Speech by Mrs Rebecca Mok
Deputy Director, Language & Literature Branch
Curriculum Planning & Development Division
Ministry of Education
Dr Oliver Seet, President of ELLTA(S)
Dr Rita Skuja-Steele, Head of the Department of English Language & Literature, NIE
Dr Geoffrey Williams,
Ladies and Gentlemen
Good morning,
I am absolutely delighted to be here to take part with you in this milestone event for the EL teaching fraternity. The launch of the English Language and Literature Teachers Association, Singapore (ELLTAS), a professional body by teachers, with teachers and for teachers, is a historic event
The choice of the Overseas Family School premises as the location to launch the English Language and Literature Association of Singapore is, I suspect, not entirely fortuitous. This auditorium and these grounds hold precious memories for teachers of an older vintage, as it was the home of the old Teachers' Training College and the National Institute of Education for over three decades. Revisiting these grounds again after all these years is like returning to the roots of teacher education and for some of the older teachers here today, it is, I am sure, like a trip down memory lane! There's something old and something new for everyone today.
I believe also that there was an older Association ELTA(S) -- with one L -- that was in existence for well over 25 years. When the founders of the Association laid it to rest, they never suspected, I'm sure, that out of the ashes of the old Association, a new phoenix would spring forth and today we celebrate the birth of this new Association -- ELLTA(S). It is an Association that marks the beginning of the new millennium and looking at its objectives and the dynamic people who constitute the committee, I think we can expect exciting programmes and activities from ELLTA(S) However, for the Association to succeed, the members must give it active support. They need to play an active role.
The appeal of this Association for me is that it is to be run primarily by teachers, teacher educators and educationists; the practitioners will have a large say in deciding on the directions, programmes and activities of the Association and consequently, I hope, ELLTA(S) will become both relevant and useful for practising teachers.
In looking at the objectives of the Association, I note that ELLTA(S) hopes to provide teachers with networking opportunities, contact time and sharing sessions. In an age when IT is one of the keywords in education, it is important to maintain human contact. Technology can, paradoxically, both distance and bring people closer together. It can lock people into a virtual community and facilitate the exchange of information. However, I do not believe that it fosters dialogue at a deeper level. Dialogue on email is generally facile, hastily conducted in computer shorthand and more in the nature of information exchange. I am not, of course, referring to the rare occasions when there is an engagement of minds. I believe that telecommuting cannot replace face-to-face encounters and the human touch. Associations such as ELLTA(S) will help to maintain this balance.
ELLTA(S) hopes to facilitate professional self-development by providing its members with opportunities for trialling and research work, information sharing, writing of papers for publication and attending local/overseas conferences. These are important practices for developing professionalism among teachers. The Association also intends to keep teachers informed with the publishing of existing and new teaching practices and teaching resources.
To keep up-to-date and to be at the cutting edge of education should be an aspiration of every good teacher. In an age when there is so much going for the young, when one is at the crossroads of the information superhighway and when students are becoming more IT savvy, teachers will increasingly realise that they are no longer the source of all knowledge. It will become uncomfortably evident that their students will know more than they do, unless they keep at the forefront of their discipline. How one copes with the rapidity of change will become a real issue for teachers in this new millenium.
ELLTA(S) hopes to keep its members abreast of current research findings, and innovation in practice, and it intends to organise professional development sessions by noted experts in the field.
There will be the setting up of special interest groups to meet specific needs of teachers. I believe these will be formed as the members begin to identify areas of special interest.
The Association will also attempt to provide support for the induction of new teachers into the profession. There is an increasing awareness that new teachers need mentoring, more than just monitoring and that they need guidance, support and friendship. Completing their professional training at NIE merely puts them at the threshold of the teaching profession and it is the responsibility of older teachers to help to induct newcomers into the profession.
I believe that the launching of ELLTA(S) is timely for the following reasons. First, the use of English in Singapore has become more widespread. As one example, the proportion of Primary 1 students who come from homes where English is the main language used has nearly doubled from 23% in 1989 to 39% in 1999. The proportion of candidates who obtain an 'O' level pass in English has increased from 67% in 1989 to 73.8% in 1999. English is more widely used today. However the quality of English used has suffered some erosion. For many of our pupils, the syntax, grammar, expressions, pronunciation and rhythms of their own mother tongues come more naturally to them. These creep into the English that they use.
The need to maintain and improve the standard of English has the support of our Prime Minister who in April this year launched the Speak Good English Movement or SGEM as it is popularly called. SGEM is to encourage the use of good English. Already in institutions of higher learning and in many schools, special programmes have been mounted to encourage the Speaking of Good English. The schools are playing their part and they regularly organise Speak English campaigns, speech, drama and storytelling activities, debates, essay competitions, extensive reading programmes and English language camps, among a host of others. The Ministry of Education has revised the English Language syllabus and has organised a 60-hour grammar course for all EL teachers to prepare them for the revised syllabus. The setting up of an Association to look into how language can be better taught in our schools is surely relevant and timely.
Another reason is that ELLTA(S) will provide a platform and conduit for teachers of English Language and Literature. There are already at least two associations for lecturers in tertiary institutions. There is a need for one for English, given the important place of English in Singapore. I am therefore pleased to know that the pro tem committee has seen it as their responsibility to launch such an Association and that they have also realised the importance and interdependence of Literature and Language. Literature provides the resource from which language takes its richness and vigour. Language devoid of Literature and its cultural roots becomes impoverished and mechanical as we well know.
I congratulate Dr Oliver Seet, President of the Pro-tem Committee and his committee members whom I hear have shown amazing vision, creativity and energy to make ELLTA(S) possible. I would therefore like to give ELLTA(S) my full support and to wish it a happy and professionally fulfilling role in helping teachers become more effective in developing the language skills of our students and in encouraging them to explore the rich and exciting domain of the literary world.
It is now my pleasant duty to launch this new Association -- The English Language & Literature Teachers Association of Singapore!