Malaysian children in China get chance to learn BM

BEIJING: Wherever they may be in the world, Malaysians are not forgetting their roots and some are making efforts to ensure their children learn the national language.

A Bahasa Malaysia class is being conducted for children on the request of the parents living here.

A total of 21 children, aged between three and 14, attended the first session of the class at the Malaysian Embassy here yesterday.

First, they learn to say Selamat pagi cikgu (Good morning teacher). They are also taught numbers and how to address their family members like father, mother and sister in Malay.

The 24 teachers are members of the Beijing Student Volunteers, comprising Malaysian students undergoing Teaching Chinese as Second Language programme at the Beijing Language and Culture University and Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU), under the supervision of Prof Datuk Dr Awang Sariyan from the Malay Studies Centre of BFSU.

“The students will learn about animals, colours and many more related to our life.

“There will also be singing, writing and drawing. We are not giving lectures and I assure you this will be a fun and interactive class with many activities,” said Dr Awang.

The embassy’s Education Counsellor Aziz How Abdullah said news of the Bahasa Malaysia class spread quickly to other parents here.

“We thank the parents for the initiative and are glad to see the overwhelming response,” he added.

Tim Lee, one of those who helped organise the class, said there had previously been discussions among parents on how to teach their children the national language.

“Our children do not have the chance to learn it but we feel that they must know their own national language because this is part of our identity as Malaysians.

“So we made the proposal to the embassy and they were very happy to help,” added the director, who runs a construction consultation firm here.

Lee has been living overseas for 17 years including seven years in China.

Chew Jie Xi, 10, said she loved to learn more about the language although she found some words difficult to pronounce.

“My mum and dad always speak in Malay when they have something that they don’t want me to know.

“I want to learn their secrets,” she said with a smile.