Why take language courses at a language school in Singapore?
Some people may frown upon learning a language at a language school in Singapore: The Chinese aren't too impressed by the Mandarin spoken here, British and Americans aren't too impressed with the standard of English. So why Singapore?
The main argument against taking up a course with a language school in Singapore would be that Singapore doesn't really have a clear cut first language. If you were to take an English language course, why not do it in the USA; If you want to learn Chinese, why not do it in China or Taiwan?
It's true that people's vocabularies in Singapore are slightly different and arguably not as extensive as in monolingual countries such as China or the UK. Having to speak several languages does take its toll on the people in terms of being less fluent in either and Singaporean people tend to carry over some English grammatical patterns to Mandarin and vice versa.
But I've personally found that it is perfectly possible to learn the correct patterns for Mandarin, even if they are not used on the street in Singapore. And I observe this with my classmates as well. The teachers at language schools in Singapore are either from China or Taiwan or are schooled there to have the correct usage of language. If you use Mandarin or English correctly in everyday life in Singapore, you are going to be understood. Just keep in mind that the answer may not be 100% grammatically accurate. But in that sense Singapore is no different from most Chinese cities and areas in the UK. My wife, who learnt her English in Singapore, speaks perfectly standard English.
Another argument that surfaced in the comments on this website earlier, is that living and taking language lessons in Singapore is relatively expensive as compared to China. Well that's true, but it offers a better living environment for that cost as well. Singapore has the well deserved reputation to be safe and clean, and is also thoroughly cosmpolitan. So while true, this is really a personal choice.
The main reason to opt for joining a language school in Singapore is quality control. Schools in Singapore are simply not allowed to take any foreign students unless they are accredited under the EduTrust scheme. In this respect, Singapore is a safe bet, unlike China where some language schools are really not up to par.
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