Gloria: Instead of making people feel embarrassed about their mistakes, we should encourage them to just speak, no matter how ‘broken’ it sounds.
AS a student, I have noticed something rather interesting: people can be quite self-conscious about speaking English.
If someone isn’t fluent, they either keep quiet or say, “Aiya, my England not so powderful (sic) lah.”
It’s as if speaking English is a high-stakes performance, where anything less than perfect grammar or pronunciation invites instant judgement.
But should that be the case? Should we only speak English if we’re fluent, or should we just go for it despite our mistakes? I think the answer is pretty obvious – we should just go for it.
There’s also a strange belief that if someone speaks English fluently, they must be well-educated or more intelligent.
But let’s flip that idea around: does struggling with English mean someone is less intelligent? That’s completely unfair to assume.
A scientist from Japan, for instance, may struggle to express their ideas in English, but that does not make them any less brilliant in their field.
Similarly, many Malaysians who are highly skilled in their professions may not be fluent in English.
Clearly, fluency isn’t a measure of intelligence. It’s just a skill, like swimming or cooking. Some people are better at it than others, but that doesn’t define their worth.
However, due to this mindset, people who struggle with English often feel insecure about speaking it, fearing they will be judged for their mistakes. This creates a cycle where they avoid using the language, limiting their opportunities to improve.
If we continue to enforce the “speak fluently or not at all” mentality, we will discourage people from practising English, ultimately hindering their progress.
Let’s be honest: nobody starts off speaking perfect English. Even native speakers make mistakes. If we keep waiting until we’re fluent before we start speaking, we will be waiting forever.
Think about it – how did we learn to speak our mother tongues? As kids, we made all sorts of funny mistakes – mispronouncing words, mixing things up, even getting grammar completely wrong.
But nobody told us to stop speaking. Instead, we kept trying, and over time, we got better. It should be the same with English.
Instead of making people feel embarrassed about their mistakes, we should encourage them to just speak, no matter how “broken” it sounds.
Fluency comes with practice, and practice comes from actually using the language – not just memorising grammar rules.
Rather than expecting perfection, we should create a culture where people feel safe to make mistakes.
If you speak broken English, that’s not a problem – at least you’re trying. Not sure about grammar? That’s okay; you’ll learn.
The point of language is to communicate, not to impress. And for those of us who are more fluent, maybe it’s about time we stopped laughing at people who struggle with English and start encouraging them instead.
Correct gently if needed, but don’t embarrass them. Because at the end of the day, language is meant to connect people, not divide them.
So, no, we shouldn’t adopt a “fluency or nothing” mentality.
Instead, we should promote a more inclusive approach – one that prioritises effort and progress over perfection.
Whether your English is fluent, broken, or somewhere in between – just speak lah! Because you’ll never improve if you don’t start somewhere.
Gloria, 24, a student in Selangor, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team. For updates on the BRATs programme, go to facebook.com/ niebrats.
