We thank Ms Stacey Ho Ling Ying for her feedback on the learning of Malay or Bahasa Indonesia in schools (Let all students have chance to learn Malay or Indonesian, March 21).

The Ministry of Education recognises the value for students to learn a South-east Asian language to raise their understanding and appreciation of different cultures in Singapore and other regional countries.

In primary and secondary schools, Conversational Malay is offered as an enrichment programme to students who do not take Malay language.

In Conversational Malay classes, students learn simple sentence structure and vocabulary of the Malay language, and take part in conversations on everyday situations using the language. Through the programme, students gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the Malay culture.

At the secondary school level, students with interest and aptitude can choose to pick up a third language, which includes the Malay language and Bahasa Indonesia.

We will continue to provide our students with opportunities to learn additional languages beyond English and their own mother tongue languages to broaden their perspectives and nurture their passion for languages and cultures.

Sin Kim Ho

Divisional Director, Curriculum Planning and Development Division 1

Ministry of Education