KILLING THE JOY OF LEARNING
Academic pressures are part and parcel of Singapore schooling life, but I worry that the current language expectations in secondary school are so high that they’re killing students’ interest in their mother tongue.
My daughter used to enjoy writing Chinese compositions in primary school. Her stories were unique, with hooks and bittersweet endings, and her teacher often used them as model essays, even though she didn’t rely on flowery language or colourful idioms. She was always excited to write in her mother tongue.
But in secondary school, the focus shifted.
Her creativity was no longer enough. The emphasis turned to writing within strict parameters and memorising idioms to meet grading rubrics.
