Work diligently, systematically to raise language proficiency
I am not against the use of Singlish per se. It is already a part of our communicative arsenal. But one must be judicious in using it (“Singlish — a uniquely Singaporean threat”; June 1).
Singlish adds pungency and character to one’s conversation in an informal social gathering, when everyone is unguarded about verbal etiquette, or not bothered about correctness and stylishness in expression.
Some Singaporeans are chameleon-like in their linguistic adaptability, switching deftly from the formal to the informal form.
They alternate between Standard English and Singlish pragmatically and readily, even switching register to cater for the varying levels of language attainment among friends, colleagues, neighbours, superiors and so on.
What about those whose grasp of English is, at best, minimal? It is unrealistic and insensitive to look skywards when they mangle the Queen’s English.
The principal aim of speech is to communicate; Singlish does that economically in many instances.
Still, it will not do to write as one speaks because the form and setting serve different requirements.
One might be forgiven for lapses in oral expressions, but similar bloopers in the written form are not so easily tolerated.
It is incumbent on teachers and parents — the models of proper speech for impressionable learners — to be correct in pronunciation, diction, fluency, tempo, intonation and register.
Nothing distracts more than being befuddled, trying to make sense of another’s speech.
Purists contend that the smugness about our English language proficiency leads to a more tolerant attitude, and that Singlish would elbow its way into wider acceptance, subverting and nullifying teachers’ and parents’ endeavours.
Singlish developed rapidly at a time when a sizeable section of the population struggled to learn English.
Let us not condemn it outright, but work consciously, diligently and systematically to raise our competence in English.
This is the positive way forward to institutionalise Standard English as the communication medium of choice, even among ordinary people. In tandem with this, Singlish can continue as a social tool of fun and interaction among the linguistic chameleons.
