Should Mt Be Compulsory

Mother Tongue (MT) should not be a compulsory subject for secondary school students. Do you agree? Voltaire once said, “Life is a shipwreck but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats.

” If you don’t get everything you want, think of the things that you don’t get and you don’t want. Good morning to all, I’m Jan and today I will be telling you why I think Mother Tongue should be a compulsory subject for secondary school students.To many of us, Mother Tongue is probably one of the biggest obstacles to overcome. However, I feel that the only way for us to eventually succeed is to first accept failures. In my argument, I will first state the problems secondary school students are currently facing concerning taking Mother Tongue as a subject, followed by the importance of taking Mother Tongue, and finally the consequences of taking it out of the list of compulsory subjects. Education is now of common reach to people around the world.This would also mean that competition amongst people all around the world for a place in the society is getting higher, causing the language difficulty to increase and students to find it impossible to catch up, eventually facing the risk of failure.

This is a common scene in many secondary schools, which is also the reason why the Ministry of Education is taking into consideration to strike this subject off the list of compulsory subjects. However, I personally feel that Mother Tongue should remain a compulsory subject as it allows us to preserve our culture and heritage because it is passed down from our ancestors.If Mother Tongue is made optional, many students would not want to take Mother Tongue and this will hinder communications between the older and younger generations. Our Mother Tongue is passed down from our ancestors for generations and should not be taken so lightly. Treasuring and fully appreciating it is the only right thing to do. Thus, although it may be hampering students from doing well academically, we should never find excuses for taking the easy way out. Taking Mother Tongue ut of the compulsory list of subjects is not helping the society.

It is currently becoming more necessary and only being able to speak one language is not enough. The number of foreigners taking up a second language is increasing. For example, independent schools like Brighton College had made Chinese a compulsory language. At this rate, Singaporeans will risk losing out to foreigners and find it difficult to find a job in the future due to tough competition if the MOE decides to make Mother Tongue optional.In conclusion, I feel that Mother Tongue should be a compulsory subject. The reason why most students cannot do well is simply because they do not have interest in their second language. Our teachers open the doors, but we have to enter by ourselves.

We cannot solely depend on what we are being taught in school. Personally discovering and exploring our own culture is the only way to develop interest and motivate us to learn more. Remember, formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune. Thank you. Jan Goh (06) 2/P