Speech by Mr Gan Kim Yong, Minister of State, Minstry of Education and Ministry of Manpower, at the Official Opening of World Book Fair 2007 and Presentation of Inspiring Chinese Language Teachers Awards and National Chinese Language Lesson Plan Awards 2007 on Friday, 25 May 2007, at 6.30 pm at Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre

SPEECH BY MR GAN KIM YONG, MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF EDUCATION & MINISTRY OF MANPOWER, AT THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF WORLD BOOK FAIR 2007 AND PRESENTATION OF INSPIRING CHINESE LANGUAGE TEACHERS AWARDS AND NATIONAL CHINESE LANGUAGE LESSON PLAN AWARDS 2007 ON FRIDAY, 25 MAY 2007, AT 6.30 PM AT SUNTEC SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION AND EXHIBITION CENTRE

Mr Robin Hu
Executive Vice President, Chinese Newspapers, Singapore Press Holdings

Mr Shane Armstrong
Senior Group Publisher & Head of Marshall Cavendish Publishing Group

1. I am pleased to be here for the official opening of the World Book Fair 2007. This evening we are also presenting the Inspiring Chinese Language Teachers Awards and the National Outstanding Chinese Language Lesson Plan Awards 2007.

2. Since 1985, the World Book Fair has been an annual event for many book lovers. This year is the 22nd World Book Fair. The efforts by the organizers to continue promoting the reading habit amongst Singaporeans over the years are indeed commendable.

3. The World Book Fair is also an important event that offers an effective and suitable platform for Singaporean and regional publishers and distributors to meet and to establish partnerships. I have also noticed that our ASEAN members and other Asian countries have continued to give their strong support for this year’s World Book Fair. I hope that these ties which have been forged over the years will help position Singapore as a vibrant publishing market for Asian publishers and beyond.

4. I am also glad to note that members of the ASEAN Book Publishers Association will be launching a collection of new books at the book fair tomorrow for the first time. This is a good example for other Asian countries to follow suit.

5. Books in any form, be it printed or electronic, will always be an important source of knowledge and information. We should cultivate the reading habit from young so that it becomes an integral part of our lives. Reading not only broadens our minds, it also provides personal fulfillment and helps improve our language proficiency.

6. That is why, in the reviews of the curriculum and pedagogy of the English language and mother tongue languages, the committees recommended the setting up of reading clubs to encourage healthy reading habit and support the learning of languages in schools. As we prepare our young for a globalised future and strengthen Singapore’s identity as an open, diverse and cohesive society, we must enhance the learning of the mother tongue and other Asian languages. For this reason, we have introduced more third language options such as Bahasa Indonesia and Arabic for our students, providing them with opportunities to learn other Asian languages at a conversational level, in addition to learning their own mother tongues.

7. Our language teachers play a crucial role in ensuring success of our efforts. They face the challenge of teaching students with different learning needs and different caliber. Our teachers are adept at adopting differentiated methods to engage their students and help them learn effectively. This evening’s award presentation is but one of many ways we show appreciation to our teachers and affirm their contributions.

8. Today, we recognise Chinese Language teachers who have employed innovative and inspiring methods to make the Chinese language alive and interesting to their students. Twenty teachers, out of 980 nominations, have earned themselves the Inspiring Chinese Language Teachers Award or the National Outstanding Chinese Language Lesson Plan Award this year.

9. I commend all of the award winners here for your contributions to the teaching of the Chinese language.

10. I congratulate the organising committee for a very successful World Book Fair and wish all of you a fruitful time here.