LANGUAGE AND CULTURAL IDENTITY: Balancing National and International Needs in Public Universities in Saran Kaur Gill Universiti

Kebangsaan Malaysia INTR"DUCTI"N

ala!sia

At the turn of the century, many Asian countries are faced with tensions arising from the linguistic shift in language policies stemming from pressures of globalization. ery often, these pressures arise as a result of the shift in domain use from that of the national language to the establishment of !nglish as medium of instruction at varying levels of the education system, ranging from the primary to higher education. "his increasing hegemony of !nglish elicits reactions of varying degrees of an#iety over its impact on national cultural identities. $n this comple# situation, "sui and "ollefson %&''() *(+*,- in their boo., /0anguage policy, culture and identity in Asian 1onte#ts2 appropriately remind us that /the relationship between language policy and national cultural identity is dialectical.2 $t re3uires systematic reasoning to unravel the opposition between two interacting forces or elements of both the national and international needs of the nation. "herefore in this paper, it will be essential to unravel the opposing forces to understand the dynamics of changes in language policy and how the decisions impact on national cultural identities. 4e will begin by going bac. to history 5 an appreciation of the past always helps us understand responses and reactions to decisions made in the present. LANGUAGE C"NCERN# IN PRE AND I ALAY#IA EDIATE P"#T$INDEPENDENCE %I#T"RY "&

Malaysia, due to the e#igencies of history, is a post6colonial nation with a diverse ethnic population possessing great social and cultural comple#ity. Malaysia has not 7ust one but many significant languages, largely as a result of the immigrant ancestry of its multi6ethnic population. $n this conte#t, it is essential to e#amine the language policy decisions made in Malaysia in the pre and immediate post6independence period, a period rooted in traditional nationalism. 4hat were the social and political concerns of the dominant ethnic group as it went about selecting and instituting the national language8 4hy was there a need to implement the traditional nationalism approach of a one6nation one6language policy for national needs8 T'e Gro(t' o) Nationalis* and t'e #election and Institution o) Ba'asa t'e National and "))icial Language ela!u as

After the 9ritish had given independence to Malaya in *,:(, the dominant ethnic group, the Malay community, was plagued with the following 3uestions) /who are the owners of the country8 4hat are the symbols of national identity8 4hat is the meaning of the nation;s history82 %1rouch, *,,<) *::- "he Malays during the pre6independence period of history felt insecure and threatened by the numerical and economic strength of the immigrant population. %cited in 1rouch, *,,<) *:("hese feelings of potential marginalisation coupled with enforced imperialism resulted in an acute need amongst the indigenous ethnic group for /their own cultures and histories be restored to a place of honour.2 %!merson, *,<') *:&- "hey reinforced legitimization through symbolic categories li.e language, religion and the national anthem, which became very strong signs of identification. =ecognition and acceptance of these symbols by other ethnic groups provided the dominant group with a feeling of collective worth and legitimacy. "his was what >orowitz in his e#tensive discussion of ethnic group conflicts refers to as the need for groups, and especially

dominant ethnic groups, to establish /relative group worth2 and /relative group legitimacy2 through political domination and the high symbolic content of politics of ethnic entitlement. %*,?:) *?:"herefore, one of the strong symbolic claims that was asserted during this period was that of the institution of 9ahasa Malaysia as the national language and official language 6 the language of education and administration. After all, the establishment of a national language is /the most powerful symbolic vehicle of nationalism.2 %1oulmas, *,??) @reface- "here was a strong feeling that a national language was needed not only to affirm their legitimacy as the dominant group in this country but also as a tool to unify the multi6ethnic citizenry of the nation 5 to provide a strong sense of cultural identity at the national level. LANGUAGE P"LICY IN T%E %IG%ER EDUCATI"N D" AIN $n the higher education conte#t, universities play an integral role in intellectualizing and developing the higher6order human resource of a nation. "he culture of an institution of higher learning is strongly intertwined with the selection and implementation of the language of education. 9ahasa Malaysia, the selected national language, had an established agrarian and literary bac.ground. "herefore, to enable the language to function as a ma7or player in the domain of education, it had to be modernized and e3uipped with terminology and structures for particularly the science and technology disciplines. Aor 9ahasa Malaysia to be ta.en seriously as an intellectual language and to gain educational capital, it needed to be modernized and scholars had to be encouraged to write or translate specialized .nowledge into the language. "hus, tremendous efforts and huge resources were in7ected for activating both status and corpus planning for over a period of B' years. +'ere t'en did t'is ,lace Englis'"he transition from !nglish to 9ahasa Malaysia as the main medium of instruction began in *,<, in schools and reached university level in *,?B. "he role of !nglish then became that of the first second language 5 from being the medium of instruction in schools, it became a sub7ect that was compulsory to ta.e but not to pass for all students in the school system. "he change in language policy from !nglish language to 9ahasa Malaysia spanned the period from the post6independence years to the *,?'s. 4e move now to the *,,'s. "his period saw increasing signals for modification of language policy again, culminating in &''& to a shift bac. to !nglish for the field of science and technology as language of education. ./#T CENTURY: REA#"N# &"R C%ANGE IN Political Leaders'i,: Bac0ground o) C'ange "here are many reasons for this change %which have been dealt with in an article published by Gill %&'':- but for this lecture $ will focus on one. 4e will begin with an interview conducted with the former @rime Minister of Malaysia, Mahathir Mohamad, which was part of a two6year government funded research pro7ect /0anguage @olicy and @lanning in >igher !ducation in Malaysia) =esponding to the Ceeds of the Knowledge !conomy.2 Mahathir was as.ed, +it' regards to t'e recent c'ange in t'e "I in sc'ools ('ic' no( 'ave i*,acted 'ig'er education1 ('at (ere t'e reasons t'at ,rovided t'e i*,etus )or t'is c'ange in language ,olic! )or t'e )ields o) science and *at'sEDIU "& IN#TRUCTI"N

Our education system is like any other education system. Its meant to enable us to acquire knowledge. If we have the knowledge available in the national language, by all means, go ahead but the fact is that in science the research that is being done is moving at a very fast pace. Everyday literally thousands of papers on new research are being published and practically all of them are in English. To translate English into ahasa, would require a person with ! skills. "kill in the # languages and skill in the sub$ect that is to be translated and we dont have very many people who are qualified to do that or who wish to do that. That is why it is easier if you learn English and the students can have direct access to all the knowledge that is available in English.% %$nterview conducted by Gill on the *< Dune, &'':Unraveling &actors I*,acting t'e C'ange in Language Polic! "his leads us to one of the ma7or reasons for this change 5 the need to access science and technology in !nglish and this has raised the challenge of translation and indigenous writings in 9ahasa Malaysia. "his then raises the ne#t 3uestion, which is, why have all the efforts thus far not been sufficient for the nation to be able to access information and .nowledge in the field of science and technology8 Crucial access to in)or*ation in t'e )ield o) science and tec'nolog!: t'e slo( ,ace o) Publications2Translations in Ba'asa Shaharir, an established professor of maths, e#plicates cogently the various reasons for the slow rate of publications in 9ahasa Malaysia. "hese range from lac. of recognition of publications in 9ahasa Malaysia in the promotion schemes of academics, to the lengthy process of publication which demoralises the efforts of the academic writers. %Shaharir, &''*) *'(6**,-. "his is compounded by the fact that the translation process progressed at a slow pace. According to >7. >amidah 9aba, e#ecutive director of the Cational "ranslation Agency %$"CM-, a full time translator can only translate :6? pages a day, while a part6time translator can manage to translate a ma#imum of B pages a day %>7h. >amidah 9aba, &''*) (-. "hese reasons together with the .nowledge e#plosion in !nglish, concretely depicted by the fact there are over *'',''' scientific 7ournals in the world and this number is increasing at the rate of :''' articles per day adding to the B' million e#isting2 %9ilan cited in Martel, &''*) :*- paint an increasingly challenging situation for access to .nowledge and information in !nglish. >aving dealt with one of the main reasons for the change in language policy, it is important to find out about the .ey role players, the lecturers, in the implementation process to find out their attitudes and responses to this change in medium of instruction. 3e! Pla!ers: 4ie(s on C'ange in ediu* o) Instruction

<(' lecturers from , public universities were involved in this research. "he ma7ority of the lecturers %('.&E- from the ? public universities agreed with the change in medium of instruction in line with governmental and national aspirations. 4e move now to e#amine the responses of the lecturers of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia %UKM-. $n contrast to the responses of the ma7ority of lecturers from the other ? public universities, at UKM a large ma7ority disagreed with the change in medium of instruction 6 ('.:E of the respondents 6 and only a minority agreed 6 &,.:E of the respondents. "o understand this, one must understand the history of UKM. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia was the first university established to use only 9ahasa Melayu as the medium of education and this is the one university more than any other, that has wor.ed

tirelessly towards the use, development and modernization of 9ahasa Melayu as a language of .nowledge and education. "he mission statement of this university is /mendaulat.an 9ahasa Melayu.2 An analysis of the semantics of the mission statement reveals the nationalistic strength with which the linguistic aspirations were held by the Malay intellectuals. "he verb associated with 9ahasa Melayu is mendaulat.an Fto ennoble; a verb normally only used in relation to royalty. $n Malay culture, and in the nation, the King is held in the highest regard. "herefore the verb mendaulat.an has been used to regalise and stress the sacredness with which the language is viewed. "his portrays the strength of the feelings that Malay intellectuals had towards the language and the mission of the university. Smolicz e#plains the strong reactions of any group towards any attempt to alter the position of the language that represents a core element of their cultural identity. >e says, /4hen people feel that there is a direct lin. between their identity as a group and what they regard as the most crucial and distinguishing element of their culture, the element concerned becomes a core value for the group. .G any attempt to alter its traditional culture, brings forth counter measures that help to pinpoint those values that the group considers as its cultural core, and, therefore, as meriting all efforts in their defense.2 %Smolicz, *,?*) (<&UTURE C%ALLENGE &"R T%E NATI"N: BALANCING NATI"N5# DE4EL"P ENT LINGUI#TIC CULTURAL IDENTITY AND T%E #U#TENANCE "& NATI"NAL

Amongst the lecturers who felt frustrated with the change in language policy, there is great concern over the potential erosion of our national and ethnic cultural identity. "here is a fear that nations will develop a generation who will forsa.e their cultural heritage in their pursuit of technological and economic power. "his is similarly e#pressed by "sui and "ollefson %&''H) (-, who remind us that the change in the medium of instruction to !nglish, /G may produce nationals who are ambivalent about their own identity, and nations that are stripped of their rich cultural heritage.2 "hus, many nations are facing the challenge of having to develop a balance between national languages and the increasing spread and functions of !nglish. Are these fears legitimate8 Ioes opening our educational borders to the dominant language mean that we have no means of protecting ourselves and will allow the imperial culture to bulldoze our national and ethnic identities8 %o( 'ave ot'er nations res,onded to t'is c'allenge"sui and "ollefson %&''() ,- resolve the parado# by describing how other nations /reconstruct national cultural identities through the discourse of !nglish.2 "hey e#plain this reconstruction by describing how Dapan, Korea and Malaysia have responded to this challenge. Iue to the e#igencies of time, we will not be dealing with Dapan and Korea but will focus instead on the Malaysian conte#t. $n the Malaysian conte#t, with the challenges of globalization and international economic competitiveness, nationalism and the national cultural identity is reconstructed through the need to develop the nation through !nglish. Academics who still e#press their unhappiness with the situation of language shift need to be made aware of the change in mindset needed to appreciate the change needed for the concept of nationalism for these present times. "he former @rime Minister, who provided the driving force for this change in language of instruction reminds us that the whole concept of nationalism needs to be re6defined. "un Mahathir stresses that, /4e need to move from the e#treme form of nationalism which concentrates on being a language nationalist only, not a .nowledge nationalist, not a development oriented nationalist. $ feel that we should be a development oriented nationalist. 4e want our people to succeed, to be able to stand tall, to be respected by the rest of the world. Cot to be people with no .nowledge of science and technology, very poor, very bac.wards,

wor.ing as servants to other people. $f we have no .nowledge we will be servants to those with .nowledge.2 %$nterviewed by Gill, *< Dune &'':$t is clear that the message that is conveyed is an essential need for the reconstruction of nationalism or national cultural identity through !nglish 5 a move from linguistic nationalism to .nowledge6driven nationalism , development oriented nationalism which is integral for the entire nation. 4ith these parado#ical challenges facing our nation, what should our priority be for present times8 4hilst we are concerned and devoting efforts to the maintenance and sustenance of national cultural identities through 9ahasa Malaysia, lecturers are facing the challenges of the shift in medium of instruction, which places tremendous pressure and demands on the academics. "his is especially so for academics who belong to what is described as the /language transition generation2 5 in transition because they have been educated in 9ahasa Malaysia, lectured and taught in 9ahasa Malaysia and are now switching over to !nglish and are e#pected to pedagogically perform and function effectively in !nglish. $n the field of teaching and learning, the mastery of the language which functions as the medium of instruction is important, being able to use it to impart .nowledge and ideas to students is important. 9ut it ta.es time to ac3uire a high level of competency. "herefore what should be done in the interim period8 Aor this, it would be good to turn to the !uropean e#perience to forge the direction we need to ta.e to assist this linguistic transition generation during this transitional period of language change. 4il.inson describes the nature of communication challenges facing higher education institutions, when he says, /learning content through a foreign language implies more than changing the language of instruction, it also involves the conscious design of programmes that integrate both content and language goals. G. "his is because merely offering programmes through a foreign language without setting performance targets in the use of the content6related language puts the 3uality and the reputation of both the programme and the institution at ris..2 %4il.inson, &''H) *'"he 3uestions that we need to consider and wor. at to assist our academic staff face the challenges of enhancing teaching and learning in a new medium have been laid out by the Iirector6General for !ducation and 1ulture of the !uropean 1ommission. >e articulates these ideas in the !uropean higher education conte#t but they are considerations that are relevant in the Malaysian conte#t. >e says, />ow can we ma.e sure that staff who teach through the medium of a foreign language have ade3uate communicative competence in that language and a specialist training in the s.ills of 10$06, as well as in the other sub7ect8 >ow can we ma.e sure that academic staff have ade3uate training in setting learning ob7ectives and in assessing learning outcomes in a 10$0 environment %which is after all very different from the standard learning environment-8 $n short, how can universities ma.e sure that staff teaching through an additional language really are integrating the content and the language82 %>oldsworth, &''H) &<-

CLIL is Content and Language Integrated Learning

"his then is the research that needs to be carried out, which is to e#amine the nature of the training provided for academic staff to e3uip themselves with competencies to be able to integrate both language and content in the field of science and technology. Conclusion $n conclusion, it is the academic leaders of public universities who will have to decide the priorities and direction that universities should ta.e at this point in time. "he an#iety between maintenance of linguistic nationalism and development oriented pragmatism can be reduced if we remind ourselves of the fact that mastering and using another language does not eliminate feelings for the nation, and need not affect our national cultural identity. Along these lines, it is appropriate to end with this 3uote from a case in the United States, which even though arguing for a different language and nation holds a strong message for us in Malaysia as we grapple with the notion of linguistic national identity in the face of the challenges of globalization. $t is ta.en from an insightful article by Aneta @avlen.o which is titled, &'e have room for but one language here%( )anguage and national identity in the *" at the turn of the #+ th century. "he quotes from the memoirs of a German6American, =ichard 9artholdt %*,B'-, a successful politician whose dreams to run for Senate were thwarted by the anti6German hysteria of 4orld 4ar $. >e articulates an emotional defense for the relationship between language and national identity by asserting, /G what has mere speech, the twisting of the tongue in one way or the other, to do with the loyalty of the citizen8 $t is not lip service a country needs, but genuine patriotism, and the source of that is man;s conscience and not his tongue. $f we have true loyalty in our heart of hearts, we can e#press it in any other language as beautifully as in !nglish. 4hy, a man can be a good and true American without even .nowing !nglish, the same as a man who is physically unable to spea. at all. It is rig't and ,ro,er t'at ever! A*erican citi7en1 *ale and )e*ale1 s'ould *aster t'e language o) t'e countr!8 Even aside )ro* ,ublic considerations1 t'is is in t'eir o(n interest8 9ut from this it is a far cry to the assertion which nowadays is so often made, at least by implication, that a man cannot become a real American, if his mother6tongue is a language other than !nglish. %9artholdt, *,B') B' cited in @avelen.o, &''&) *??Re)erences: 1oulmas, A. *,??. 4hat is a Cational 0anguage Good Aor8 $n 'ith ,orked Tongues - 'hat are .ational )anguages /ood ,or0 !dited by Alorian 1oulmas. Singapore) Karoma @ublishers. *6 &H. 1rouch, >. *,,<. /overnment and "ociety in 1alaysia. $thaca) 1ornell University @ress. Gill, Saran. K. $nterview 1onducted with "un Ir. Mahathir Mohamad, the former @rime Minister of Malaysia on the*< Dune &'': at the @etronas "win "owers, Kuala 0umpur) Malaysia. Gill, Saran K., >azita Azman, Corizan Abdul =aza. and Aadhil Mansor. &''B6&'':. )anguage 2olicy and 2lanning in 3igher Education in 1alaysia( 4esponding to the .eeds of the 5nowledge Economy. A pro7ect classified under the $ntensified =esearch @riority Areas, funded by the Ministry of Science, "echnology and $nnovation, Malaysia. Gill, Saran K. &'':. 0anguage @olicy in Malaysia) =eversing Iirection. )anguage 2olicy. H%B-) &H*6&<'. ol.

>a7ah >amidah 9aba. &''*. 2rogram 2enter$emahan uku Ilmu( 2engalaman dan 2erancangan. Kuala 0umpur) $nstitut "er7emahan Cegara 9erhad.

>oldsworth, @. &''H. !U policy on language learning and linguistic diversity as it relates to 1ontent and 0anguage $ntegrated 0earning and >igher !ducation. $n Integrating 6ontent and )anguage - 1eeting the 6hallenge of a 1ultilingual 3igher Education. !dited by =obert 4il.ison. Cetherlands) Universitaire @ers Maastricht. &'6&(. >orowitz, Ionald, 0. *,?:. Ethnic /roups in 6onflict. 9er.eley) University of 1alifornia @ress. Martel, A. &''*. 4hen Ioes Knowledge >ave a Cational 0anguage8 0anguage @olicy6Ma.ing for Science and "echnology. $n Ammon, Urich %!d-, The 7ominance of English as a )anguage of "cience ( Effects on other )anguages and )anguage 6ommunities. Cew Jor.) Mouton de Gruyter. @avlen.o, &''& G. Shaharir Mohamad Kain. &''*. @aper presented at the * st U16UKM $nternational =egional 1onference on "echnology and Society, held on ( th and ?th September &''' at 9angi !3uatorial >otel. "sui, Amy 9.M. and "ollefson, Dames 4. &''(. 0anguage @olicy and the 1onstruction of Cational 1ultural $dentity. $n )anguage 2olicy, 6ulture and Identity in 8sian 6onte9ts. !dited by Amy 9.M. "sui and Dames 4. "ollefson. Mahwah, CD) 0awrence !rlbaum. *6&*. 4il.inson, =. &''H. $ntroduction. $n Integrating 6ontent and )anguage - 1eeting the 6hallenge of a 1ultilingual 3igher Education. !dited by =obert 4il.ison. Cetherlands) Universitaire @ers Maastricht. ,6*&.