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English lessons in Melaka: Melaka Darul Traffic Lights?

Back then in history when there was a sultan ruling over the state of Melaka, the full name of the state was ‘Melaka Darul ‘Azim’. Today, Melaka residents put a twist on the name: ‘Melaka Darul Traffic Lights’, and it has become a local joke. For Malaysians, besides its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Melaka is also well-known for its many traffic lights and traffic congestions. However, those are relatively small problems for the residents as there are many more reasons to love Melaka than to not love it.

One of the residents exclaimed, “Melaka is a good place for people who love the city buzz but still want to have the suburb vibe”, and that is true. Aside from the huge Mahkota Parade and Dataran Pahlawan malls and all the traffic jams, Melaka has many villages with traditional kampung-style houses surrounded with paddy fields. When someone mentions Melaka, usually the very first thing that comes to people’s mind is the city centre regions. Well, now it is time for the suburb areas of Melaka to be in the spotlight!

The not-so-hidden gems outside of Melaka city centre

Many people do not know that Melaka is also blessed with a beautiful stretch of paddy fields. If you would like to escape from the hectic city atmosphere, head to Sungai Rambai, Jasin or Ayer Keroh areas and take a breather by watching the sun setting below the horizon, with the majestic red and orange hues against the green square patches of the paddy field. 

If you do not fancy that but still want to escape from the city areas, fret not. Why not try visiting the many animal parks in Ayer Keroh if you are an animal lover? In Ayer Keroh, there are many parks that you can visit, such as Crocodile Farm Park, Butterfly Farm Park and in fact Melaka Zoo is located there as well. 

Languages used in Melaka

Delving into the languages used by the locals is pretty much like opening the window to understanding the character, personality and background history of the locals. If you are a person who studies languages and literature, this definitely straight away receives a nod from you. 

In Melaka, there are many languages spoken, such as Malay, English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien, Tamil, Portuguese Creole from the Portuguese occupation, Baba Malay that mixes Malay and Hokkien, and Manglish, if you take it as a form of language as well. Manglish is also known as a ‘rojak’ language, taking the name of a famous dish that mixes many ingredients and condiments, and its existence can be traced back to the 16th century when Melaka was the centre for maritime trading. It stands for Malaysian English and it is a mix of Malay, Chinese and Indian slang.

In the formal education system, languages that are being taught at public school are Malay and English. Therefore, most Malaysians are able to converse fluently in English. However, they also like to use Manglish in daily conversation and the usage has its own fans and haters, but mainly frowned upon by the English teachers and educators. It is regarded as destroying the beauty and proper structure of English language. Nonetheless, the fans of the language believe Manglish unites the different races in Malaysia and symbolises the harmonious multi-racial relationships of Malaysians.

Standard English vs Manglish among students

Usage of Manglish is significant in high school students especially in the classes that consist of many different races. As a result, the usage and mastery of correct standard English among the school students are declining at an alarming rate. They mistakenly mix up the standard English structure with Manglish in their homework, essays and even examination answers. English educators throughout all the states in Malaysia have raised concerns about this issue to the education ministry, especially about its long-term effect in academic and job sectors.

Mitigating the Manglish impacts

In order to overcome this issue, English teachers in the school need to help the students to become aware of the differences between the standard English and Manglish so that they can avoid using it in formal settings. The teachers also need to encourage the correct usage of English sentence structures and remind the students of the effects of confusing standard English with Manglish, such as their performance in the examination will be badly affected.

However, there is no one-size-fits-all method when it comes to teaching and learning standard English in classroom settings. For some students who are unable to catch up with the rather difficult English grammar, they find Manglish much easier to understand and to apply in daily conversation.

English tutoring as the most effective solution

Hence, for students and parents that are aware of the limitations in the classroom setting for an in-depth learning of standard English, they can opt for face-to-face or online English tutoring. It is much more effective in improving the overall English mastery: speaking, listening, writing and comprehension components. An English tutor is much more capable in detecting the students’ weakness and confusion since the tutor is able to spend more personal time with the students.

The best platform to find a credible English tutor is Superprof website, as Superprof ensures the education background of the tutors are verified and the previous students can also leave a review of the tutors on their profile. It even has a customer service by telephone and email for the clients to seek help with any issue, so the students can undergo tutoring with a peaceful mind, knowing that their rights are safe, protected and assured for.

Are you interested in getting an English tutor based in Melaka but you are tight on budget? Fret not, the average lesson cost is only RM 22 per session and 95% of the tutors offer free first class, so you can give it a try and decide to stop, continue or change to another tutor after the first session. If you only need online English tutoring, you can get a much cheaper price. There are tutors offering online sessions as low as RM 6 per session, and that is cheaper than Tealive’s Brown Sugar Milk Tea! 

Head on to Superprof, check on the tutor profiles freely and contact them easily through the secure inbox. In less than 4 hours, you will already get a response and be ahead in your English learning.