I refer to the Malaysiakini report Switch or we strike, warns education group.

I'm not sure which ‘people’ Dong Jiao Zong assumes it is representing but it sure doesn't represent my family.

I received my primary education in a Chinese school. My wife graduated from a private Chinese secondary school. We are both degree-holding professionals.

Our eldest child is attending a Chinese primary school and our second child is in a Chinese kindergarten. We choose to let our kids go to Chinese schools because we believe they teach good values, are free from religious interference and expose students to multi-lingual education.

We like the idea that our children will learn Maths and Science in both Chinese and English. Our eldest even says her favourite subjects in school are Maths and Science. She doesn't seem to have any problem learning the same subjects in two languages, and her results are proof of this.

We have no doubt that she will only benefit from having learned Maths and Science in primary school, and the transition to secondary school will be easier too, as the two important subjects will continue to be taught in English.

My personal experience tells me that, in the past, many Chinese students were lost in the transition from primary school to national school, or they may move on to private secondary schools and later lead a mostly monolingual life, as the infamous Name Wee rapped about (and is rapped for).

Am I worried that vernacular schools will be phased out? Let me share my personal mini-survey on this subject: When parents are asked whether they will continue to send their children to vernacular schools if government schools are modeled on the Singapore system of secular schools with English as the primary teaching medium, and compulsory mother-tongue education, what do you think the answer will be?

On the other hand, when the choice is between vernacular schools and an alternative that has increasingly shown a tendency to get its priorities wrong, advocates racial and religious segregation and is subject to religious interference, the choice, to me at least, is clear.

I am not so much concerned about giving my children a Chinese education per se. I am more interested in ensuring that they receive a quality education that imparts good universal secular values, that are free from any form of bigotry, that will prepare them for the globalised world on which they will make a mark.

Maybe Dong Jiao Zong will see me as an exception among parents who send their children to vernacular schools, but I can foresee the Chinese education movement becoming irrelevant if it doesn't change its dogmatic ways.