The Faculty of Languages and Arts Universitas Negeri Medan organized an online public lecture via Zoom on Tuesday, September 2, 2025. The program brought together lecturers from the Faculty of Languages and Arts, along with postgraduate and doctoral students. The Dean, Prof. Dr. Zulkifli, M.Sn., gave the opening remarks before the session began. The session was guided smoothly with Fitri Ayu, S.Pd., M.Hum as the moderator and Yuni Khairina, S.Pd., M.Hum as the master of ceremony. From the start, participants showed genuine interest, which became even more evident during the lively discussion and Q&A.
The lecture was delivered by Dr. Lee Huan Yik, Senior Lecturer at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and Honorary Fellow at the University of Queensland. His presentation, “Language Policy in the Southeast Asian Context,” looked at the complex linguistic situation in the region. It was elaborated how English continues to dominate the education sector while many local and minority languages are losing ground. Insights on Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) was shared and the “Naverin” model, which combines national, vernacular, and international languages in primary education was also introduced.
In wrapping up, Dr. Lee encouraged a more inclusive approach to language policy—one that values multilingualism as a resource. He recommended giving stronger support to first-language instruction, improving teacher preparation at the local level, and ensuring that English develops alongside, rather than replacing, other languages. His talk left the audience with plenty to reflect on about the future of language education in Southeast Asia.