Language easier if it's for fun

The debate is still raging over the issue of mother-tongue teaching.

Our society expects students to be biliterate and trilingual and the status of Chinese is now more dominant than it used to be.

I believe not only should the medium of instruction be changed, but also it should be the official language.

We cannot dispute the importance of English in an international city like Hong Kong.

Because of this, most parents and some students are opposed to introducing mother-tongue teaching.

They say switching to the mother tongue will adversely affect the standards of English.

But I think this depends on whether schools can motivate students to become more interested in English.

A relaxed approach would make them accept the language more easily.

After all, the aim of the policy is to enable students to learn more effectively.

Research has found that Hong Kong students struggle with studying in English.

They get bored easily because of the language barrier and tend to dodge school.

Why don't we give them a chance to rebuild their confidence by changing the medium of instruction? In fact, each student should be allowed to choose their medium for learning.

Jenny is a student of Pooi Tun Secondary School