NEED TO FLY, TOO

lounge, which to him was the “restroom”.

Little did he realise that the tourist wanted to use the toilet.

This story has made the rounds in Sarawak many times, but it still draws laughter. There is no diminishing marginal returns here, if you are looking for one.

On Monday, Abang Johari shared the story again when he launched the Sarawak English Language Education Symposium at Pullman Hotel in Kuching.

“In English, the words ‘restroom’, ‘lavatory’ and ‘toilet’ have the same meaning.

“However, there was miscommunication between the guide and tourist.”

At the event, he reduced the audience to stitches when he told them the story of a replacement teacher, who also faced the same problem as the tourist guide.

“The replacement teacher was standing in for her colleague, who taught Mathematics and was on medical leave.

“She was having difficulty explaining a mathematical equation to her pupils.

“Instead of asking for the answer to four minus two, the teacher asked, ‘what is the answer if you take four and push two?’”

The audience burst into laughter.

Jokes aside, Abang Johari had driven home the point: it is important for people in the state to master the English language.

Much has been said and written about the state government’s efforts to transform the economy and embrace digital economy.

For Sarawak to benefit from the technology-driven Fourth Industrial Revolution, the state needs human capital with a good command of English.

“In an era where everything and everyone is interconnected, proficiency in English is necessary for accessing information, understanding and adopting new technologies, exploiting opportunities in international economies, excelling in knowledge domains and succeeding in global markets,” said Abang Johari.

“English is the lingua franca of the Internet and the means by which children and youth from all over the world exchange ideas, values and visions of a future.”

Abang Johari stressed the importance of mastering English following reports that command of the language among students in the state has declined, like their peers in other parts of the country.

State Education, Science and Technological Research Minister Datuk Seri Michael Manyin Jawong said: “If we do not address this problem through effective strategies and programmes, our graduates and school leavers will face employability problems.

“They will have difficulty in marketing themselves to international companies even if they are technically competent.”

Manyin said the Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013-2025 highlighted national concerns over the deteriorating standards of competency among students in schools and higher learning institutions.

Determined to resolve the problem, the state government made English the second official language when the late Tan Sri Adenan Satem was the chief minister.

The policy ruffled some feathers, but Adenan pushed ahead saying that the national language would not be neglected.

This policy is being continued under the leadership of Adenan’s successor, the current chief minister, who stressed that Sarawak wanted to be pragmatic.

And that pragmatism dictates that people in the state master the Englsih language as a communication tool to stay ahead in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Hornbills need to fly, too.