Lino Spiteri
Modern language question
Education is a central theme for ongoing discussion. Our social, economic and cultural development depends upon it. Not enough resources can be allocated to it. Every euro must count so that we have the best educational facilities and teachers combining to give students the finest educational input and guidance possible.
The shaping stage will be that covering compulsory education. The enticing stage is that of tertiary education, through which students specialise to leaven society for a better tomorrow.
The physical side of teaching facilities has attracted very substantial capital investment. The University runs ample courses to ensure a steady supply of teachers, which might even be growing faster than the projected school population warrants, as family size continues to shrink.
The quality of the supply also needs to be radically reviewed, in its pedagogic regard, certainly, for academic qualifications alone do not necessarily make a good teacher, but also in academic terms, not least in a proper grasp of the Maltese and English languages.
Above all, teachers have to be an integral part of, prepared for and convinced by the changes that are being planned.
A major change has taken place, with the ditching of streaming in public schools. Another major change is in the offing, being the eventual introduction of a new national curriculum. Education Minister Dolores Cristina recalled the other day that the government has been working on it for three years. The draft was issued for discussion in May.
The minister said that for the curriculum to succeed in its mission the collaboration of all was required, including parents and teachers. One should say, in fact, especially teachers and parents.
Teachers have to be convinced that what they are required to teach is right. They must also have the updated training to deliver it, particularly in what is now a more inclusive system of education.
Parents too have to believe that their children are being taught the right things, in the right way. Many are not so convinced, for instance, about the way colloquially-used English words are being absorbed phonetically into the Maltese language. This needs looking into afresh.
Personally, I do not subscribe to the view that our language will “grow” through phonetic take-up of foreign words, Italian as well as English, particularly when we already have very good Maltese equivalents.
Language is also at the heart of an issue that has still to be decided. It relates to the language of instruction: Should it be Maltese or English? Mrs Cristina said, in fine understatement, that this will be a sensitive debate. “We must decide what language to use during lessons without reducing Maltese to a language only used during Maltese lessons,” she said, adding that “no country that respects itself does that.”
A country that respects itself will ensure that its language is taught and understood well so that its citizens can write and speak it properly. That is not happening in Malta.
Maltese is fast becoming a horrible hybrid, not least – perhaps especially – among many educated people and families of what they reckon to be good standing. Their example is percolating to those who believe they are aping their betters.
Using Maltese as the language of instruction for subjects that can best be thought in an international language will not make sense. It does not even satisfy national pride, which has to be fed a wholesome diet not arrangements that defeat practical purposes.
Maltese should be well thought, building early on words and expressions that make sense to the young, expanding their knowledge of not so common words and expressions as they progress through their school years.
The young should be thought to write Maltese properly, doing away with the prejudice built up by adults who do not bother to become familiar with the correct use of the “għ” (l-għajn) and the “h” (l-akka). They should be encouraged to appreciate the extensive body of good Maltese literature, built over the years since Maltese won the battle against the stupid snobs who refused to recognise it as a proper language, and now being added to by fine new writers.
They should receive good examples of proper Maltese when they hear others speaking it, especially on the sound and vision media, where the butchering of Maltese is an hourly occurrence.
That is the way to build and maintain national pride in our language against those who short-sightedly say that potential users of Maltese, even when one includes the Maltese diaspora, is relatively minuscule. That is not to say that those who believe Maltese should be the language of instruction do not also believe in all of that.
What I believe they need to rethink, in practical terms, is the fact that a whole range of subjects relate to our people’s role in the global environment.
It is possible to achieve both targets if they are kept in clear objective view. If educators and policy makers make what I, for one, term to be a strategic mistake now, the price could be heavy indeed.
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Lino Spiteri
Dec 5th 2011, 21:52
Mr Clive Cusens is, of course, right to point out the mix-up between taught and thought. The word processor sometimes plays tricks which I should have caught out with tighter proofreading. I hope no one thought I wasn't taught the difference between the two words!
Mr Alfred Farrugia
Dec 5th 2011, 19:09
The language problem is even deeper than the Hon. Minister of Education and Mr. Spiteri are making it to be. We may or may not need to go to the extreme that Iceland has gone in its efforts to preserve its language. But we could certainly do better than taking the easiest way out and ruin our own language for good, considering that our language is a very strong element of our identity.
When it comes to language as a teaching tool, the level of education is an important consideration, together with the availability of good text books in the language concerned, and good teachers.
One of our major problems is in the written and spoken Maltese language, and the controversial changes that are taking place. It is true that language is a living tool, but we need to take care of our own language, because no one else is going to do it for us.
The Department of Information used to be a hive a people in full control of the Maltese language. Now, the media is butchering our language, presumably because some of the people concerned do not know any better. If people of my generation could study proper Maltese grammar and writing, I believe that it is an insult to expect the younger generation to be less smart than we were.
I am not certain what type of Maltese language is used to train our legal and teaching professions at the university, but the use of Italian derivatives when a Maltese term already exists is not helping the development of our language. The Office of the Attorney General and the House of Representatives should have the right amount of experts in the Maltese language to produce the right laws and documents in the proper Maltese idiom. We need to be very careful that the Maltese language as an EU language does not become a curse instead of a blessing. We also, of course, need very good teachers of the English language in our schools.
Francis Sammut
Dec 5th 2011, 17:44
How right is Mr. L. Spiteri when in the above he said ' Maltese is fast bocoming a horrible hybrid, not least- perhaps especially- among educated people and families of what they reckon to be good standing. Their example is percolated to those who believe they are aping their betters '. Very well said, indeed!
The Parliament, the highest institution of the land, should be the first to lead by example, yet, when it comes
to speaking proper Maltese it seems hard to do! Listen to the daily Parliamentary sessions and you'll see what I mean. Many of them seem to find it hard to find the correct Maltese words so they end up using a mishmash of English/Maltese hotch potch! The radio stations are no better. Many people write and complain all the time, but to no avail. I like to listen to Radio Malta's morning talk show, Familja Wahda which is a very good current affairs programm but sadly both the presenter and many of her speakers lack the basics of what it entails to speak good Maltese. It's always ''alright'' this and ''alright'' that, and English words tend to sustitute Maltese ones and this coming from a teacher to boot, who should know better, I presume. Whatever happened to the words 'tajjeb', 'tajjeb wisq', 'kollox sew', 'sewwa wisq'. And how about when as a guest we have the professor of Maltese language, answering questions on this topic? Many a time he can't find the proper Maltese words himself when trying to explain a topic and switches to an English word which is now a common thing with many Maltese, I might add. Coming from a Maltese Linguist, the Maltese people, expect and deserve better.
Franco Farrugia
Dec 5th 2011, 17:31
What a lovely article - I enjoyed reading it tremendously.
A few points:
- In my opinion, it is safe for the University to 'produce' any number of teachers without having any surplus, since, the reduction in the number of children per family will balance the need for smaller groups to teach at one time. Eventually, the large class will have to gradually give way to smaller groups to teach, especially if we want to be realistic and honest about the concept of mixed-ability teaching.
- The question of whether to use Maltese or English as the medium of teaching a subject: this question never arose in the time when commonsense prevailed in schools. Modern languages are taught in general in the appropriate language; Maltese is taught in the Maltese language while other subjects will be taught according to the language of the eventual examination paper. That having been said, it makes only sense fo Math and Science subjects to be taught in English; Arts subjects such as History and Geography can easily be taught in the Maltese language while using certain Geographical terms in the English language - it will hurt nobody to keep this terminology in its original English. There is no reason why Social Sciences should not be taught in the Maltese language.
Extra lessons should be given in the English language, and reading - reading, reading, reading, must and should be strongly encouraged. For this to take place, parents and families need to do their bit.
Otherwise, I FULLY BUT REALLY FULLY CONCUR with Lino Spiteri's views on the Maltese language. But then, Spiteri is one of the people who should speak and be heard. He comes from the world of finance, yet, uses the Maltese language as the medium for his books - a joy to read.
Congratulations, Mr Spiteri.
Clive Cusens
Dec 5th 2011, 16:39
Whilst this article proposes something that I wasn't quite expecting, and which I mainly agree with, there is also the issue of whether teachers are able to use language correctly. When I was a student at the university, I was appalled at the level of English of some of the UNIVERSITY LECTURERS. Can you imagine foreign erasmus students, who don't speak english as a first or second language, sniggering because of what a lecturer had just said? Oh, and just an aside, Mr. Spiteri... the past or passive form of "teach" is "taught" not "thought"... but otherwise you have my humble agreement. There should also be a strong push to stop the vilification of English in the Southern Harbour District where, according to another one of my university professors, children are bullied by their peers if they show an interest in the language... remind them that they need english to get a job, even in the pastizzeria!
Lino Spiteri
Dec 5th 2011, 22:09
The word processor can play funny tricks but I should have caught the errors - three of them! - with tighter proofreading. Out of respect to my old Lyceum teachers I should add I hope no one thought I was not taught the difference by them!
Etienne Bonanno
Dec 5th 2011, 12:06
English is the lingua franca of the modern world. It does not make sense to teach technical subjects such as the sciences through the use of the Maltese language due to several reasons. First and most importantly, the vocabulary to express technical concepts and ideas concisely simply does not exist in Maltese. Even if by some exercise of the imagination such vocabulary could be constructed in a valiant effort to support the mother toungue, doing so would still do our students a disservice because in the real world, i.e. in the workplace and/or research/academic scenarios and any international fora, such subjects are in practice discussed in English even by non-native speakers of English. It is therefore of crucial importance that people entering such fields should accustom themselves to the de facto standard language through which such fields are developed.
Ms G Portelli
Dec 5th 2011, 16:20
What utter hogwash. The idea that science subjects can't be taught in any language other than English is an insult to all those scientist and mathematicians who made their discoveries and inventions and solved equations without any reference to English whatsoever. I doubt the Poles , the Russians, the French or Swiss share your view. Further more, it is a great disservice to those Science teachers who took up the gauntlet and kept using the technical language available in Maltese to teach these subjects. I have one particular Physics teacher from St. Aloysius College in mind . His classes were a case of good practice and excellence in Bilingual technical education. What is obvious is the lack of confidence in using the native language as a teaching tool by teachers and lecturers. What is evident is that a good number of state and private schools have for years been breaking the law with regards bilingual education aided and abetted by a laissez faire Education Division. The Education Act clearly states that our schools have to provide a bilingual education. What we are progressing towards is monolingual Education to the detriment of the cognitive advantage that a proper bilingual education gives.
Etienne Bonanno
Dec 7th 2011, 14:43
@Ms. G. Portelli
I never said that science subjects cannot be taught in ANY language other than English - I stated that it cannot be done purely in Maltese, which is a different statement altogether. Whether one adopts a bilingual approach is up to the individual teacher and such an approach in practice is already adopted by most teachers. I do reiterate, however that Maltese in its pure form lacks the necessary vocabulary to make concise technical discussions possible.
It is only through supplementing the language with liberal doses of English that this becomes possible, if labored and unnatural. If English has to necessarily be interjected to such a high degree during the treatment of such subjects, then one would be much better served by going the whole hog and using English in the first place. This not only makes teaching and discussing such subjects easier and more natural, it also affords pupils valuable practice in using the language, opportunity for which is very often sorely lacking in many Maltese students' lives.
It is quite an accepted and indisputable fact that English is the de facto language of science in today's world, no matter your strenuous protestations. Of course that would not have applied to the Poles and the Russians since for a good part of the 20th century, they operated behind the iron curtain, however since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union, we can see an increasing amount of work published in English-language academic journals by ex-soviet nationals.
Apart from all this remember that the research and technical community in Malta is minute compared to those in (to use your examples) France, Switzerland and even more so, the US and, increasingly, India and China. It is an inescapable fact of life for the Maltese student, researcher or technical professional that contacts with non-Maltese speakers are common if not everyday occurrences, and English is the language used in these situations. The Maltese's fluency and skill in communicating ideas in English are crucial. This is not a question of lack of confidence - it is a question of being realistic and pragmatic.
Mr J Xerri
Dec 5th 2011, 10:57
Very well said. Hope that whoever decides about the language policy in schools takes Mr Spiteri's comments about the subject in consideration. This is not a question of Maltese vs English or vice-versa . Our students should proficient in both languages.