I REFER to the letter, "Get back to basics to promote good English" (my paper, Aug 27).

The writer called for the employment of expatriate teachers to improve the standard of English in Singapore.

It is upsetting to find that, even now, there are still many who believe in the fallacy that native speakers of the language are naturally better English teachers.

If that were the case, then we would need to launch a huge recruitment exercise to hire sufficient numbers of such teachers to control the damage wrought by generations of Singaporeans who speak English poorly.

In truth, local teachers who are properly trained and exposed to the right methodologies can do the job just as well, if not better, because they understand how English is used in the multilingual context of our society.

It is important to consider what kind of English we want.

For example, do we wish to speak English with Received Pronunciation, also known as the Queen's English or BBC English?

This would be the version of English that is grammatically correct, while still being spoken with a local accent and even incorporating some words from the local vernacular.

How else, for example, would we describe the space below a block of Housing Board flats, other than by calling it the 'void deck'?

Every language evolves to reflect the varying conditions of different societies. That's why we have American English and Australian English.

Even in Britain, there are many dialects of English. That is why Eliza Doolittle, a character from the musical My Fair Lady, had to have lessons to 'correct' her Cockney English.

So, it is fair to assume that expatriate teachers will come from diverse backgrounds and speak different kinds of English, no matter how experienced they may be.

It is necessary to realise that we can communicate through language only if we are aware of the context behind its use.

Singlish is, of course, inappropriate for formal writing, business presentations and interviews.

But, hey, sometimes the only way for you to get a good bargain at the wet market is to create rapport by using Singlish.

Mrs Ang Lai Kuin

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