HOMEMAKER Jean Lourdes (not her real name) had a tough time communicating with a young local sales attendant while looking for some organic vegetables in an upscale supermarket in the Klang Valley recently. It appeared the young sales attendant, who spoke minimum English, could not understand the term organic vegetables, and hence, directed Lourdes out of the upscale supermarket – which, in fact, did sell organic vegetables.
“This may be a small matter, but I’m certainly concerned about this trend… it adds to the existing signs of deteriorating level of English in our country,” says Lourdes, whose two teenaged daughters are currently attending a national school in Petaling Jaya.