LEARNING A LANGUAGE FASTLY IN PRESENT SCENARIO

LEARNING A LANGUAGE FASTLY IN PRESENT SCENARIO

Each language is structured differently, and the different structures offer users different suggestions to meaning. so when we learn our first language, our brain / mind ‘tunes into’ the way the particular L1 works, and we learn to pay attention to particular cues to meaning that are most helpful. When we meet a new language, our brain / mind automatically tries to apply the first language experience by looking for familiar cues. 

Part of learning a foreign language is developing new understandings about the particular cues to meaning that the new language offers, and that differ from those of our first language. The transferability of knowledge, skills and strategies across languages depends closely on how the two written languages work.

There are millions of people around the world that are learning to speak English. One of the most common question  “How do I learn English faster?” This article will provide some advice about how you can do just that.

The key to learning anything, not just language, is the amount of practice you put in. The theory is quite simple, the more you practice the quicker you will learn. But in a real world situation, this theory isn’t always practical. Try to set yourself a target that you can stick to. Don’t say to yourself, “OK, I need to practice English, so I will study it for 8 hours a day!” because the chances are that you won’t. Most people are too busy with their normal daily lives to practice this much, but you will benefit from practicing every day, even if it is just for a short time every day.

If you only practice for 10 minutes a day, you will notice an improvement in just a short time. Regular practice, even if just a short time is much better than irregular practice. This is because English will always stay fresh in your mind and you’ll be able to remember things much easier. Below are some ideas on how to practice.

Surround Ourselves with the Language

Immerse yourself in the English language. This way, you’ll be studying English without even knowing and you’ll be practicing all the time.

Practice your listening skills by watching English speaking TV or listening to English speaking radio shows. Most countries broadcast at least one English speaking TV channel, so watch the news, or watch a movie or even listen to music in English. Download a favorite English podcast and listen to it while on the go. If you do this for only 10 minutes a day every day you’ll soon notice your listening skills improve very quickly.

Practice Speaking

You can practice you speaking skills too! If your friends are learning English then make an effort to speak to them in English. When you meet, set a rule that you must speak English as much as possible. If you don’t have any friends that learn English, then speak it to yourself to practice your pronunciation or get online and meet people and chat with them on the internet. Again, just a few minutes a day will really help improve your speaking skills.

Practice Reading

You can easily practice your reading skills. Go on the internet and search for things you are interested in. It’s always more fun to read something that you like to read. Alternatively, try buying an English language newspaper and read the news in English instead of your mother tongue!

Practice Writing

Finally, you can practice your writing skills by keeping a journal or diary. Write about things that you did that day, your thoughts and your plans for the next day. You don’t need to write a lot; just spend a few minutes writing in your journal and make sure that you do it every day.

As you can see, the more you practice the quicker you will learn the language. You don’t have to be doing your homework, or reading your course book to practice, there are many ways that you do this. Be creative and try to surround yourself in English language as much as possible and you’ll be learning english quicker than ever before!

ROLE OF A TEACHER

As teaching is the end of all learning. A teacher’s primary role is not only to enable the students to understand what he is intending to say or teach. It is also the duty of the teacher to understand what the student wants and says.

In teaching-learning process, two things play the vital roles; one is the delivering capacity of the teacher and the other one is the receiving capacity of the students. Without the two aspects, the teaching-learning process will not be a successful one.

Teaching-learning process is just like making sound by clapping. Without two hands we cannot clap. Like that without a right teacher and the students, the teaching learning process is meaningless. Teaching should be a worthy of learning a concept deeply and broadly. Teaching should facilitate the students to face the world which is full of political, social, international as well as personal controversies, without fear. It should give self-confidence to the students. By the effective teaching, the students should be enabled to go for right choices, judgments and also decisions individually In the process of teaching-learning, the teacher should try to understand the students first. Then only, he can enable the students to understand him or his teaching. Theory with practice on some of the teaching topics may enable the students to understand the concept easily. Success of a teacher in his/her attempt in enabling the students to understand what is the concept taught by the teacher, depends on the methods he/she applies.

The teacher may be a good, but the students’ physical problem may lead him to ignore the teaching. Or sometimes, the background of family of the students may drive him to be dull. Hence, the teacher should take into account everything

At the school level, the teaching-learning process is checked up the teacher by repeated class tests and examinations. Based on the result (marks scored by the students), different methods are adopted to improve teaching in case of negative result.

At the college levels also the same traditional  method of

examinations are used. The only difference is the volume of syllabus prescribed for the colleges students will be more than that of the school level.

As Carl Rogers said, the teacher should first forget that she/he is a teacher. Instead, she/he must possess the skills of a facilitator of learning-genuineness, prizing and empathy.

COMMON FACTORS AFFECTING TEACHING/LEARNING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

COMMON FACTORS AFFECTING TEACHING/LEARNING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

There are so many factors that affect the teaching-learning process in India. The students in India can be categorized into two; the one is having the regional language as medium of study from the primary level and the other is having English as the medium of study. Hence, the problem of teaching English as a second language, to the Indian students starts from the pre-schooling. Further environment and family background play vital role in success of learning process.

 For example, countries like India, where majority of the people are farmers, have the poor background in education. Moreover, the income of majority of the families is not adequate. Hence, the parents are not interested in giving good education background to their children. In contrast, they are willing to engage the children in some jobs in order to earn money. This is the very basic reason and the affecting factor in teaching.

 Secondly, the infrastructure, viz. school buildings – class rooms, labs, etc. is not adequate as required. The first category of the students are almost compelled to attend their classes under the trees even after several five year plans.

Majority of the students are coming from village and also their parents are farmers and uneducated. If the nature fails, the survival of the farmers will be questionable. Hence, the students are mentally discouraged due to the family conditions. In the second category, the students are having enough background in basic education since their parents are educated and they do not depend on the nature much. Many of the students from second category are joining in English medium schools and hence, they do not find much difficulty in pursuing their higher education. Moreover majority of the families of second category are dwelling in towns and cities and hence, they have easy access of quality education. 

But, the first category of students are scoring good marks the examinations conducted. It proves that they are having good writing skill in English. The only thing is that they have to be given training in oral English communication also. Hence, a common programme for English Language Teaching must be framed in the pre-schooling itself.

CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH ENGLISH IS TAUGHT IN INDIA

CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH ENGLISH IS TAUGHT IN INDIA

English is taught in India under the conditions which are far from being satisfactory. English is still playing a prominent role in our country as a national link language besides Hindi, as an international language in the world and an easy medium for science and technology.  But it is a fact that despite studying English in schools and colleges for about  6-8 years, students, especially coming from rural background, do not understand English. Even in some areas where students use regional language as L1 besides Hindi and in such areas English becomes L3, in some cases students in such areas lack all the four linguistic skills - comprehension, reading, writing and speaking.

Since language learning is a skill, it should be approached in that light. Our method of teaching has not yielded the desired objective. So measures have to be taken to bring out a change for improvement of English but prior to it the conditions under which English is taught need to be mentioned:

1. Lack of clear cut policy.

2. Little understanding of aims}

3. Incompetent teachers} report of the study group on teachers of English.

4. The defective method:

(a) Translation method being adopted.

(b) Oral work neglected.

(c) Auro-oral approach/structural approach should be followed.

5. Sub-standard books:

(a) No attention is paid to the selection and grading of structures.

(b) Teaching of language not given emphasis.

6. Inadequate material facility:

(a) Audio-visual aids like flash cards, charts, pictures, models, filmstrips, gramophone records, tape recorders lack in our schools which help in language learning.

7. The faulty examination system:

(a) Prescribed text-book need not be studied.

(b) Due to oral test, spoken English has a low standard.

8. Large classes.

9. Reduction of the number of periods:

(a) English introduced at later stage.

10. Lack of supervision:

(a) No trained specialist engaged in such task.

SOME SUGESSIONS FOR ENGLISH IMPROVMENT IN INDIA

SOME SUGESSIONS FOR ENGLISH IMPROVMENT IN INDIA

English in India, linguists in a recent seminar organized to discuss the techniques of improvement in English have suggested the following points which should be accepted while teaching English language.

1. Proper motivation for the learning of English:

(a) Teachers must motivate and inspire:

"A poor teacher teaches, an average teacher explains, a good teacher demonstrates, and an excellent teacher inspires."

2. Sincere effort (a) Crash refresher in grammar.

3. Atmosphere

4. Proficiency skills

5. Devotion of teachers

6. Language laboratory - film projector, film based on grammar, etc.

7. Reformation of examination system:

(a) Question papers should be so framed that students can not use

standard English.

(b) Marks should be awarded for language along with the material

contained in the answer.

8. Non methodical requirements - physical facilities such as adequate classrooms, limited number of students and uniformly grouped students and tuned syllables and other factors.

9. Sense of humor: Slight sense of humor may be permitted during the class.

10. Freedom from prejudice: One should not be prejudiced against English for the sake of one's regional language.

1. Shift should be from literature to language:

(a) seminar/symposium

(b) Specialized training in language teaching.

(c) debates, essay competition, lectures by scholars.

(d) précis and eulomaged.

2. The use of L1 should be reduced - (a) In Eastern Europe English is taught through L1.

3. Teaching should be tutorial oriented, not lecture oriented. Tutorial comprising small groups varying from 15 to 20 students will be ideal.

4. Periodical tests and internal examinations should be carried out.

5.Basic rudiments of phonetics should be taught at the school level and gradually developed.

6. Use of L1 words which have been accepted in English should be encouraged both in writing and speech.

7. Co-ordination between elementary, secondary and under-graduate teaching of English is essential.

IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED IN TEACHING OF ENGLISH

IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED IN TEACHING OF ENGLISH
 

1. Place of English should be properly defined:

(a) Objectives of teaching English at various stages.

2. Well trained and well equipped teachers with latest techniques of teaching with a knowledge of phonetics should be engaged in such tasks.

3. Translation method should be replaced by audio-visual method.

4. Text books should be written in accordance with structural method containing appropriate pictures and exercises.

5. Teachers should be equipped with proper audio-visual materials.

6. Examination in English should be oriented to teaching.

7. The teachers should follow techniques that are especially suitable for teaching large classes such as choral drills, group methods.

8. The use of mother tongues in classrooms should be reduced so that people may have more practice of listening English.

9. Effective supervision should be provided for an on the spot guidance.

ENGLISH IN INDIA OVER THE YEARS

 ENGLISH  IN INDIA OVER THE YEARS

It is actually the domainof education most interested in. So let's talk about its role in this sphere. English is learnt for a period ranging from six to twelve years depending on whether a child goes to ail English medium school or an Indian language medium school. In English medium schools, children get exposure to the language as a subject and as a medium instruction as well.

However, in Indian language medium schools, children get limited exposure to English, only as a subject, which is taught like any other subject History, Maths or Science.

At the level of higher education, English in India plays a central role especially in fields of pure applied sciences, medicine, law, management, etc.

Going further up the ladder after higher education, job opportunities, social advancement, prestige, power become issues of consideration and English is often perceived as the language fulfilling these aspirations.

In the course of the spread of English all over the world, its role and functions diversified and multiplied in virtually all major walks of life. This increasingly led to a demand for English education in India. The practical value of the language and its benefits have contributed to Indian learners having a high motivation and positive attitude towards the English language. Although there is no major English speaking

comtnunity in India, it is possible to learn and practice.English outside the formal educational setting: radio, TV, internet, books, newspapers, magazines are all readily available and accessible.

Although English is spoken as a first language in the five countries mentioned below-American English, British English, Canadian English, Australian English and New Zealand English-all differ in significant ways from each other. Not only that, English within each country lends itself to several varieties, each variety being distinct because of several factors - social, personal, geographical boundaries. We'll appreciate this better if we compare this to Hindi being spoken differently in Eastern U.P. (Bllojpuri and Avadhi) as compared to M.P.(Chattisgarhi and Bhageli) In Britain itself we have several varieties. All the varieties are' generally marked by a distinct accent, words and their usage. If you have heard Tony Greg and Geoffrey Boycott giving cricket commentaty, you would understand that though both speak British English the e former speaks the Standard variety while the latter, the Yorkshire variety.

Let us consider a few examples from British English and American English and see Non-native varieties of English are all those varieties which are spoken as second or foreign languages. In other words, in all these diverse cultural contexts, English is not their first language.

 English in these socio-cultural contexts is learnt at different

stages, for different purposes, goals and aspirations. Since there is already a presence of another language, such as Hindi, Bangla, Tamil, etc. which is acquired as a first language, these languages have a considerable influence on English. When this happens, English begins to sound quite different in each context, with its own flavour and nuances.

'Indian English' has emerged in India which is systematically different from Standard British English. However, we must keep this in mind that this deviation is in no way a failure to learn English but a natural consequence of prolonged use of the language in the social context in which it is spoken. Consequently 'IndianEnglish' is an outcome

of the 'Indianisation of English' which is culture bound in the socio-cultural context of India.

LEARNING A LANGUAGE

LEARNING A LANGUAGE

Each language is structured differently, and the different structures offer users different suggestions to meaning. so when we learn our first language, our brain / mind ‘tunes into’ the way the particular l1 works, and we learn to pay attention to particular cues to meaning that are most helpful. When we meet a new language, our brain / mind automatically tries to apply the first language experience by looking for familiar cues. Part of learning a foreign language is developing new understandings about the particular cues to meaning that the new language offers, and that differ from those of our first language. The transferability of knowledge, skills and strategies across languages depends closely on how the two written languages work.

USAGE OF GRAMMER BY INDIANS IN ENGLISH PRONOIUNCIATION

USAGE OF GRAMMER BY INDIANS IN ENGLISH PRONOIUNCIATION

It is natural that non-native Englishes get grammatically and syntactically influenced by speakers’ mother tongue. English in India, likewise, shows a great influence of Indian languages. The following are examples of grammatical characteristics commonly found in English in India.

Articles

Most Indian languages have no articles. Therefore, articles of Indian English are not used so strictly as those of native English.

Examples: He is best player. I have an urgent business.

 

Countable/Uncountable Nouns

Indian languages have no distinction between countable nouns and uncountable ones. So, it is natural that Indians often do not distinguish countable nouns and uncountable ones when they use English. Also, in Indian English, plural nouns sometimes come after “every” and “each.” Examples: I have lost my furnitures. Much efforts bring their reward.. Every people know this.

Prepositions

In Indian English postpositions different from those of native one are sometimes used on the analogy of the equivalents of Indian languages (postpositions in most Indian languages).

Examples: They mentioned about their plans. Search it! (There is no for after “search”.)

Tag Questions

"isn't it?", "…, correct?", "…, no?" and "…, hai na?" are uttered after a

sentence to show that the sentence is a sentence with a tag question.

You are from Japan, isn't it?

This is made in Japan, no?

You are not married, correct?

This is correct, hai na?

Tense/Narrative/ Aspects

The tense and narrative aspects of Indian English are not so strict as those of native English. In most cases, the phenomena happen because of the influence of the speaker’s mother tongue. The tense and narrative aspects of most Indian languages are much freer than those of native English.

I have read the book yesterday.

An American couple had adopted an orphan yesterday.

I had already told you that the meeting will be on Friday.

Since no serious effort had been made, we'll have to start the programme.

We had now finalized the constitution of the Association.

The applicant is having 15 years' experience in grape cultivation.

(The present perfect instead of the simple present)

He is knowing Sunita.

He said I am making bread.

Inversion

As inversion of interrogatives or auxiliary verbs seldom occurs in most Indian languages, so the inversion of those is sometimes neglected in English by speakers of Indian languages.

Examples:

What Raju is doing?

You want what?

Bramaiah gaaru is working well?

Others

“There” often comes last in “there is/are…” sentences. For example,

we can see such a sentence as:

A young boy was there.

Code-mixing & Code-switching in simple terms

Code-mixing & Code-switching in simple terms

 Code-mixing' is one of the major kinds of language choice which is

subtler than 'code-switching',. In code-mixed sentences, pieces of one language are used while a speaker is basically using another language. These 'pieces' of the other language are often words, but they can also be phrases or larger units

Code-mixing is a widespread phenomenon in bilingual communities

where speakers use their native tongue (L1) and their second language (L2) in certain deferent domains. However, it is not always the case where each distinct language is exclusively used in one particular domain. Instead, what tends to happen is that a mixture of the two languages is in question. The mixture usually involves one word (or phrase) from one language in the syntax of another, with the majority of words coming from the latter language

Code-mixing can be defined as a phenomenon in which a word or an expression from one language is used in a group of words whose structure belongs to another distinct language .If, however, complete sentences from both languages follow each other, the phenomenon in question is called ‘code-switching’,

Code-switching

Code-switching is the mixing of words, phrases and sentences from two distinct grammatical (sub) systems across sentence boundaries within the same speech event… code-mixing is the embedding of various linguistic units such as affixes (bound morphemes), words (unbound morphemes), phrases and clauses from a co-operative activity where the participants, in order to infer what is intended, must reconcile what they hear with what they understand.

TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE IN INDIA

TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE IN                 INDIA

Every educational system has certain objectives which aim at bringing about desirable changes in pupil. In order to bring about those changes, the institutions arrange learning experience. The success of learning can be judged only in terms of the changes brought about by this experience. This is a learning experience and

evaluation. Thanks to the globalization in all the fields, it necessitates the learning of a language which is international. Undoubtedly, English has become a world language rather than the language of only the English speaking countries such as the UK and the USA

because the number of the people who use English as a means of communication exceeds much more than the number of the people who speak it as their mother tongue. In the case of English in India, more than two centuries, India has been directly and indirectly had influence of the language, English on all the fields, such as Education, Medical Science, etc.

Text materials relating to the subjects of Science, Engineering and Technology as also Medicine are available only in English. Moreover, all over India, there is no single language to unite the whole country. Since, in India, several languages are spoken and also one set of people are reluctant to learn one common Indian language, we have to borrow a new non-India Considering the above facts, learning English, the universal language, as a Second Language, becomes inseparable branch as also unavoidable in Indian education

system.

Vocabulary of INDIANS IN SPEAKING ENGLISH

Vocabulary of INDIANS IN SPEAKING ENGLISH

In order to describe things typical of India, it is convenient to loan words from Indian languages and mix them into English. Particularly in a conversation exclusively among Indians, it seems that they feel it more comfortable to speak English in such ways.

  And when they use English, big words are preferred because

Indians are exposed much more to written English. Besides, as a result of putting a special emphasis on written English, complicated, old-fashioned and bureaucratic expressions such as “do the needful”, “I invite your kind reference to my letter.” Are still frequently used. The following are the typical examples of words in Indian English.

Lok Sabha (Lower House of the central parliament), Rajya Sabha

(Upper House of the central parliament), chamchagiri (flattering), rasta

aur rel roko ( stoppage of the traffic in a general strike), bandh

(stoppage of work), dal ( lentil, lentil soup), roti (cf. dal-roti=bread and

butter = bread), sabzi, sabji (vegetable, vegetable curry), paneer

(cottage cheese), pandit, pundit (brahmin), paan (betal leaf. It is

chewed with tobacco, lime, nuts and so on.

*hotel: restaurant), mandi (wholesale vegetable market), bazaar

(marketplace), mess (hostel dining hall. a system in a hostel where the

residents arrange to have meals prepared), …wallah (person doing …,

person doing … as his/her occupation [ e.g. rickshaw wallah (rickshaw

driver), tonga wallah (tonga driver, driver of a two-wheeled horsedrawn

vehicle), doodh wallah (milk seller)]), peon cf.

chaprasi, bearer (office attendant, office messenger boy), ayah ( child

nurse, maid servant), mali (gardener), jawan (soldier), Akashvani

 (indigenous name of All India Radio), Doordarshan (television, usually

used to mean India’s national television), guru (teacher. Traditional

spiritual master),.. ji [e.g. Verma ji, guru ji (equivalent to Mr/Ms.

Used with familiarity), ... sahib (sahiba) Sri ..., Srimati ...(equivalent

to Mr/Ms. Originally for Muslims, but now used to address the superior ),

autorickshaw (auto- three-wheeled vehicle with a engine. Usually used

as a taxi or a lorry), hill station e.g. Ootacamund (seasonal holiday

resort in the hill area), masala film (the most popular type of Indian film

with fights, songs, dance, jokes and romance), Bollywood ( [=Bombay +

Hollywood], Bombay’s film industry), good name (used when asking a

name. Polite usage), lakh (a hundred thousand), crore (ten million),

dowry (wife’s present to her husband when they get married), goonda

(rowdy), SC (=Scheduled Caste cf. untouchable: non-twice-born Hindus

who are considered out of caste and discriminated), Lathi-charge (v, for

the police to use lathi [stave] to break up a mob), NRI (non-resident

Indians, overseas Indians), disvestment (withdrawal of investment cf.

Divestment).

Linguistic diversity

Linguistic diversity 

Nowadays there are between 5,000 and 7,000 languages in the world. It is difficult to know the exact number of languages because the distinction between a language and a dialect is not always clear. In fact languages are not isolated entities and in many cases there are no clear boundaries between them, it is rather a continuum that extends along a geographical area.

Linguistic diversity has been defined in a broad sense as the ‘range of variations exhibited by human languages. The Ethnologue  considers that there are 6,912 languages in the world today, but some of the languages included are just considered varieties or dialects in other accounts.

English for Inter-Asian Communication

English for Inter-Asian Communication 

Not a few people are using English as a second language or a foreign language in Asian countries for inter-Asian communication. Taking into account the fact that the population of Asia is nearly half of that of the world, we cannot disregard the communication with and among Asian people. As has been known, English has been functioning as a common language or an official language in many countries and organizations in Asia. Therefore, English is virtually the most accepted language for inter-Asian communication.

As various people in various countries and regions use English, its forms vary from people to people as well as from place to place. To be specific, Englishes in many places get influenced by the local languages and, consequently, develop their own local and original features. So, in case you are not familiar with the features, you may feel it a little difficult to understand the local English until you get

accustomed to it. However, such local and original features are trivial once we get accustomed to them. As we have more opportunities to be exposed to Englishes of different countries, we can get accustomed to each local variety. As we know more about

them, we can know more about their English(es). In other words, we have to communicate much oftener to communicate better.

The Language Situation and the Language Policy in India

The Language Situation and the Language Policy in India 

There is a general misunderstanding that India has more than 18 official languages such as Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. They are, however, merely languages designated by the Constitution of India as languages to be promoted officially.

According to the Constitution, the official languages of the Union are Hindi and English. On the other hand, most of the 18 languages mentioned above are adopted as an official language of their original regions. They are regional languages except Sanskrit (a India’s classical language), Sindhi (its original place is not in India but in Pakistan), and Urdu (the Pan-Islamic common language in the subcontinent). Hindi in the Devanagari script is the official language of India. However, English continues to be the official working language. For not a few educated Indians, English is virtually their first language. For a great number of educated multi-lingual Indians, it is the second one.

The Constitution also identifies 18 regional languages mentioned above as “languages of India”. According to a recent survey, there are around 325 languages spoken in India. With around 325 languages and more than 700 dialects, the only language that educated Indians from different regions have in common is not Hindi  

but English, a language from outside by the British during their two-hundred-year occupation.

States of India are called “linguistic states” because the country has been distributed in 29 states, 6 Union Territories and a National Capital Territory, Delhi, on the basis of the languages mostly used in the region. The country has a wide variety of local languages and, in many cases, the State boundaries have been drawn on linguistic lines. Therefore, the state language of a state, to the majority of the

residents, is their mother tongue as well as the most representative local language of the region. Some Indian languages have evolved from the Indo-European group of languages. This set is known as the Indic group or the Indo-Aryan one. Another set  of languages is the Dravidian group and is native to South India, though a distinct influence of Sanskrit and Hindi is evident in these languages. Most of the Indian languages have their own script and rich literature.

Interestingly, many non-Hindi speakers complain that the government is forcing Hindi on them while many Hindi speakers say that the government is promoting English, neglecting Hindi and the other indigenous Indian languages. To the present author’s eyes, however, both claims seem to be true. But it seems that English is gaining more popularity, at least, among the urban educated Indians.

THREE LANGUAGE FORMULA IN INDIA

THREE LANGUAGE FORMULA IN  INDIA

 India enjoys too many languages to choose a sole official/common language. However, any nation needs (more than) one common language to communicate one another and to unite the nation. Of course, in terms of efficiency and economically it is better for a nation to have the least number of languages as an official language. “The Three-Language Formula”, India’s most representative language policy, is a compromise between different linguistic groups in India. Though the term “the Three-Language Formula” is seldom used by the government of India in official documents, the term is widely accepted and used.

 The Three-Language Formula was worked out as a way of accommodating the interest of each linguistic group. The formula is a policy to encourage them to choose and learn three languages at school. The first one of the three languages, in most cases, is speaker’s mother tongue/regional language while the second one is Hindi (a language of national pride and unity). And the last one is English (a language of administrative efficiency, technological progress and international communication).

The Role of “English-Medium Schools” in India

The Role of “English-Medium Schools” in India

It is necessary to know about “English-medium schools” in India so that we can understand how English in India has been produced. “English-medium schools” are educational institutions where English is used as a medium of instruction. “English-medium schools” vary from school to school. Some have poor facilities and some are well equipped. Some English-medium boarding schools called “public schools” have deluxe facilities as well as well-trained/highly qualified

teachers and gather children only from the upper class families. Such “public schools” in India can be regarded as an imitation of public schools in Britain. At “English-medium schools”, all the subjects except Indian languages like Hindi are supposed to be taught through English. At boarding schools called “public schools”, students have to use English all day long. At some “public schools”, students are punished if they use their mother tongue.

Naturally, students become good at English simply because they are forcibly exposed to English and cannot help using it. Generally speaking, the higher the course is, the more frequently English is

used as a medium of instruction. Almost all colleges and universities in India prepare courses whose medium of instruction is English while most municipal elementary schools in India are supposed to use the regional language as a medium. However, there are such elementary schools and even kindergartens, mostly private, adopt English as the medium. In such schools and kindergartens, very small children with a still insufficient command of their own mother tongues are forced to use English. Consequently, not a few children feel English the most

comfortable.

 Consequently, some children speak English instead of their mother tongue even when they talk with their family at home. “English-medium schools” are virtually producing the elite of the country.

Naturally, those with upward mobility want to send their children to “English medium schools” as long as their finances allow. English, in many aspects, is one of the most important keys to make a success in life in India. Even though they forget their mother tongue as a result of learning at “English-medium schools”, they rush to such schools to receive education through English. Apart from whether it is right or wrong, English can be said to be the most important language to educated Indians and is indispensable to Indian society.

CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH ENGLISH IS TAUGHT IN INDIA

CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH ENGLISH IS TAUGHT IN INDIA 

English is taught in India under the conditions which are far from being satisfactory. English is still playing a prominent role in our country as a national link language besides Hindi, as an international language in the world and an easy medium for science and technology.  But it is a fact that despite studying English in schools and colleges for about  6-8 years, students, especially coming from rural background, do not understand English. Even in some areas where students use regional language as L1 besides Hindi and in such areas English becomes L3, in some cases students in such areas lack all the four linguistic skills - comprehension, reading, writing and speaking.

Since language learning is a skill, it should be approached in that light. Our method of teaching has not yielded the desired objective. So measures have to be taken to bring out a change for improvement of English but prior to it the conditions under which English is taught need to be mentioned:

1. Lack of clear cut policy.

2. Little understanding of aims}

3. Incompetent teachers} report of the study group on teachers of English.

4. The defective method:

(a) Translation method being adopted.

(b) Oral work neglected.

(c) Auro-oral approach/structural approach should be followed.

5. Sub-standard books:

(a) No attention is paid to the selection and grading of structures.

(b) Teaching of language not given emphasis

6. Inadequate material facility:

(a) Audio-visual aids like flash cards, charts, pictures, models, filmstrips, gramophone records, tape recorders lack in our schools which help in language learning.

7. The faulty examination system:

(a) Prescribed text-book need not be studied.

(b) Due to oral test, spoken English has a low standard.

8. Large classes.

9. Reduction of the number of periods:

(a) English introduced at later stage.

10. Lack of supervision:

(a) No trained specialist engaged in such task.

BECOMING A POWERFUL COMMUNICATOR

BECOMING A POWERFUL COMMUNICATOR

Acquiring effective communication skills is a lot of hard work. It requires a complete change in individuals‟ attitude towards their environments. This change in attitude should be so strong as to impel them to bring about a sea change in their personality. It is now recognized that once persons have acquired good command over their speaking and writing abilities, they feel self-confident, assured and poised. Among others, following five qualities stand out in them:

(1) Perception

Good communicators are able to predict fairly accurately how their message will be received and whether it would have the requisite impact. They are really good at reading their audience correctly. They constantly modify and adjust their messages to tailor them to audiences‟ requirements and prevent any misinterpretation and misunderstanding.

(2) Precision

They create a meeting of minds of the senders and the receivers. When they finish delivering the message, audience shares the same mental picture as they have of the topic being discussed.

(3) Credibility

Good communicators come out as believable persons. Audience has faith in the substance of their message. They trust the senders‟ information and intention. The message is received rather well.

(4) Control

Good communicators shape response of their audience. In line with the original intent of the message, they can make their audience laugh / cry, calm them down, change their mind and prompt them to act in certain ways as would achieve the purpose of the communicators.

(5) Congeniality

They always maintain friendly and pleasant relations with their audience. They command respect and goodwill. As a result, despite differences, people like to work for them.