Malaysia My Second Home: Isu Bahasa dalam kalangan peserta Jepun

• Main Authors: Stapa, S.H., Hieda, N., Amzah, N., Talaibek, M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Press 2013
• Subjects: P Philology. Linguistics
• Online Access: http://eprints.um.edu.my/17111/1/All.pdf; http://eprints.um.edu.my/17111/

The objective of this article is to investigate issues faced by the Japanese participants of Malaysia My Second Home Programme (MM2H). The research method utilized for this study is both quantitative and qualitative. Data was collected through questionnaires, focus group interview as well as personal interview. Altogether 100 Japanese participants were selected to answer the questionnaires. Five participants were involved in the focus group interview and two were selected for the personal interview. The findings of the study reveal that the main attraction of joining this MM2H programme is the "reasonable price of goods" in Malaysia and the "suitable weather"of the country. Findings about the use of language show that the English language use among the participants is higher compared to Malay which is the national language of the country. This is due to the fact that they have more experience learning English rather than Malay. Without sufficient interaction with the locals, their proficiency levels for both languages were just basic. However, they could live their life here in Malaysia as they have strong support system in Japanese. Despite that, they feel that there is a need to upgrade their proficiency in English and Malay. Their willingness to study English and Malay shows that they are in favor of an easier life and to have good relationship with the locals.