. I think that Singlish should not be recognised as an official language in Singapore.

Singlish as an official language will make Singaporean’s standard of English drop. As a result, we might weaken our global connections as English is an international language of communication. The Speak Good English Movement by the government already shows that Singlish has affected our Standard English, so much that the government has to step in.

Recognising Singlish as an official language of Singapore will make students think that it is alright not to learn Standard English because Singlish is an official language of Singapore. This will result in our standard of English dropping even further. Even without Singlish as an official language, there is a widespread use of Singlish by the student to the teacher, and for some even when they are presenting in a formal occasion. Thus, we must not further worsen this negative trend by making Singlish an official language in Singapore.

Currently, television shows in Singlish are subjected to severe criticism from the better educated part of society, due to its detrimental effects on the education of their children. This supports the point the Singlish affects our standard of English.

One may argue that Singlish is an important part of our culture. However, it being an important part of our culture does not mean we must recognise it as an official language. The Singapore government has not banned Singlish as they have recognised that Singlish is an important part of our culture as well, to show our multi-racial ties. We can still use Singlish in conversations with other Singaporeans.

All in all, I think that we do not have to abolish Singlish completely, but Singlish should not be recognised as an official language in Singapore.

I also have provided the other side of the argument.

I think that Singlish should be recognised as an official language of Singapore.

The Singapore government has therefore proposed movements to encourage students to “speak good English”, but in my opinion, these initiatives lack substantial driving force, for it is virtually impossible to encourage someone to stop speaking what they have been speaking all their lives. The difficulty is analogous to a situation where Americans are required to speak English like the British. These difficulties arise simply because the different figures of speech and expressions used in the same language are already deeply rooted in each culture.

Many people are for the idea of banning shows in Singlish, and at present, local actors are required to speak in good English, which in many cases sound unnatural and does not reflect the true context of the Singaporean setting.

Making Singlish official also has the effect of boosting national identity. With everyone speaking a common language, Singlish (which we are already doing), we can connect ourselves with each other. Just like how Malays speak to each other in the Malay language, us as Singaporeans can do so as well. This increases our closeness as a community.

In the future, Singlish would play an ever increasing role to characterize Singapore, as Singapore evolves from a nation with humble beginnings to a country with a distinct culture. Singapore should proud of our true national language, Singlish.

Featured Article Task

The article is on the trial (verdict) of Tom Robinson.

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Are rich children always happier than those who come from poorer families (Argumentative Essay)

He attracted stares from crowds of wide-eyed students, Keith, whom I always looked upon with admiration. He drove up to the school gate in a Rolls Royce, with a chauffeur at the wheel. We all came to look, and even the teachers stopped to take a peek. We all thought he was the luckiest person in the world, and obviously we thought he was happier than all of us.

Keith belonged to a family which was a major shareholder “Panasonic”, and like other privileged children that were born in rich families, he lived a life of luxury. He was always first to get the newest models of “Hot wheels” and train sets. Everyone thought he was happy and fortunate, but I eventually learnt that these children aren’t as happy as we think they are.

Keith would come into class with his Nike bottle, North-face bag and Timberland shoes each morning. Crowds of eager classmates swarmed him, to use, to grab, and to even just touch them. Stories would then come out from the mouths of jealous classmates; about how Keith is given new spoon with each mouthful of food and about how he lives in a house of gold. To be stereotyped isn’t easy, especially for Keith, who was a single child of his parents and needed friends. This eventually creates a wall between the rich and the poor, creating social tension, leaving the rich isolated and unhappy.

At break time, Keith would sit away from everyone. He would open his lunch box, and then bring out a cold sausage, 2 bars of chocolate and a packet of apple juice, while the others brought out plain bread to eat. When he topped the class for Math, the teacher awarded him with a packet of “Fruit Plus” sweets. He gave it out to the rest of the class. I then realised that these richer children have too much, so they don’t desire for anything. Perhaps he never wished for sweets or other delicacies (or so we thought they were), something that we rarely got, only as a prize for getting good grades. To crave for something and the joy of getting it. For the richer children, it was something they would never experience.

After school, Keith would be waiting for his chauffeur at the guardhouse, watching us play basketball. We laughed and screamed in joy, but Keith knew full well that he could play the same thing as us once he got home to his Wii. We knew it too, but by playing alone by his Wii, could he really be as happy? One would think that with the newest toys, games and technology, he would be happy, but obviously he would never experience the delight of playing with peers.

I would sometimes look back and remember, Keith’s emotionless face as he received the “Fruit Plus” sweets from our teacher. Although being rich gave him a more comfortable life than us, it definitely did not make him happier.

Online Lesson: Diary Entry - A personal response to war

Name: Mileva Frank Age: 13, Gender: Female, Jew, currently in hiding with family

A day in life of WW2
Dear Diary,

Things haven't been well recently. Mum and Dad are quarrelling almost everyday, so is Mr and Mrs S. The food isn't enough, the sirens at night makes us unable to sleep, the Secret Annex (our hideout) is so cramped. We don't have lights either. Well it's lucky that Uncle Fredrick (we are not blood relations) could loan us this area though. The Germans are on the patrol everyday. The other time I saw several man getting shot and I almost screamed. I heard Dorota got sent to a concentration camp, and her family too. It's the same as dying, everyone who goes there just disappears. It's so horrifying. New camps have been built already, five to be exact. Living in fear is terrible, when will this war end?

Yours,
Mileva

Online Lesson (Descriptive Paragraph) - A personal response to war

Bright scarlet blood trickled from his nose. The impact of the explosion had blown him off his feet. He was lying on the ground now, limp. His hands grew feeble and he loosened his grip of his M16 rifle, his palms wet with perspiration. His squad mate bended over him, screaming. But he lost it. His vision blurred, his hearing failed him, the stence of blood faded. He saw his other squad mate sighing, looking disappointed. He felt himself being wrapped in scrap pieces of cloth; a substitute for bandages which were not available. It was useless. He resigned himself to his fate. He closed his eyes, and let his hands drop. He was still.

Book Review: A Thousand Splendid Suns

Again problem with the paragraphing :( it's still colour coded... This book is written by Khaled Hosseini. Although I read this book quite long ago, but I was reminded of it when I thought of discrimination (which relates to TKAM), so I wrote a book review. There is also "The Kite Runner", but I prefer this book because I think it is more emotional. It gives the reader an intimate look at Afghanistan and the difficulties of life in there. While Khaled Hosseini's other book, "The Kite Runner" deals with the relationship between men, this story deals with the relationship between women. It is an emotional story, which reveals how women of Afghanistan are treated, having to endure the hardships of life, the disdain of society, etc. There are two main female characters in the story, mainly Mariam and Laila, and the books constantly shift between both their perspectives. There are many heart-wrenching scenes, one of them where one of the main characters, Mariam, sacrificed herself to save Laila by taking the blame of killing her husband (in turn freeing Laila from the grip of her husband, who mistreated both Mariam [who was also a wife] and Laila). The use of some afghanistan words like hamshira , harami, and the jo and the end of the name also adds to the feeling attachment to the story. The story focuses a lot on the characters and emotions. It grabs the sympathy of the reader with various real-life circumstances (unhappy marriage, abusive husband, death of family member, daily life routines, etc.) We can place ourselves in the shoes of the characters with the author's vivid description. Overall, I think this book is really amazing. Although I have read it already, I still flip the pages from time to time. It shows the life of the two strong and courageous women, and successfully grabs the reader's sympathy.

Issues that foment political unrest

Sorry for the lack of paragraphs but there seems to be some error even though I tried to put the paragraphs (I coloured it though). The recent protests in Tunisia and Egypt have caught the attention of the world. What is the reason for this to reach such a dramatic stage? What factors spur citizens into action against the government? We will now look at the common issues that foment political unrest. Below are some of the conditions that fuel the growing feeling of unhappiness among the citizens. Authoritarianism The ousted presidents (Mr Zine El Abidine Ben Ali - Tunisia, Mr Hosni Mubarak - Egypt) were autocratic rulers that suppressed political opposition. They were also suspected of rigging elections that were help during their decades in office. Their authoritarianism has displeased the citizens of their country. Corruption The leaders ruling both Tunisia and Egypt have been suspected of corruption. The recent WikiLeaks revelation of nepotism in the Tunisian government have sparked discontent in the citizens. In Egypt, investigations will be launched to uncover the Mubarak's ill-gotten wealth. Poverty While the Tunisian goverment has been doing well in its economy, the distribution of income is not equal. The top 20 percent of people earn almost half the country's income, while the others remain poor. The low living standards in Egypt have been declining consistently. Egyptians survive on less that S$2.55 a day. We shall now look at the Xinhai Revolution that is similar to these cases. The Xinhai Revolution After thousands of years of emperors ruling China, this uprising led to the formation of a government of elected officials. The people had become unhappy with the corruption of the Qing government and the poor living conditions they lived in. The Manchus who headed the Qing dynasty tended to favour their own people, instead of the majority, the Han Chinese. The revolutionaries forced the abdication of Emperor Puyi, who announced the establishment of the Republic of China in Nanjing. Authoritarianism: Only sons of emperors allowed on the throne (instead of elected officials) Corruption: Already mentioned in text Poverty: Poor living conditions, favouring the Manchu people