To hear that educators and linguists are to bang their heads together to brainstorm about the ‘language of learning’ is very encouraging.

It is very positive that the authorities have broached the subject. Education Minister Dolores Cristina recently spoke of the need to re-evaluate matters and her thoughts were echoed by Opposition MP Evarist Bartolo.

Both were, as is to be expected at this stage, not of iron cast opinion, but both put forward very relevant arguments in the discussion. This newspaper had also raised the same point in a leading article some months back.

It is evident that English is the lingua franca of the world. It is the modern day Latin and without it, people struggle. We have the misconception that everyone in Malta has decent English. This is far from the truth. There was a time when most Maltese people had a good grasp of English, but the fact of the matter is that it has deteriorated and continues to deteriorate. We are not talking about diction and accent, but actual use of the language.

One of the main issues at stake here is preserving the Maltese language. It seems that already, people are leaning towards English as being the best learning language. And this makes sense. Whether one is studying IT, marketing, chemistry or biology, it is English which should be used.

But, as we have said, Maltese should not be relegated to Maltese lessons. We are a unique people with a unique language and its use and preservation should be very high on the agenda. Perhaps the hardest battle is going to be convincing people about that very point. English is important because it is used in the business world, both in Malta and overseas. It is the language used by international academics and it is the language of business. It is safe to say that if one does not have extremely good command of the language, then they will struggle. There is evidence of this in Malta. Even people who have good written English struggle if they are not as adept in speaking it.

We are sure that there will be a healthy debate, but rather than talking about wholesale change, it would perhaps be wiser to roll in the use of English slowly. It does not have to be an official thing that kicks in from one day to the next, it could just be phased in slowly, as a concept rather than as a strict rule.

The key to all of this is starting at an early age. Children pick up languages far quicker than adults, so if the process is started early, kids can continue to sharpen their skills as they get older. But there is that very important proviso – Maltese cannot be left out in the cold.

The world is changing, as are the requirements of prospective employees and it is good to see that foresight is being used. We do often wait till it’s too late in Malta and we end up playing catch-up. Now, let us look forward to a good and intelligent debate on the subject, which might also lead to other changes in the system.