2026 Youth Bilingual Discourse

For the third consecutive year, SAJC proudly organised the Youth Bilingual Discourse in collaboration with the National Library Board.

Held on 16 April 2026 (Thursday), this year’s event brought together about 150 participants from 13 junior colleges and centralised institutions. In preparation, 40 students from across the participating schools stepped up as student facilitators and underwent a facilitation training on 25 March 2026 (Wednesday), where they were equipped with the polarity management framework and developed the confidence to lead meaningful discussions on current issues in both their Mother Tongue Languages and English.

The discourse commenced with a facilitation briefing by our Level Head of Chinese Language, Mr Gabriel Tien, who set the tone for thoughtful and respectful dialogue. Participants were then inspired by a keynote address from Mediacorp News Presenter, Ms Tan Qin Lin, who highlighted the value of bilingualism in both professional settings and everyday interactions with family.

Throughout the session, student-facilitators guided participants to reflect on how critical thinking and self-expression can differ across languages, deepening their appreciation of bilingual communication.

The programme concluded with a lively takeaway segment led by our Lead Teacher of Malay Language, Dr Pitchay Gani, where student-facilitators took turns to share their key insights.

From the reflections gathered, it is clear that participants not only gained a deeper understanding of the polarity thinking framework, but also cherished the opportunity to connect with like-minded youths from across JCs through the shared experience of bilingualism.