How Parents Can Support Their Children In the Learning of Malay Language in Secondary Schools

Tips on how you can help to reinforce and enrich your child’s learning of Malay Language by providing a supportive home environment.

Help to reinforce and enrich your child’s learning of Malay Language by providing a supportive home environment.  Here are some tips on how you can support your child’s learning:

 

• Help and encourage your child to develop a love for reading by getting him/her to explore various types of literary writings and identifying those that he/she would be interested in.

• Read publications such as Malay Language newspapers (Berita Harian/Minggu) and magazines with your child and lead him/her into discussions on the issues featured.  Your child will find the articles in these publications interesting and relevant.  These articles will also serve as a good platform for you and your child to explore teenage issues.

• Increase your child’s exposure to Malay Language by encouraging him/her to view ML television programmes or listen to Malay Language radio stations.  Hearing the deejays interact in Malay Language will help your child acquire more vocabulary and sentence structures.

• Encourage your child to write by publishing essays on social media platforms such as blogs.  This will help to hone his/her skill of self-expression and sharpen his/her thinking. Encourage his/her imagination and expression. Guide your child to use appropriate words and phrases. Allow your child to express himself/herself with confidence. 

• Encourage and support your child to take part in activities organised by community organisations at the community clubs/centres or public libraries.

• Immerse your child in Malay culture through performances such as dance, drama and musicals.  Such immersion will help to nurture a lifelong interest in Malay Language and its culture as well as his/her sense of aesthetics.

• Cultivate your child’s roots by helping him/her to appreciate the rich and unique Malay heritage through visits to places such as the Malay Heritage Centre and Kampong Glam.

• Play language games with your child to make learning of Malay Language fun for him/her.  Word games such as ‘Sahibba’ reinforces his/her learning of the language in an enjoyable way.  These games will help to break down apprehensions that your child might have towards learning Malay Language.

These activities will increase your child’s exposure to Malay Language as well as nurture an appreciation for the richness of his/her own culture. Have such activities as often as you can.  Your child will be enthused to learn and explore Malay Language and its culture. You will also enjoy a better bond with your child as he/she goes through the phase of a growing teenager. Be a friend as well as a parent to your child.