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DEVELOPING COMMUNICATION SKILLS AMONG THE STUDENTS OF

PROFESSIONAL COURSES FROM RURAL BACKGROUND.

CONTENTS

1) Introduction

2) Developing Listening Skills

3) The role of Television for Learning Listening skills

4) Audiovisual Techniques in the Teaching of English

5) The Internet as a support system for Language Learners.

6) Developing impressive speaking skills

7) A Communication approach to the Teaching of Vocabulary.

8) Patterns of classroom interaction in ESL classes.

9) Developing Reading and Writing Skills

10) Reading strategies for Engineering students

11) A selection of Reading materials for the students

12) Imparting Reading Techniques Among the students

13) Reading comprehension in the classroom

14) Identifying Reading problems in second Language Learners.

15) Developing the ESL writing skills of Engineering students : some

methodological implications.

16) A study of the development of expository writing skills

17) The role of Teachers Feedback in improving students writing skills at B.Tech

level.

18) The teacher as facilitator, A new role for the language teacher.19) The need of English Language Laboratories

20) Lesson planning and class room observation

21) Conclusion.

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CHAPTER - I

Introduction

Communication is the pivot on which the modern globe revolves.The success of every section of a nation historically socially, politically,

commercially, financially is determined by its close association with the

well developed communication system. Relationships among human

beings are established through cordial communication system. Cultural

and technological developments are the direct out-come of the advanced

communication system. Communication is a strategic importance, as it

decides survival and success of trade & commerce nationally and

internationally. With regard to man, communication is oxygen to his

social life, nutrition for economic life and clothing for his thoughts.Absence of communication retards the developmental process of a man

and impairs his social life drastically. Failure to communicate has

resulted in imprisonment of the human personality. The term

Communication is easy to understand because it is a natural

phenomenon, but is difficult to define it as a concept in brief due to

multifarious interpretations made by several linguists and authors. For a

common man, Communication is an exchange of information or ideas

on a particular topic for discussion. Technically it is a process of

transmitting ideas, information and feelings through a channel from the

speaker to another person or a group of persons and receiving feedback

from the transferee. The word Communication originates from a Latin

root Communicate which implies to Share. It is also closely

associated with the English term Common which means sharing by two

or more. In this context it is suitable to define the communication as

sharing ideas or information between two or among more persons.

Dictionary defines it as transmission of message or information from one

person to another. According to Keith Davis, Communication is the

transfer of information and understanding from one person to another

person John Adair opined that communication is essentially the ability ofone person to make contact with another and to make him self or her self

understood about the speakers intention. Communication is the process

by which information is transmitted between individuals or organizations

so that an understanding response result according to Peter Little.

Another scientist, Charles Cooley defines communication as technology.

The mechanism through which all human relations exist and developed

all the symbols of the mind together with means of conveying through

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space and preserving them in time. Thus communication is sharing or

exchange of ideas or information between two or more persons through a

systems of channel.

Communication is as old as human origin. During early years of mansexistence, non-linguistic communication was in practice. During

prehistoric times man communicated through sounds, symbols and

gestures. With the launch of social life, communication through a

systematic channel developed. It provoked man to develop languages.

The advent of culture and civilization made the communication an

essential element for mans comfortable stay. Development of science

and technology, trade and commerce and socio-economic conditions

elevated the status ofcommunication from essential to strategic position.

Today the scientific and economic advancement of a country is measuredin terms of the communication systems. Communication, as a separate

branch of science, attracted the attention of academicians and scholars

from different fields, during early years of 20th century. Gradual progress

in communication systems and mechanism made it a fascinating area for

scholars, researchers and professionals. As per the information provided

by different theories on communication and the encyclopedia, it

developed as a branch of science during 3rd and 4th decades of 20th

century. The last decade of 20th century brought a revolutionary change

into the mans life, which facilitated the communication to expand it into

a giant sector and also an essential concept for the socio-economic

progress. The history of 20th century shows that people have always used

new technologies to communicate faster and better. There is something in

our biological blue print that makes us want to talk to one another and to

share information. National and international trade of today entirely

depended on technically advanced communication systems. For mankind

of third millennium, communication became an essential element, next to

oxygen. Communication is a natural phenomenon. In a broader sense it is

a natural instinct between two living organisms, animals and especially

homo sapiens. Communication is an exchange of thoughts, ideas,feelings, impressions and relations among individuals. Thus at initial

stage it is a natural interaction between a man and a man or man and

environment. In later stages communication is skilled-based, as it requires

language skills, active skills Speaking, writing skills and Passive skills

Listening and Reading which can be imparted through training. In

advanced stage it is technical oriented where it requires technological

efficiency of the communicator in the use of multimedia gadgets like

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telephone, mobile phone, ipod, web phone, computer, internet etc,

communication is inherently a social process. Man, being a social animal

required to interact with men and his environment around him. He could

not survive in isolation, detaching himself from his fellow human beings.Mans progress depend on his social environment. Man could build his

social relations only through communication process. When man learnt to

live in groups, communication might have started and developed along

with his social progress. It satisfied the social needs of man, particularly a

sense of belongingness. Thus it is a social process. Communication is a

science, multidisciplinary in nature, which maintains close relations with

language, psychology and technology. Communication is accepted as

multidisciplinary science supported by systematic knowledge. It is an

exchange of information. Therefore exchange is the basic feature ofcommunication. Exchange takes place between two or more persons or

between man and environment continuously. Information is transmitted

in the form of words, signals, symbols, etc. with a definite purpose.

Communication by its very nature is a process. Transmission of

information is required to pass through different stages to make a

complete communication systems. Primarily communication originates

from a source of information, the sender of the message. The message

enters into a channel, selected by the sender of the message and reaches

the destination, the receiver. From the receiver information flows back

towards the originator of the message in the form of feed back to

complete the communication system. Thus every piece of communication

has to follow from source to the receiver through a channel and from the

receiver to the sender. Communication is an outcome of relations

between two or more individuals or two or more communicators. The

prerequisite to launch communication process by sender, who is also a

creator and establishment of relation with the receiver. If not the

information cannot be transformed in to communication as it fails to

receive the response from the receiver of he communication. All types of

communications are based on and is guided by relations for exchange.Thus communication is a relation based on human activity. Social

environment of a man is designed, framed and built around him

according to his needs and conveniences. Natural environment and its

factory are conveniently converted to make use of them. Social

environment in a broader sense includes political policies, social rules

and restrictions. Economic and legal laws, ethnic groups, religious

beliefs, education, entertainment etc, are social factors which are

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developed around the concept of communication. In the absence of

communication network, none of these elements exist in the social life of

man. Communication contributes significantly for the development of

mans social environment. It plays an effective role to build a globalvillage. Man on the earth at extreme points is separated by thousands of

miles of distance gap. The highly dispersed human race is also separated

by difference in cultural practices languages temperamental characters

and socio economic status and several such factors. Communication is

the most efficient system that links man to another and creates the whole

world a global village. Technically sophisticated communication system

is primarily responsible to create a global village and to establish

international peace. Research studies proved that 90% of human conflicts

are due to communication gaps. Thus this second major function ofcommunication system is to dilute all types of barriers and built a global

village.

Communication is a technological progress. Communication and

science and technology are interdependent concepts. Sophisticated

communication is the direct out put of scientific and technological

development. Technological development is largely determined by the

existing communication system. In the absence of communication

facilities, scientific progress will be very slow and limited to a particular

area unless an invention gets wide publicity and popularity, progress in

that area cannot be possible. Highly developed communication

infrastructure of a country is a testimony of its technological progress and

economic advancement. Countries cannot progress in isolation, due to

unequal distribution of natural resources, human resources and

opportunities to develop markets. Integrated development of the world

economy through balancing these factors is possible through strong

communication links through countries. If not it is impossible to identify

deficit and surplus sectors in different parts of the world. Developed

communication system facilitates free movement of factors of productionglobally. A powerful communication system helps, in building up the

business nationally local, state, region and also develops trade relations

among different nations and promotes international trade. In todays

context international trade entirely designed around communication

system. It also helps to develop tourism among the nations. Tourism

directly depends on the communication system. Efficient communication

system is an ambassador of a countrys tourist resorts. Electronic media

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and mass media have the strong magnetic power to attract the tourists

from all over the world. Tourists, the investigators, research scholars,

expedition and trekking teams are informed about the opportunities

available in a particular country. Tourism and hotel industry are the majorcontributors to foreign exchange. Thus efficient communication system

contributes indirectly to the government revenue and directly to the

tourism industry. For a man communication begins with his birth. Man

being a Social Animal, continues to interact with his fellow human

beings, other living animals, environment and with himself. As per

research results on human behavior, man can survive by isolating himself

from other man, society or environment, but he cannot live without

communication. Meditation and silence are also a type of

communications. When communication of man with himself has brokendown and his communication with others has been damaged, he becomes

neurotic. Thus communication is the core part of mans social life and is

strategic element for his progress. Human mind is a great source for ideas

emotions, feelings, experiences and doubts. It provokes man to publicize

to all. Unless he communicates or shares with his fellow human beings all

these ideas, his emotional urge will not be satisfied therefore one of the

important functions of communications is to satisfy the emotional needs

of the individuals. Absence of ego satisfaction reduces the demand of

communication to a large extent. To satisfy such psychological needs for

belongingness recognition, security etc. Man communicates in different

ways continuously. If not he becomes passive, inactive, dull and static in

his life. communication not only satisfies the emotional needs of a man

but also the physical requirements which are recurring in nature such as

hunger, thirst, shelter, livelihood etc. It is difficult to achieve them in the

absence of any type of communication, verbal or nonverbal. Man is the

most intelligent of all living beings on the planet. He can discover, invent,

create, design, develop and innovate products, process and services.

Mans ability to think progressively in the foundation for scientific and

technological development. Every idea delivered and communicated byman is received by co-intellectuals who critically analyze it and refine it

to make the same the most useful product through continuous

communication among them. If there is no such interactive

communication system, we may be confined to work with a room size

computer system instead of pocket size computer in a short span of mans

active life. Thus, the silent function rendered by communication to an

individual is to enhance his scientific and technological ability and

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improve mental faculties. Another prominent function of communication

to man is that it helps in building strong human relations. Absence of

communication between two individuals expands the psychological gap

though they are living or working under the same roof. Communicationfacilitates an individual to express his confidence and trust. It is the only

concrete bridge that can fill up the distance gap between two individuals.

In this context, man is considered to be the most intelligent and privileged

section on the planet that developed language and powerful

communication system to bind one another happily. Mans economic

activities are designed and developed around the communication as a

very well developed profession, trade, production, international trade or

such economic activities employees of man are possible because he can

communicate and receive information by other communicators. Thereforein todays contemporary world every job demands communication skills

as priority over other academic testimonies. There is no employment

without an oral interview or viva test. They test examinees

communication skills both oral test or written test to recruit employees.

They test the persons abilities in general and communication skills in

particular. Teachers, lecturers, preachers, political leaders, news readers,

reporters, marketing executives, sales persons, investigators, lawyers,

doctors etc. depend on communication skills for individual progress in

their respective professions or occupations. Communication is the fabric

of life. If you were to ask yourself how you have become what you have

mentally, psychologically, socially, culturally, emotionally, and

spiritually, you will realize it is only through communication with other

human beings and reading also plays a vital role in this. Communication

is a process of transmission of ideas or message between two points. One

that generates message or information for communication and the other is

the receiver or destination. Thus every one should have a destination to

create and establish communication process and to build sender

receiver relation. Sender of information may have different levels of

destination i.e., receiver. Depending on the receivers, communicationlevels of different types. They range from personal to public.

Intrapersonal communication is individual and personal communication

where the process takes place within an individual. An individual may be

isolated from others by not communicating with other individuals but

cannot stop communicating with in himself. Communication with one

self is intrapersonal and intra psychic or internal communication like

Shakespeares character Hamlet in drama - Hamlet. Every individual who

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is able to feel, think and use language, communicate with himself

continuously. It is a common practice that before communicating with

others an individual communicates with himself to understand and

estimate the reaction of the receiver. Man is the only animal who talks tohimself all day long. Intra communications is an important part of you,

infact, it is you and it does, indeed behave you to become aware of it and

use it to your benefit. A person who is able to think clearly can write

perfectly and communicates satisfactorily. Inner conversation must be

balanced suitable and adaptable in the environment and with himself. For

intrapersonal communication man uses feelings, symbols and language

which he should be aware of them. It helps him to give a timely feedback

i.e., he should be conscious of his actions. A person with awareness of his

inner conversation can control it and change his attitude totally. Thus psychologists and doctors suggest meditation for quick healing of

problems and diseases. It helps to make the mental faculties strong and

efficient. In this context Dr. Krishna expressed that in a prayer you are

talking to god. In meditation god is talking to you. Experience of

meditation teaches you how to relax, not how to become lethargic, how to

enjoy living and how not to be afraid of dying, how to manage stress, not

how to withdraw from it. Basic human virtues of positive attitude,

forgiveness, compassion, love for human beings are developed. With

positive inner communication that gives a strong support to interpersonal

communication. Interpersonal communication is the next level in which

the communication is between two persons takes the form of a

conversation, other wise known as face-to-face communication. People at

home, at the work place, in public gathering or wherever they encounter,

they exchange greetings routine enquiries and topics of mutual interest.

Interpersonal communication results from human bonds, may be among

family members, colleagues, social relations, neighbors, peer group etc.

interpersonal relations provide basic frame work for building human

relations and a strong society, work environment and conflicts free

organization. The concept of interpersonal relations and different modesof it such as face-to-face conversation, telephone conversation etc. are

discussed in detail. Group communication is an extension of interpersonal

communication. It is a communication process by many people in the

form of conversation among them. Usually, in small groups. Groups may

be formal groups such as committees, board of directors, quality circles,

task force, unions, clubs etc. which are formed internationally by the

authorities or by the members to achieve specific goals, and in formal

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groups are formed to meet social needs of people either in the work place,

public meeting points, entertainment points, and common residential

areas. Media is the life of communication that facilitates communication

process accurately without delay. Communication media is of differenttypes. Increasing communication needs, fast developing technology,

economic and social liberalization, democratic governments expanding

international trade are responsible for introduction of a wide range of

media. For academic discussion, media can be classified on the basis of

communication levels. Inter personal communication uses conventional

media such as delivery by messenger, mail, courier, telegraph, telexes,

electronics media, telephone, pager, fax, cellular phone, and e-mail.

Group media communication uses loud speaker, tape recorders, over head

projectors, slide projectors, mass communication uses tape recorders,over head projectors and hoarding and notice board, public

announcement, press, cinema, radio, television, and internet.

Communicators need not confine to one medium. Depending on the need,

nature of information, distance between the communicator and the

receiver chooses more than one medium to make the communication

effective. It is called media richness. In our country, people have been

learning English since it was first introduced in schools in the first fifty

years, the purpose of learning English was to get government job. But

later it was learnt for 1) studying in foreign countries 2) studying

professional courses like medicine, engineering etc. in our country

3) studying English literature so on.

The Nature and Function of Language

The word language has a meaning. The Oxford English Dictionary

defines it as the whole body of words and of methods of combination

of words used by a nation , people or race; a tongue which implies that a

language can exist in spoken as well as written forms. Language is nota natural phenomenon, it is a creation of mans social needs. Hence

society depends on language, as it depends on air, water and the earth

around it for its own existence. Language is an extremely complex and

highly versatile code that is used to communicate our thoughts, desire and

experience to other persons. We also use other devices such as gestures,

signs, drawings, sculpture etc. However, these are not affable enough to

replace language. Language and human culture are intimately interrelated

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and the one is indispensable to the other. When mans attention is turning

increasingly towards analyzing his culture, it is natural that he should

attempt to examine in detail the means of communication, which is

essential to his society. Language like society is constantly evolving andis subject to growth and change in much the same way as a living

organism. The uses of the word language are so varied that any attempt at

definition may pose some problems. However, one of the best definitions

of language can be in the words Language is a purely human and non

instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by

means of a system of voluntarily produced symbols. These symbols are

in the first instance auditory and they are produced by the so-called

organs of speech The implication and value of this statement lie in its

emphasis on language as a specifically common attribute, capable ofexpressing ideas and emotions as well as other fundamental desires which

man may have in common with other animals. The statement stresses that

language operates as a system of symbols of which the spoken form is of

primary importance. Language is a kind of code and so rests on an

essentially arbitrary relationship of symbol and concept. We use

language to communicate our thoughts , feelings, ideas etc. When we

use language to communicate, language then becomes a series of sounds,

usually strung together in groups which convey meaning to listeners.

Then language becomes a system of arbitrary, vocal symbols which

permit all people in a given culture or other people who have learned the

system of that culture, to communicate or to interact. Every language

operates within its system, that is, within its own recurring patterns of

arrangements which are meaningful to its speaker. A system is a group

of related parts working together. Language has various systems within it

and they are systems by themselves. In the systems of sounds, known as

the phonological system, the sounds which are used to form words, which

in turn are used in speech utterances, are always arranged in particular

ways or designs which convey the same meaning to all speakers of the

language. Language is highly organized system in which each unit playsan important part which is related to other parts. English language has

three systems.

They are

I) the systems of sounds, in other words phonology.

II) the system of word order, in other words, syntax and

III) the system of meaning, in other words, semantics.

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The system of sounds or phonological system

Language is used for communication and is made up of sounds.Symbols used in language are in the first instance auditory.

This means, sounds work as auditory symbols in the communication

system. The sounds created by the organs of speech provide the medium

for all spoken forms of human language. The organs of speech are

capable for producing, theoretically, an infinite variety of sounds and the

human ear is capable of distinguishing a wide range of different speech

sounds. No single language however, uses even a small fraction of all the

sounds that the human ear is capable of distinguishing. In fact, most

human languages function with fewer than fifty distinctive units of sound.The English language has forty four distinctive sounds. It has twenty four

consonants sounds and twenty vowel sounds. Of these twenty vowels

sounds we have twelve pure vowels and eight diphthongs. The study of

phonology is concerned with how a language organizes this small number

of units into a system which permits an infinite variety of utterances to be

made. This system is called the phonological system or the sound system

of language. In order to understand what is meant by distinctive units of

sound and their relation to the communication process, we need to

consider what is involved in the transfer of information when

communication takes place. The transmission of information is only

possible if the communication system allows a choice of signals to be

sent. This principle applies to communication in general, not just to

language. The amount of information conveyed is related to the number

of possible signals available. Also the more the voices of signals, the

more the amount of information that can be conveyed. For example, I

like ice cream, conveys a certain amount of information simply because

the communication system being used permits a choice of signals. One

could have said, I do not like ice cream, you like ice cream, or I like

oranges, and so on. At each point in the sentence a choice has been madefrom a number of alternatives. Instead of I one can say, you, they, we,

John, and instead of ice cream one can say, bananas, custard, aero planes,

children etc. Each word in the sentence is meaningful because it

constitutes a choice from a large number of possible alternatives. The

choices/alternatives are concerned with the first segmentation of the

sound sequence into units which we usually call words. We can further

segment these words into speech sounds. Look at the words pin, and

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bin. We recognize them as being different words yet their sounds have a

great deal in common. The difference between them lies simply in the

difference between the initial sounds of each word /p/and /b/ respectively.

Since the contrast between the two sounds can account for the differencebetween the two distinct words, the sound units are said to be distinctive.

The aspirated sound ph as in the word pan and unaspirated /p/in

the word pit, are varieties or variants of the same unit in the sound system

and not representative of different units. Hence /ph/ and /p/ are the

varieties of the sound unit /p/ and this smallest unit in a sound system is

called a phoneme are called allophones. In the phonological system we

have distinctive sounds or phonemes and these distinctive sounds group

themselves into meaningful units to form words, and the units thus

formed are called morpheme. A morpheme is a meaningful sound forexample, the sound /p/ /ae/ /t/ combine to form the morpheme /pat/ or

/pt/.Phonemes combine together to form morphemes. In other words,

sounds form to combine words. Morphemes are two kinds. They are free

morphemes and bound morphemes. Free morphemes are meaningful

units of language structure which can be used independently or in

combination with other morphemes. A word which consist of only one

morpheme must consist of a free morpheme.

(Ex:- Happy, show, kill, can)

Bound morphemes are meaningful units of language structure which

can be used in conjunction with another morpheme.

Ex:- Homely ,happiness , dogs

The underlined units (-ly, -ness, -gs) are bound morphemes.

In short, bound morphemes are affixes. They can be either prefixes or

infixes. For example the in the word unhappy un a bound morphemes is

aprefix.In the word happiness ness a bound morphemes is asuffix. A

bound morphemes can be affixed in the middle of the word. It is called an

infix. This is very rare in English. Unless such changes as foot feet or

sing -sang are considered to types of infixes. Suffixes can be inflexional

and derivational. Plural morphemes on the word like caps, toys areinflexional because the change is simply one of singular to plural.

Whereas the morpheme -ness in likeness or happiness or-ly in quickly

changes the part of speech; such bound morphemes are called

derivational. Another systems of language is the system of word order .

Which is referred to as syntax, It is an important part of the system.

Compare the two sentences , the cat bit the lady and The lady bit

the cat. The forms of the words are exactly the same, but the difference

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in the meaning of these two sentences is great . You can think of some

more examples like the following .

1. The bear killed the man. The man killed the bear

2. The station bus. The bus station3. An awful (ly) pretty hat. A pretty awful hat

Now you have found the difference in meaning and the difference in the

grammatical or functional meaning also. For instance let us take the two

sentences The bear killed the man, the man killed the bear. In terms

of meaning , the difference lies in the performance of the act .In the

first one the performer of the act is the bear whereas in the second one

it is the man who has performed the act . The grammatical or functional

meaning is conveyed by the suffix (d) (spelled ed) on the word kill. (Theman killed the bear). The suffix adds to the meaning that the action

occurred sometime in the past. Now look at the sentence. Colorless

green ideas sleep furiously. This sentence , no doubt fits into the

phonological system and also the syntactic system . But, is there any

meaning ? The sentence has no meaning. That system, of language

which deals with meaning is called the semantic system .So language

must be meaningful. The importance of understanding the language

system in language teaching and learning could be summed up in the

words of cat ford. If we are teaching English, We must familiarize our

students with those contrastive values which are set up in the system of

English and if we want our students to progress beyond the stage of

superficial pattern practice and begin to think in English we must teach

them to categories directly in the terms laid down by the system of

English language. Animal communication differs from human language.

We have been looking at language as system of communication used by

human beings. Do animals have communication systems? Yes. Animals

have communication systems and they communicate in different ways

like barking, mewing etc. They have their own limitations. They cannot

express some concepts like past experiences. Using only a very limitedrange of devices, animals communicate with reference to certain concrete

things of immediate relevance to their own needs and present in their

surroundings. Animal communication is not capable of expressing

abstract concepts. Human language symbolizes thought in sounds or

groups of sounds that are used to signify concepts with which the sounds

themselves have no immediate connection. That is, man alone, has

developed this capacity to use a complex system of symbols to

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communicate. The animal system of communication can produce only a

limited number of messages. Animals cannot produce new combination

of sounds as human beings do. Animal systems are genetically

transmitted where as human language is culture bound and culturallytransmitted.

Aspects and characteristics of human language

An important aspect of language is its Creativity. It is this feature

which enables a speaker to understand and construct sentences which

he has never heard before. Though we use language continuously

throughout our working hours, we rarely use the same sentence twice.Except for a few often used formulaic expressions and idiomatic phrases

and expressions like Good morning, How are you? Where are you

going? etc. much of what we say involves novel sentences , i.e.

sentences we have never heard or uttered before. Many of these sentences

would not even have been uttered by anyone at all at any time whatsoever

during the long history of our language. It is possible for all of us to be

creative in this particular sense in our language because as we see

now there is no limit to the total number of sentences that can be

produced in our language. When we read a sentence like The dear old

lady in a green hat tripped over a porcupine and fell on her nose , we

understand the meaning because we know English and not because

we have read the sentence before. Creativity is an important

characteristic of all stages in human language development. A child in

the earliest stages of development, even when his sentences consist of

only two words, is able to use the language creatively in this sense.

Also ,when the number of distinct sounds that we have in our language

is finite , the fact that we are able to coin an infinite number of words or

utter an infinite number of words or an infinite number of sentences

shows that human language is creative. A second important characteristicof human language is its double articulation or Duality of pattering

or Duality. This term refers to the way in which a stretch of speech can

be cut up into units. For example, a sentence like My sisters new hat is

green can be split up into words My/sisters /new /hat/is green. These

words can be split up into further units , for example into sounds so that

the word green is seen to be made up of the sounds/g/r/ee/n or g/r/:/n

i.e., we reduce meaning into a number of discrete entities

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(morphemes) like hat, green., etc as mentioned earlier which sequences

of a small number of discrete sounds (phonemes) which is one

articulation, and we further reduce these entities into sequences of a small

number of discrete sounds which is the second articulation. These samesounds can of course be used in the construction of other words as

word in the construction of new sentences like The new green hat is

my sisters. Another important characteristic of human language is

arbitrariness. This means that there is no direct connection between

the sound or form of any word and the object which it represents.

We have seen that languages use only a small number of distinct

sounds and these are not generally allowed to directly convey any

meaning. These sounds are used to represent morphemes and it is these

latter entities which are allowed to function as meaningful elements inlanguage . For example , the English word tree corresponds with mara

of Kannada or Vrksha of Sanskrit or maram of Tamil and so on. There

is apparently no natural relational ship between the various sounds that

are used by these languages to these sequences and the meaning that is

denoted by them. We see that the relationship between sounds and

meanings is completely arbitrary . However it is also possible that the

occurrence of certain onomatopoeic words such as wiper will hiss,

murmurs, buzz etc. constitute a remnant of that original situation. It

might be even claimed that the occurrence of an indirect connection

between sounds and meanings must have allowed the sounds and higher

linguistic elements to undergo various kinds of changes rather

independently of one another, hundreds of such changes must have

taken place during the long history of languages. It must be learnt that

the existence of arbitrariness does not imply that a speaker is free to use

whatever sound or sequence of sounds that comes to his mind to

represent a given meaning. Human language has another important

feature which has been called displacement. This enables language to be

used at a time and in places where the context referred to is not present.

That is, the use of language expressions is completely free of anycorresponding stimulus. For example, if a person mentions a bottle of

milk or fish and chips all speakers of English will understand what is

being referred to even if they cannot actually see the articles in question.

In this sense, language can work within its own framework with littile or

no relationship to the meaning or act involved. Language allows its

speakers to name and describe not only the objects that really exist like,

tables and chairs, but also the ones that are unreal, imaginary or even

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improbable. We had seen earlier that language is one of the devices that

we use not only for communicating our ideas, thoughts and desires to

other persons, but also for exposing them to our own awarness or

consciousness. The thoughts and ideas would normally occur in animplicit form in our brains; they would influence our actions and

responses but they would not be open to our awareness or reasoning. This

is the reason why man alone has been considered to be rationale. We have

the ability to encode these thoughts in the form of linguistic expressions

and make them exclusive. The characteristic of a language that permits us

to consciously examine and evaluate its expressions and also the structure

and context of those expressions is called reflexivity. Examining another

feature of the system we find that in English, adjectives dont agree

with nouns. we say the boys are tall and the tall boys and the tallgirls. In our language, changes may occur because of singular or plural.

By now, we must have understood how the various systems of language

function to make language as a whole system of these systems. As

described above, language is a system consisting of two sub-systems.

One is the sub-system of meaningful units and the other is the sub-system

of sounds which have no meaning in themselves, but which from

meaningful units. As language is speech, it is a system of sounds related

to a system of meanings. Language is productive or creative. This means

that with language we can understand and produce any number of

sentences which we might have never heard before. Language is

arbitrary,. The relation between a word and its meaning is a matter of

convention. For instance, why is a chain called so? In other words, there

is no connection between the sounds we use and the objects for which

these sounds stand. Language is a social phenomenon. It is a means of

communication between individuals. It also brings them into contact with

their environment. It is a skill that we acquire as we grow with the

society. Language has one more character called recursion. This means

sentences may be produced with other sentences inside them. For

example, a sentence like. This is the boy that found the man who chasedthe thief who Recursion can be done by using coordinating

conjunctions as in Sita went to the shop (and she) asked for the manager,

(and she) made a complain. (and she) ..

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Language as perceived by linguists

Language is behavior. Behavior can be learned only byintroducing students to behave in other words to perform in the

language. Language is primarily what is said, only secondarily what is

written.. and is a set of habits said Brooks. Language is a symbolic

communication system or in a word a code which is essentially

telegraphic. Language (written) is a symbolization of symbolization, a

reminding system of something said or that might have been said

effective communication is a prerequisite to the academic persons and

professional success of every person. Communication skills essential to

all people include basic speaking, writing and listening skills, the abilityto communicate in a team environment with persons of diverse

backgrounds and when engaged in conflict management. Language

inculcates core life skills in the learner and is an important instrument to

develop desired attitudes and socially acceptable values.

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CHAPTER 2THE PLACE OF

ENGLISH IN INDIA

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In any discussion of the place of a foreign languages in the

educational set-up of a country, terms like first language,

second language and foreign language are often used. These

are to always used to convey precisely the same sense in all the

countries. In the U.S.A. for instance, the instance, the terms

second language and foreign language are used

interchangeably. Teaching English as a Foreign Language:, T.E.F.L.,

is generally synonymous with Teaching English as a Second as a

second language, T.E.S.L., it may be useful, however, to distinguish

between the two as is done in the J.K. the British Council report for

the year 1960-61 brings out this distinction. It has been customary

to speak of teaching English as a foreign language, often merely to

emphasize that this process is by no means the same as teaching it

to those who already have it as their mother tongue. More recently,

the term English taught or language has been employed to describe

English taught or learnt for practical and necessary uses of

communication weather to serve as the language of instruction in

education, for specialized studies, or as a lingua. The distinction is

important: for example, English in France or Germany is still largely

learnt for reasons comparable to those for learning French or

German is Britain as a foreign language, as a humane discipline

and as an introduction to a foreign culture. In many countries,

however, the place of English in education may be more important,

and indeed more fundamentally necessary, because it is either the

medium of education itself or a necessary link with resources

beyond the borders of the country where it is learnt. When it is used

thus s a second language English is not necessarily the vehicle of

distinctively British or American cultural values; it may well be the

means of expressing those of the country where it has been

adopted.

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English as a foreign language refers to a situation where it is

taught for certain specific purposes, viz., reading scientific works,

translation, communication at certain levels and for certain

purposes only. English as a second language refers to a situation

where English is used widely for purposes of administration,

education and as a common link language. Thus English in the

U.S.S.R., where it is taught very competently, is a foreign language

although it is used as a medium of instruction in some of the schools

in cities like Moscow and Leningrad. It is a second language n the

Phillipines where it is used widely for purposes of administration and

education. In France it is a foreign language while in Kenaya,

where it serves as a link language, it is a second language.

In India, until recently, English was a second language. It is

now in the process of acquiring the status of a compulsory third

language. This seems evident from the clarification the Union

education minister, Mr. Nurul Hasan, gave to the parliamentaryconsultative committee for his ministry on August 4, 1976. The

Times of India reported on August 5, 1976, The Union education

ministry has made it clear, in a circular to state governments, that

passing the English Examination is not a must for promotion from

class X, although English would have to be a subject of compulsory

study from class VI to X in all schools. Under the new scheme of

education, also known as the new pattern of education viz.,

ten+two+three, English has virtually acquired the status of L3. This

pattern has already been adopted by most of the states and Union

Territories of India. The Indian deputy minister for education,

D.P.Yadav told the Lok Sabha (the Indian Paliament) on August 16,

1976, that nineteen States and Union Territores had already

adopted the new scheme of education, ten+two+three, seven

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would adopt it within a couple of years, while five were still

considering the matter. A few days earlier J.P.Naik, formerly

education advisor to the Government of India, had told the press

that a national pattern of education might emerge by the end of the

sixty five-year-plan period. This has now emerged. Challenge of

Education. A document deregulated by the ministry of Education,

envisages a uniform policy.

The justification for describing English as L3 in the present

context in India is that it is no longer used as a language of

instruction in a majority of schools and/colleges in the country. Most

colleges and several universities teaching Arts and Commerce

subjects in nonmetropolitan areas have changed over to the

regional media. However, English continues to be the language of

instruction in the faculties of law, medicine, engineering,

technology, agriculture and the like. The Indian railways one of the

major national undertaking, have increasingly been using Hindi in

place of English of English. A committee set up by government is

currently going into the question of still greater use of Hindi on the

railways. In other departments too, such as banking, Hindi is being

used increasingly. The opposition to Hindi in the south has been

weakening over the years except in Tamil Nadu where the

government went to the extent of granting pension to the anti-Hindi

agitators in 1965. If the linguistic misgivings of the south re allayed

Hindi may emerge as Indias linyua franca before long, if not

indeed as one of the U.N.O. languages, as expected by the second

would Hindi convention held at Moka in Mauritius. However, Hindi in

its highly sanskritised form, might not be accepted by one and all.

What may be called Peoples Hindi, it is argued, should be evolved.

It is also sugge4sted that the script be Romanized. There are

sentimental objections to these suggestions which come mostly

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from purists. It would be well to remember in this connection that

both Indonesia, and Turkey Romanized their scripts several decades

ago.

Under the new scheme of education English has acquired the

status of a third language in most States and Union Territories of

India. In Maharastra, for instance, which has adopted the scheme,

Marathi, the regional language, is now L3, Hindi, the Union language,

is L2 and English, the associate link language, is L3. This is the

general pattern for most pupils studying in Marathi-medium schools.

The terms, L1, L2, and L3 and foreign language are indicative of the

range of uses to which languages are put in the if of the speech

community. A language chronologically learned as a secd language,

does not necessarily become L2 in this special sense, if the purpose

fro which it is learned is education L3 is dropped from the

seque3nce. In Maharashtra, for instance, three languages are taught

at the ligher secondary (now Junior College) stage only two at the

latter stage, viz., Standards V to X, while at the languages are

taught, English being the second language at latter stage. This does

not mean that in Maharashtra English is taught as L3 at the

secondary stage and as L2 at the Junior College stage. At both these

stages is put in the life of the community, by and large, is now

restricted. Similarly in Hindi-medium schools in Maharashtra the

pattern of study of languages is Hindi, English and Marathi. This

does not imply that in these schools English is taught as L2 or as a

second language.

The relevant question is which is the dominant language,

comparatively speaking, and not which is the language, learnt or

taught, after the mother tongue has been acquired. Chronology

does not always determine dominance of a language. The terms

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first language, second language and third language are often used

to indicate chronology of learning languages. We may use them to

indicate the relative dominance of languages in the life of a speech

community. It may perhaps be argued that the term, ~ second

language % is hospitable enough to include the teaching of English

as L3. This term certainly is generic. As Gat ford observes, " Most

people-that is all except perhaps am bilinguals-have only one L,, but

they may have a number of L2's, each perhaps being reserved for

one particular purpose, as for instance reading scientific papers,

enjoying a Mediterranean holiday, reading the Scriptures. " Catford

would have us believe that the teaching of English as L2 is not a

fundamentally different problem from the teaching of English as L3.

This has been the view of-most experts. Bilingualism subsumes

rnuitlingualiam. Vildomec commenting on E. Haugen's explanation

of the term bilingualism remarks, ctHaugen explains this practice by

the assumption that the problems involved in bilmgualism do not

seem to be essentially different when a third and or a further

language is added." This seems doubtful.

Pedagogically considered, such a distention between L2 and L3

seems warranted. An active command of a third language is rare.

Michael West is of the view that a bilingual person knowing two or

more languages is a myth flourishing only in England. The point in

the Indian context is whether we can continue to practice.

Second-Language-teaching- methodology in a situation. where

English has acquired the status of a third language. Second -

language teaching methodology relying fast it did on literary

materials with almost equal emphasis on all the four skills

seems unsuited to the emerging situation. The emphasis may

have to shift to the acquisition of passive/receptive skills.

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Epstein uses the following abbreviations which seera more

precise than terms like Foreign language.

i) Lm - Mother tongue

ii) Li - Language learned as first

iii) L2 - Language learned as second etc.

iv) Le - Foreign language (langue estrang ere)

v) Ln - One of the languages spoken by a

multilingual subject,

Stern suggests the term international language for English inIndia which is used for wider communication within the country. It

must be said, however, that the range of communication is getting

severely resricted day by day.

In this book, however, conventional abbreviations like L1=

mother tongues/regional language, L2-Hindi/second Indian language,

L3=English, and "foreign language French, German, Russian,

Spanish etc are used.

This sequence works well in States like Maharashtra, Gujarat,

and Karnataka where Hindi is not L1,. In States like the U.P. where

Hindi is L3 English happens to be L2, while Sanskrit may be L3. In

these States although English may be L1, formally speaking, it does

not, have the status of a 'second language in the sense in which it

has 'second' language status in countries like the Philipines and

Kenya, It may perhaps be advisable to use the abbreviations, Li9 L2,

and L3 to indicate chronology of learning and the terms, first

language, second language and third language to indicate their

status (dominance) in a speech community. Until such a distinction

comes to be accepted these two sets of terms will continue to be

used synonymously. (For a fuller discussion of this topic see Stern),

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One of the most controversial issues in Indian education today

is the place of English in our educational set-up. From "Angrezs

Hatao" (Mown with English'), at one extreme, to English as "the

sole medium of education" at the other, there have been varying

shades of opinion about its place and function. A positive and

unequivocal national consensus which leaves no room for

misgivings about its place in our educational system has not yet

emerged and although, under the new pattern of education, we

seem to be moving towards such a consensus, there are certain

mental reservations on the part of some of our educational thinkers

about the place English ought to have in our education. The

decision of the Government of Maharashtra to teach science and

mathematics through the English medium is an instance of this

lack of a consensus. While some regret the fact that English is

taking an unconscionably long time a-dying others seem inclined to

if! preserve it as it is even under conditions of artificial respiration.

Most educationists it seems, would agree that English cannot

be easily dispensed with. In countries where it was dispensed

with unceremoniously it has come back and has been rehabilitated

on acceptable terms. In Shri Lanka (Ceylon) and in South East Asian

countries', there has now been a growing realization that English

has a place and that it would be unwise Ho throw the baby with

the bath water, Egypt which de-emphasized English in 1956,

after the Suez crisis, has now upgraded its secondary school

instruction in the subject. Burma too has had second thoughts on

the subject. Even Colonel Gadaffi of Libya who summarily closed all

university departments of English on political grounds is reported to

be reconsidering his decision. It is because there is a lack of

consensus that we have a mushroom growth of English medium

schools in the country. Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao, the human resource

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development minister, told the Lok Sabha recently that there was a

mushrooming of English schools at the primary and pre-primary

levels even in rural areas. He also informed the house that

government had not issued any directive to states on what should

be the medium of instruction at this stage. He however added that

Government was looking into the problem of making mother-tongue

medium schools more attractive.

It is equally clear that the hey-day of English in India is

now over. It should be obvious to all that Hindi, before long, will be

our lingua franca. The late Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, in a

message to the second world Aindi convention held in Mauritius,

said, "India is a multilingual country where the use of Hindi

as a link language is increasing rapidly. In commerce and trade

and in politics it is being used on a much larger scale than before.

Though it is the mother-tongue of most of our millions many

non-Hindi-speaking people too can read, write and understand it."

(The Times of India, August 28, 1966). Presenting the awards of the

Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthan, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi said in

Novembtr 1985 that Hindi was the best possible link language in

a nation of diverse tongues. Most of our regional languages too have

grown well enough to handle some of die abstract concepts

pertaining to disciplines which until recently used English and

English terminology. We have now a growing body of 'literature of

knowledge' in these languages. Most of our Universities, as many as

90, out of 140 are using one or more regional languages as the

medium of instruction. But all this is too inadequate to replace

English. English, therefore, may have to continue as our vehicle of

knowledge for an indefinitely long period of time^ although its role

would be less impressive in times to come. It is at this transitional

stage that we need to define its place as clearly as we can. A clear

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definition of its place, keeping in view the purposes for ' which it is

required, is a pre-requisite of a sane and practicable policy of

teaching English. Motivation for learning it will come only from these

felt needs and not from any fancied notions about its importance

past or future. The history of languages shows that language, like

any form of life, is subject to growth and decay. A language that has

no positive role to play in the life of a community decays, however

brilliant its role in the past. Latin is an example of this. Here at

home, the partial failure of the 'Three-language formula'in Hindi-

speaking areas is an instance in point. The 'Three-language formula

'sought to establish equality with regard to the study of languages

between Hindi and non-Hindi speaking areas by recommending that,

as against the third language, Hindi, which pupils in the non-Hindi

areas have to learn, another Indian language (besides Hindi and

English) should be studied by pupils in the Hindi-speaking areas This

was not a practicable proposition since there was hardly any

motivation for learning a third language, viz,, one of the modern

Indian languages, in the Hindi-speaking areas. Nobody, except the

linguist, will ever learn a language if it has no practical use for him.

The Education Commission's comments on the difficulties in

implementing the 'Threelanguage formula' are revealing: "In

practice, the implementation of the Three-language formula has led

to several difficulties and it has not been very successful. Several

factors have contributed to this situation. Among these are the I

general opposition to a heavy language load in the school

curriculum; the lack of motivation far the study of an additional

modern Indian language in the Hindi areas,. (author's italics) the

resistance to the study of Hindi in some nonHindi areas... .The

situation was made worse by defective planning and by the half-

hearted way in which the formula was implemented. As a result of

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these developments, considerable resources have been wasted

Over what may be regarded as an unproductive programme of

implementation. As far as the third language is concerned, the

students in many areas have gained very little because of the

unreal situation in which most of them studied it and the inadequate

facilities that were provided for it"5.

A similar fate might overtake the teaching of English if the

syllabi and the teaching and testing procedures cease to have any

relevance in the context of our educational needs today. This has

been evident to the perceptive for well over a century. Commenting

on this irrelevance an anonymous Englishman wrote in The Times of

India more than a century ago:

"Indian universities have the quaintest notions of setting

subjects for the study of their undergraduates, and the Madras

University is no exception to the rule. For the first examination in

arts during 1884, one of the subjects set in the English examinationwas "The Princess'* while in the course for the B. A. degree we have

the Frankeleyne's and Monke's Tales; and for the M. A. degree

Chaucer's Toilus and Cresside, Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida

and Shelley's Alastor. This is truly a wonderful collection of subjects.

Why on earth a poem so unmeaning as The PrincessT a.id one so

completely removed from all eastern lines of thought, should be

chosen it is hard to see; and it is as difficult to guess why Alastor

should have been selected from among the poems of Shelley. But

at any rate, these poems have this the educational process

by means of 'bazzar guides* and whose incipient interest in the

culture conveyed by English is effectively killed." Quirk refers to the

experience a young American teacher, John B. Shaw, who taught

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English in one of the universities in South India, and who rightly

asks:

'Why must these young men and women of Tamil Nad read

turgid late 19th-century essays, packed with trivial allusions to

London streets, Victorian dress, and English birds, and written in a

prose style as difficult to read as it is useless to emulate?.....

Will the University not do its students, and the future citizens of

India, a more significant service if it teaches them English

language?" (A Report on English Teaching in India, University

College London, June 1963).

A year later three distinguished British Halliday, Mcintosh and

Strevens8 made similars8 arises on the ELT situation in India : "In

countries such as, India the pattern of education has been

exported so successfully from British school and university

practice that syllabuses exist which are "nowadaysplus royaliste

que le roi. From such countries students come to Britain for training

that will fit them to join the teaching profession in their home

country and teach English literature or rather a version of literary

history and criticism); yet in many cases it is painfully clear that

there are many among them whose command of English as a

language is not sufficient to enable them either to discuss and teach

great works of literature or fully to understand or appreciate them.

In such cases the superstructure is more weighty than the

foundations can support, and the only sensible solution is to repair

and strengthen the foundations." These authors seem to have

probed deeply into the possible reason why English continues to be

taught as it is and conclude, "The reasons why this should be so are

complex, but one factor that recurs frequently is that the whole

teaching of English is often in the hands of people whose training is

in literature alone, and who sense a danger to their livelihood, or at

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least to their prestige and influence, if a new generation of teachers

is inducted into their profession who have mastered another and

different aspect of English studies." ( The Linguistic Sciences and

Language Teaching. E. L. B. S., 1970, page 184.)

An indiscriminate literary course for one and all. whatever the

level at which English is taught, is hardly calculated t o serve

^the needs of India. This is being increasingly realized even

by those who are not involved in the business of teaching

English. The Maharashtra Academy of Sciences, for instance, of

which Dr. PL N. Sethna, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission,

happens to be the president, has made the following suggestion:

Language must be taught as a means of communication

rather than as a mere study of literature. By the time the student

passes class XII he should really have acquired the facility to

express himself clearly and I concisely in English and in a regional

language as well as ' comprehend without difficulty books and

journals published in English in the disciplines of interest to him.

This unfortunately is not the case today and it is essential to

have a fresh look into the manner in which languages are taught at

various levels." (Restructuring Education at the +3 Level; Second

Report of the Education Committee, Maharashtra Academy of

Sciences, November 1976.) The New Education Policy set out in the

document, Challenge

of Education, does not spell out language policy in any detail, It

is therefore presumed that status quo would be maintained in

the teaching of English.

Our needs today, by and large, are of an institutional kind ;

English for engineers, English for students of law, English for

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students of agriculture and the like. Writing a course for these

'consumers' is a challenging job which requires expertise. This may

perhaps be another reason why syllabi which bear no relevance to

national needs continue to be prescribed. It is heartening 10 note in

this connection that the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University has

evolved new syllabi to suit the needs of its students. The Times of

India, dated July 22, 1976, reports: "The age-old practice of

prescribing a fixed number of 20th century literary essays and

a fixed number of lines of poetry for the under-graduate courses has

been given up by the university and revised syllabi have been

drawn up in terms of relevant language objectives (skills and

abilities) and thematic objectives (socio-scientific values, themes

and attitudes.) "To meet the special needs of students the

university has drawn up four courses. The 'first course is for the

university entrants and comprises English grammar and usage in

relation to the needs of science and technology. The second course

entitled, 'A course in reading and listening' gives orientation in

library reading and practice in listening. The third course called 'A

course in productive English' trains the students in selecting

information and organizing camps in relation to particular needs of a

given audience like the laymen, educated groups and scientists. The

fourth course known as *A course in thesis writing and popular

writing' is meant for post-graduate students. The Times of India

reports further that 'This teaching of language by objectives has

been evolved after studies carried out in the university and it is

claimed that a systematic approach introduced since 1973 has

helped in solving the problems faced by students." This is a

significant step in the context of teaching English in India

today. The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University's experiment will

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be watched with great interest by most other Universities which

see.

The ELT situation in India is currently undergoing a

significant change. Under the new scheme of education English for

most students is L3. The implications of this change in the status

of English are scarcely perceived yet by our course designers

and curriculum framers. The revised syllabi for standards V to

X, in Maharashtra, for instance, are the same old syllabi for

English as L2 only watered down to suit the supposed needs of

the L3 learner. A syllabus for English as L3 cannot be designed

mechanically by reducing the number of structures and

vocabulary items prescribed for English as L2. Yet Maharashtra

has done precisely this. Presumably other States and Union

Territories have done the same.

Theoretically considered, the distinction between L2and L3 has

more serious implications for teaching than that between L1 and L2.The learner learning L3, finds himself in a bilingual situation, while

the learner learning L1, finds himself in a multilingual situation. The

L2 learner is capable of containing the interference stemming from

L3, without great difficulty. But in the acquisition of L3 the

cumulative interference stemming from both L, and L2not to

mention other factors like analogical creation, intra-lingual

interference and generalization from previous linguistic experience

etc. which are equally serious-is likely to cause grave difficulties to

the learner. It is not that interference is merely doubled. It never is

since language learning is not a straight business. It may be mixed

in diverse ways and may show itself in different forms and in

different places. In framing the syllabus, therefore, attention has to

be paid to all the factors that may impede learning. This is not an

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easy job. It calls for research in these areas. Dilution of the L2

syllabus can hardly meet the needs of the L3 learner.

It is sometimes contended that in a happen to be similar.

Gujarati and Hindi in Gujarat, Marathi and Hindi Li Maharashtra,

Bengali and Hindi in I West Bengal and the like are cited as

instances, them This it is argued that the learner learning his L3

does not start I with any serious linguistic handicap since his L3 is

similar I to his L1, and therefore easy to learn. This is a fallacious

argument. Two languages which resemble each other, according to

M. Weinreich9 and others who have studied | this problem, present

greater difficulty than two languages I which are dissimilar, although

the beginning of their study may be easier. If the second language

is known passively I it may not seriously interfere with the learning

of the third language. But in India in the non-Hindi speaking areas

Hindi will be known actively, first because it may soon become the

lingua franca and secondly because there will be greater exposure

to Hindi and greater need for learning it actively.

It is difficult for the average student to know more than

two languages actively. Michael West10 and others are of the view

that a multilingual who can handle more than two languages

effectively is very rare. The sheer logic of events will farce us to

teach Elfish for certain restricted purposes.

These complications in the teaching/ learning situation are got

to be taken into account in defining our objectives of teaching

English as L3, In an L3 situation emphasis may largely have to be on

the acquisition' of passive/receptive skills, particularly the skill of

reading. Writing and speaking, especially the latter, may receive

comparatively less emphasis. The theoretical linguist may not agree

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with such a reordering of priorities but the practical teacher may.

The irony of circumstances is that in an L2 situation we taught

English as it was L1 now that English is L3 we tend to teach it as L2.

A word with regard to L3 may not be out of place at this

juncture. Although English is now a compulsory third language it

does not have the status of a 'foreign' language like French or

Russian. We may propose a few rough and ready and absolutely

tentative criteria for distinguishing a foreign language from a

compulsory third language: (i) In countries where foreign languages

are taught effectively as in the U. S. S. R., for instance, one

foreign language is compulsory. It may not necessarily be English.

The pupil is free to choose any one of the foreign languages for the

teaching of which facilities exist in the country. In India English, by

and large, is a compulsory language. This element of compulsion

marks it off from other foreign languages which are taught

optionally.

In India there is an appreciable body of literature in English

known as Indo-Angiian literature. Indian creative spirit even today

finds free expression in English. English literature has also helped

the flowering of the Indian Renaissance. As Prof. Gokak has put it, it

is no exaggeration to say that it was in the English classroom that

the Indian literary Renaissance was born". There is no such parallel

literary tradition it any foreign language in this country. Although

French is taught in India, there is no Indo-French literary

tradition comparable with the Indo-Angiian literary tradition. This

has given English a special place in our education, (iii) It would

seem that foreign languages are generally learnt for certain

specific purposes. German, for instance, is learnt in India by

advanced students of physical sciences for purposes of

comprehension of scientific literature in that language. Courses like

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''Spoken French", ''English for tourists" etc. in countries where these

exist, point to the restricted use of these languages. In India English

is still used freely in several walks of life. This again marks it off

from other foreign languages, (iv) English continues to be used at

higher levels of administration and education. It is still. The

language of the intelligentsia and an important language of all

India competitive examinations. However in the latter sphere

languages mentioned in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution are

making steady progress. Experts are of the view that a subject like

aesthetics, for instance, can very will be taught in Marathi, one of

the regional languages. In, this connection the remarks of the

Education Commission/seem pertinent ''English will continue to

enjoy a high status so long as it remains the principal medium of

education at the university stage, and the language of

administration at the Centre and in many of the States. Even after

the regional languages become media in higher education, a

working knowledge of English will be a valuable asset for all

students and a of reasonable proficiency in the language will be

necessary for those who proceed to the university.

The Education Commission, however, envisage the study of

English as a 'library language' in the not too distant future. Once

English is reduced to the status of a 'library language' it will cease to

be L3 and may rank as one of the important foreign languages. A

'library language' tends to acquire the status of a foreign language.

Prof. V. V. John, however, is of the view that the Education

Commission in using the term 'library language' did not intend to

give English a new status. According to him the teaching of English

as a 'library language' involves the teaching of all the four skills. "It

is with reference to English as a means of access to modern

{knowledge that the Education Commission invented the phrase."

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(Reading Comprehension at the College Level; . R. Narayanswamy:

C.I.E,F.I. monograph 8, 1973, age 179-Notes and References). The

implication that nglish as a 'library language' will acquire a new

status present in the following paragraph of the Education

commission's Report

'"It is true that English will be the most important library

language to be studied at this stage (Lower Secondary Stage:

Standards VIIIIX). We, however, think that it is also necessary to

encourage the study of other important library languages like

Russian, German, French, Spanish, Chinese or Japanese. Facilities

for their study should be provided in a few selected schools in each

State and it should be open to the students to study them, either in

addition to or in lieu of English or Hindi." This virtually implies that

English may have the same status as the other foreign languages. If

and when this conies about English will have ceased to be L3.

Although English has the status of a compulsory third, language

today and may continue to have it for a fairly long- time to come the

likelihood of its becoming a foreign language cannot be ruled out. It

is against such a background that we have to formulate our

objectives of teaching English today. As stated earlier the New

Education Policy does not contain any explicit statement on

language polity. It shows great concern for the creation of an overall

environment for development;

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CHAPTER 3

OBJECTIVES OFTEACHING ENGLISH

IN INDIA

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In any teaching situation three considerations would seem tobe vital: (i) Objectives of teaching- the subject (ii) Appropriatemethods and materials to achieve these objectives and (iii) Periodictesting to ascertain whether these objectives have actually beenachieved. These three thinge are interdependent. Unless theobjectives are defined clearly we cannot proceed to formulateproper methods of teaching, nor prepare suitable materials to helpachieve these objectives. Testing or evaluation may end up as anempty ritual unless we know what objectives to test. The evidenceof having achieved these objectives is to be found in thecompetencies or "behavior" of the learner whom we are going toexamine. Testing, which comes last, forces us to have a look at theobjectives, which are expected to- be realized by the learner. As Dr.Walker Hill1 puts it, in a sound system of university education the

objectives, the learning experiences provided in the college and theprocesses of evaluation are closely related, they areinterdependent."This is true of education at all levels.

One of the serious shortcomings of the ELT situation in India

particularly at the undergraduate and postgraduate Klevels-is the

lack of definite statement of objectives of teaching English. At

school level the objectives are stated more or less clearly in terms

of linguistic structures and vocabulary items. These objectives atthe school level seem 3 be far too ambitious judged by the

competence of pupils, but that is a different point altogether. At

college and postgraduate levels hardly any statement of

objectives exists. Beyond listing a number of text-books the Univer-

sity syllabi state nothing. As Brutons has pointed out, "But the real

problem and difficulty lie in the fact that from syllabuses and

examinations it is usually impossible to discover what the objectives

of teaching English are. Here again there is a marked difference to

be found between school and University practice and belief. Most

school syllabuses contain some sort of statement of what the

objectives are supposed to be but at the later stage, no such

statement is usual although it would be possible to deduce from

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examinations that the objective is to teach the subject matter of a

certain text and a few irrelevant tricks with the language."

A clear statement of objectives is fundamental to all serious

teaching endeavor. Teaching and-testing become erratic arbitrary.

and wayward if we have no objectives a to guide us. Most

undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in English seems to lack

direction owing to this shortcoming At the school level where

such a statement of objectives exists it seems hopelessly

ambitious judged by pupil achievement. We expect our S. S. G.

student to master about 200 odd structures and about 2000 vocabu-

lary items when the average S.S.C. can hardly use about 100

structures and 1000 vocabulary items effectively. K. P. Thakur and

D. P. Thakur3 have reported that at the beginning of a P. U. C.

course, the Bihar student has. on an average, the recognition

knowledge of only 1393 words. They further report that (i) ''60% of

the students who took the vocabulary test" (administered by them

to P. U. G. students) 'had the recognition knowledge of only 942

words out of the total of 4619 words in our list "(ii) onIy 10% of the

students had the recognition knowledge of about 3000 words as

suggested by the Shrinagar Conference of English Teachers held in

1961". This incompetence may be due to several extra-academic

reasons, like undeserved promotions, over-crowding, untrained

teachers etc. Yet he (the pupil) is our only evidence of

achievement of objectives. It is no use displaying grand

objectives when their realization is hardly possible. To quote

Dr.Walker Hill again, "Since any meaningful objective of

education implies some change in the characteristics or

competencies of students, it is to the students that we must look

for evidence of its achievement. And in order to find such

evidence, we must know what we are looking for. We must

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determine what characteristics we should expect to find in students,

in whom the objective is terms, we can plan learning experiences

which seem likely to lead to development of these characteristics.

And we can devise means of assessing the extent to which they

have been developed."

Of late the ELT situation in India has been changing so fast

that we need to look at it periodically and take stock of the situation

and reorientate ourselves in consonance with the changing times.

Retrospectively speaking it would seem, that the teaching situation,

as far as English! is concerned, was fairly stable until

Independence Wei may venture to state that for several decades

preceding Independence our syllabi, teaching methods and

testing procedures had remained fairly stable inspire of the fact

that standards of attainment in English were deteriorating judging

from examiners' reports on the performance of candidates. The

relevance of objectives in teaching English began to be questioned

only in the fifties. This long period of comparative stability in the

teaching situation made teachers complacent and conservative.

Michael West would have us believe that teachers by their very

nature are conservative creatures. They are apt to do as they are

done by Add to this, in India, the prolonged period of stability

during which the teaching situation remain almost unchanged. The

syllabi, the teaching methods a Testing procedures came to be

regarded as sacrosanct. This rigidity has been the bane of teaching

English in India today. The Indian teacher of English inherited this

tradition from his British predecessor. The teaching of English as Li

in an L2 situation was presumably due to the lead driven by the

first generation of British teachers who taught English in India

exactly as they did in the U.K. Wilga Rivers comments on such a

teaching situation as follows "Frequently such teachers teach as

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they were taught, by teachers who taught as they were taught,

and techniques appropnate in another era are perpetuated. From

time to time such teachers add a few techniques which they have

seen demonstrated or of which they have read, but their

approach to their lessons remains fundamentally unchanged. Their

students may not find the lessons particularly interesting or

exciting, but if they pass examination of a traditional type their

teachers are satisfied. Sueh teachers continue to conduct their

classes as they have always codueted them, unaware of the

fact that objectives in foreign language teaching may be

changing around them and that their teaching may have become

anachronistic and irrelevant to the young people who pass

through cheir classes. With the passing of time, new

situations arise for a nation and its people and these

establish pri