Singapore’s English-Knowing Bilingual Policy: A Critical Evaluation

Leong, Patrick Ng Chin

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-22464-0_12

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…This commitment entails equal rights and representation to all ethnic groups, fostering a collective national identity, promoting social cohesion, and ensuring harmony among different religious beliefs-a set of fundamental principles guiding the nation's development and governance (Bokhorst-Heng, 2007;Chua, 2003;Goh, 2008). This commitment is also reflected in its national policies in different areas, such as the establishment of the Group Representation Constituency in 1988 to guarantee that each ethnic group holds a balanced and equal representation in parliament, the Ethnic Integration Policy introduced in 1989 in the housing sector to enhance the racial integration and cohesion, and the Bilingualism Policy implemented in education since 1966, playing a pivotal role in both unifying the diverse population and allowing individuals to preserve their own ethnic identity and cultural heritage (Leong, 2016). Apart from the Bilingualism Policy, National Shared Values, National Education (NE), and Character and Citizenship Education (CCE) are all fundamental policies maneuvering Singapore's multicultural education, promoting racial and religious harmony, preserving cultural diversity, and cultivating a shared sense of national identity.…”

Section: Sociopolitical and Sociocultural Context For Multicultural E...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Study of Multicultural Education and Teachers’ Multicultural Teaching Competency in Singapore and South Korea

Wu,

Saenghong,

Jatuporn

2023

rEFLections

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This study examines multicultural education policies in Singapore and South Korea, analyzing their approaches within their unique sociopolitical and sociocultural contexts. This study also discusses the implications of the approaches used in both nations’ policies on multicultural teaching competence. Using government policy documents related to multicultural education in Singapore and South Korea, the collected data was analyzed using critical discourse analysis (CDA) and interpreted with the theory of five approaches to multicultural education by Sleeter and Grant (1999). The five approaches include 1) Teaching the Exceptional and Culturally Different, 2) Human Relations, 3) Single-Group Studies, 4) Multicultural Education, and 5) Education that is Multicultural and Social Reconstructionist. The findings illuminate the two nations’ distinct national stances and trajectories in the realm of multicultural education while concurrently identifying a shared commitment to the Multicultural Education approach within the policy documents of both. In Singapore, a combination of Human Relations, Single-Group Studies, and Multicultural Education is deeply embedded throughout the nation’s policy discourses. Conversely, South Korea’s attempts at multicultural education present an evolving narrative, shifting from a conservative perspective rooted in Teaching the Exceptional and Culturally Different to a more liberal stance deeply grounded in the tenets of the Multicultural Education approach. This study emphasizes the importance of sociocultural and sociopolitical context in shaping a government’s approach to multicultural education.

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Section: Sociopolitical and Sociocultural Context For Multicultural E...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Study of Multicultural Education and Teachers’ Multicultural Teaching Competency in Singapore and South Korea

Wu,

Saenghong,

Jatuporn

2023

rEFLections

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“…In the interest of fostering and promoting economic development on an international scale, the Singapore government promoted English competence in society in the 1980s by making English the medium of instruction in all lessons, except in the subjects of Chinese and civil education (Dixon, 2005). This act was known as the "English-knowing bilingual policy" (Leong, 2016;Wong, Chai, Chenand & Chin, 2013). At the same time, the Singapore government promoted Mandarin Chinese, which is obligatorily used in almost all Chinese communities in Mainland China.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The development of narrative ability in English-Chinese bilingual primary school students in Singapore

Yan

Chin

Tse

2017

L1 Educational Studies in Language and Literature

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. The development of narrative ability in English-Chinese bilingual primary school students in Singapore. L1-Educational Studies in Language and Literature, 17, 1-26. https://doi.org/ 10.17239/L1ESLL-2017.17 Abstract This study reports the comparative narrative ability of bilingual English-and Chinese-speaking primary school students in Singapore from a developmental perspective, an area attracting little research in the past. A total of 36 primary one, three and five students from mainstream schools narrated in Mandarin and in English whilst being shown accompanying pictures. The students' narrative ability was then measured in terms of their grasp of narrative structure, temporality and the evaluative expressions. Analyses showed that the students' English stories were more advanced than were their Chinese stories. Although similar developmental patterns were found in the children's English and Chinese, there were many more connectives and evaluative expressions in their English than in their Chinese stories. The evidence suggests that the English and Chinese competence of the bilingual learners in Singapore schools do not develop in close parallel. The implications for bilingual teaching in Singapore schools are discussed, especially the finding that the children's English ability was better than their Chinese language ability.

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Singapore’s English-Knowing Bilingual Policy: A Critical Evaluation

Cited by 2 publications

References 18 publications

The Study of Multicultural Education and Teachers’ Multicultural Teaching Competency in Singapore and South Korea

The Study of Multicultural Education and Teachers’ Multicultural Teaching Competency in Singapore and South Korea

The development of narrative ability in English-Chinese bilingual primary school students in Singapore

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