English is language of first priority, so let’s drop any prejudice against it

WE are learning English in school, so we join one billion people who are engaged in the same pursuit.

However, as we try to learn the rules of grammar, and try to avoid mistakes committed by students of English, we may wonder why we are learning English in the first place.

So, why is English important? After Mandarin, English is spoken by more people than any other language, and it is also the native language of more than 350 million people.

More people speak English than those who speak Arabic and French combined.

Moreover, English is the international language of diplomacy, business, science, technology, banking, computing and medicine. English has between 500,000 and 1,000,000 words, but most English speakers do fairly well with a vocabulary of 20,000 words.

English can be fun, too. For example, music stars such as Elvis Presley, The Beatles and Michael Jackson encouraged fans to sing along, thereby encouraging people to speak English.

Others embrace English to enjoy the writings of Stephen King, George Orwell and J.K. Rowling. Yet others take to English just to converse with travellers from other countries. English also comes in handy when we travel abroad.

Here are tips on how to be better in English:

FIRST, we need to drop any prejudice against the English language. It is the language of international business, the language of first priority. Any lingering paranoia against English warrants removal;

SECOND, we must make a decision to learn the language despite difficulties and setbacks. It means thinking in the language and using it as often as possible. Practice makes perfect. Those poor in English must make a decision to better themselves in the language;

THIRD, we need to encourage a multilingual Malaysia.

We do not need to teach all the languages in school, but we should provide the opportunity for people to learn languages inexpensively.

If we all learnt each other’s language, it would help us to understand each other better and may bring us closer as a nation. Malaysians do not need any convincing on this points, as many are multilingual.

When we are multilingual, we are better equipped to mix with those who are different; and,

FINALLY, we need to change our perception of Malaysian artistes who perform in English. We should support them, not discourage them.

I know several Malaysian musicians who are good but do not seem to get the recognition because of the limited local market for English songs.

It is time to promote local English artistes.

We must not think that doing anything in English or using Western forms of expression as “aping the West”.

MOGESH SABABATHY Kuala Lumpur