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The declining standard of language is a common phenomenon bemoaned by cultural elites in many countries. Society in many places faces the same problem: While modern technology has brought about a spectacular movie and television culture, it has also caused many to lose interest and patience in literature. Here in Singapore where technological know-how is valued much more over the humanities, it is no surprise that few are avid readers. In the opinion of some Singaporeans, we have not been able to manage the language issue well because of the strong political flavour of our language policy. The Chinese-educated feels that our language policy that favours the English language has caused the decline of the Chinese language. The English-educated, on the other hand, holds the view that the government compels students to learn the Chinese language, which is “of little use”, in order to placate Mandarin-speaking voters. People from a single-language background often lament that our bilingual policy has produced a younger generation of Singaporeans who understand both the Chinese and English language, but can hardly be said to be proficient in them. They have failed to grasp the essence of either and end up neither here nor there. The Chinese-educated complain that young people know nothing about poetry from the ancient Tang and Song dynasty while the English-educated gripe about them not knowing the works of Shakespeare. It is hard enough to master a langauge, let alone two. This is the drawback of the bilingual policy. But every policy has its merits and demerits. The language used by the younger generation may lack sparkle, yet when compared to the previous generation, they are able to move much more freely between two linguistic worlds. They also experience much less psychological burden in learning langauges. As the language issue becomes less sensitive politically and people are more at ease, some changes have taken place. In recent years, it has become common for undergraduates to speak Mandarin. A walk in either the campus of the NUS or NTU will show that the number of Mandarin-speaking students is no less than English-speaking ones. Many undergraduates are using Mandarin in their daily life, a phenomenon that is not “planned” but which has evolved by itself. In the early 80s, Chinese-stream students studying at the NUS felt truly sidelined. And the Chinese language was of course a marginalised language. It was thus difficult to imagine the tremendous response local songbird Stefanie Sun Yanzi received at her recent campus concert. It was as if Mandarin had risen from an inconspicuous corner of the campus to take centrestage at the brightly-lit hall. The performance lasted only a few hours but it was no doubt a small breakthrough. Some feel that the Chinese language is kept alive by the popularity of Chinese movies and television programmes. “Fun” is what matters to young people who couldn't care less about politics. We should not overlook the power of language and culture to move us. Chinese drama series have always been more popular than English ones. The reason is that the former has been able to take full advantage of the unique sensibility of the Chinese language which the audience can identify with and relate to readily. English is still the dominant language in our society. But the world is changing and the more practical among the top talent in our society are adjusting their view. It is not a complete change, but they have certainly broadened their horizons. Almost every MP spoke about what he or she had seen and heard in China in recent parliamentary sittings to highlight the opportunities offered and challenges posed by China. Some even made the refreshing change of uttering some Chinese phrases. It appears that the Land of Dragons has been placed on their radar screens. The use of Mandarin by undergraduates and MPs signals a new fragile life for the Chinese language here. No one knows if it can grow healthily. This hinges on the attitude of decision-makers. Some years back, when it was common for primary students to communicate in Mandarin, some decision-makers became concerned and a number of “corrective” measures soon followed. It remains to be seen if the phenomenon of undergraduates speaking Mandarin in the campus will also be “corrected”. (The writer is a Senior Correspondent of Lianhe Zaobao's Political Desk. Translated by Yap Gee Poh.)
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在许多国家，文化精英都在感叹语文水准低落的现象。各地社会面对同样的问题：现代科技带来精彩的影视文化，但却削弱了人们欣赏文学的兴趣和耐心。 在新加坡，在重科技轻人文的传统下，阅读风气自然盛不起来。此外，一些国人认为，我们搞不好语文，与语文政策的政治色彩太强有关系。受华文教育的人说偏重英文的政策导致华校的没落，一些受英文教育者则认为政府是为了安抚讲华语的选民，才强逼学生修读华文这门“无用”的科目。
年轻一代的学生学习语文的心理包袱没有那么沉重。
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单语系统出身的人常感叹说，在双语政策下，年轻一代的华文和英文，往往只“通”不“精”，学不到语文的精髓，因此两头都不到岸。传统华校生抱怨年轻人不懂唐诗宋词，传统英校生则怪他们不懂莎士比亚。 要掌握一种语文不易，要精通两种语文就更难；这是双语政策的缺憾。然而，任何政策都有得有失。年轻一代虽然失去了语文的文采，但是跟上一代人比较，他们能更自由的进出两个文化世界，学习语文的心理包袱也没有那么沉重。 语文的政治色彩淡了，人们的心情较轻松，语文生态就有了一些新气象。近年来，我国大专院校的学生讲华语的现象很普遍。在国大和南大校园走一趟，不难发现讲华语的人不比讲英语的人少。华语成了许多大学生的生活语言，是自然而成而不是“策划”出来的现象。 在80年代初，我们一群国大校园念书的华校生，活得像边缘人，华语自然是边缘化的语言。我们很难想像在10多年后，孙燕姿在本地大学校园开演唱会时，场面会这么热烈。华语似乎从校园边缘极不起眼的角落，走上了灯火光明的大学礼堂的舞台，虽然这是短短的几个小时，但这不失为一个小小的突破。 一些人说，华文得以苟延残喘，多亏华文的影视文化。年轻一代讲究的是“好玩”，管不了枝枝节节的政治问题。 不过，我们也不应该忽视语文和文化的情感力量。华文电视剧始终远比英语电视剧受欢迎，就是因为前者发挥了华语的感性特征，所以更有亲和力，能够牵动人心。 虽然我们的社会还是英文独尊的社会，不过世界在变，一些讲求实际的社会精英正在调整视角。这不是全方位的调整，然而他们的视野变得较广阔了。 最近在国会，几乎所有议员都谈一段自己的中国见闻录，借以论述中国带来的机会和挑战。一些议员还破例的露了一两句华语，令人感到新鲜。在他们的视野中，似乎多了中国这块土地。 大学生和议员的华语，代表了岛国华文世界里的微弱新生命。它们能否稳健成长，是一个未知数。在这个问题上，决策人的态度是一大关键。多年前，我国小学生普遍讲华语的现象，引起一些决策人的关注，随后便有一些“纠正”的措施。 现在，大专校园内的讲华语现象，会不会被“纠正”一番，是值得大家注意的事。 ·作者是《联合早报》政治组高级执行级记者
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