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.

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 of one 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

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 mans existence, 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 of communication from essential to strategic position. Today the scientific and economic advancement of a country is measured in 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

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 of communication. 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

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 global village. 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 of communication 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 production globally. 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

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 major contributors 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 broken down 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 by man 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

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. Communication facilitates 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. Therefore in 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, communication levels 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

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 to himself 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 modes of 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

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 different types. 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 not a 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

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 and is 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 of expressing 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 plays an 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.

10

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 made from 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

11

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 difference between 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 for example, 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 a prefix .In the word happiness ness a bound morphemes is a suffix. 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 are inflexional 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

12

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 station 3. 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. (The man 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 limited range 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

13

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 culturally transmitted. 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 characteristic of 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

14

(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 same sounds 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 in language . 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 any corresponding 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

15

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 an implicit 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 tall girls. 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 chased the 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) ..

16

Language as perceived by linguists Language is behavior. Behavior can be learned only by introducing 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 ability to 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.

17

CHAPTER 2 THE PLACE OF ENGLISH IN INDIA

18

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.

19

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 parliamentary consultative 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

20

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

21

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 L 3. 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 L 3 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

22

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,
ct

Haugen 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 materials with almost to seems unsuited it did on literary equal emphasis on all the four skills

the emerging situation. The emphasis may

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

23

Epstein uses the following abbreviations precise than terms like Foreign language. i) Lm ii) Li iii) L2 iv) Le v) Ln
-

which

seera more

Mother tongue Language learned as first Language learned as second etc. Foreign language (langue estrang ere) One of the languages spoken by a multilingual subject,

Stern

suggests

the

term international language for English in It

India which is used for wider communication within the country. severely resricted day by day.

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

24

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 not yet misgivings about its place in our educational system has seem to be moving towards such a consensus, there about the place English ought to have in our

emerged and although, under the new pattern of education, we are certain mental reservations on the part of some of our educational thinkers 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 be easily dispensed with. In with unceremoniously it agree that English cannot countries where it was dispensed

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

after the Suez crisis, has now upgraded its secondary

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

25

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 our said, clear that the hey-day of English in India is

now over. It should be obvious to all that Hindi, before long, will be lingua franca. The late Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, in a in Mauritius, use of Hindi "India is a multilingual country where the message to the second world Aindi convention held

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 to handle some of die abstract concepts a nation of diverse tongues. Most of our regional languages too have grown well enough 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

26

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

27

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 examination was "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. at any rate, these poems have But 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

28

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 Will the as difficult to read as it is useless to emulate?..... 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 countries practice such exported so successfully from British in India : "In as, India the pattern of education has been school and university

that syllabuses exist which are "nowadays plus royaliste profession in their home

que le roi. From such countries students come to Britain for training that will fit them to join the teaching history and criticism); yet in country and teach English literature or rather a version of literary 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

29

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 ^the needs of India. are by those who which Dr. taught, This is is hardly calculated t o serve the business of teaching of being increasingly realized even

not involved in

English. The Maharashtra Academy of Sciences, for instance, happens to be the president, has made the following suggestion:

PL N. Sethna, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission,

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 is therefore presumed that 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 policy in any detail, It status quo would be maintained in

30

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 India, dated July 22, 1976, reports: students. The Times of "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 and language objectives (skills and abilities) and thematic objectives (socio-scientific values, themes attitudes.) "To meet the special needs of students the courses. The 'first course is for the university has drawn up four

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 today. The Tamil English in India Nadu Agricultural University's experiment will

31

be watched with great interest by most other see. The ELT situation in India most students is L3. are is

Universities which

currently

undergoing a

significant change. Under the new scheme of education English for The implications of this change in the status perceived yet by our course designers V to for of The revised syllabi for standards of English X, the in scarcely

and curriculum framers. English as

Maharashtra, for instance, are the same old syllabi L2 only watered down to suit the supposed needs by

L3 learner. A syllabus

for English as L3 cannot be designed for English as L2. Yet Maharashtra

mechanically vocabulary items

reducing the number of structures and

prescribed

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

32

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 L 3 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

33

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 tradition in India, there is no Indo-French literary This It would comparable with the Indo-Angiian literary tradition.

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

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

34

''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 education at the university stage, ''English will continue to and the language of enjoy a high status so long as it remains the principal medium 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."

35

(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 L 3. 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;

36

CHAPTER 3 OBJECTIVES OF TEACHING ENGLISH IN INDIA

37

In any teaching situation three considerations would seem to be vital: (i) Objectives of teaching- the subject (ii) Appropriate methods and materials to achieve these objectives and (iii) Periodic testing to ascertain whether these objectives have actually been achieved. These three thinge are interdependent. Unless the objectives are defined clearly we cannot proceed to formulate proper methods of teaching, nor prepare suitable materials to help achieve these objectives. Testing or evaluation may end up as an empty ritual unless we know what objectives to test. The evidence of having achieved these objectives is to be found in the competencies or "behavior" of the learner whom we are going to examine. Testing, which comes last, forces us to have a look at the objectives, 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 the processes of evaluation are closely related, they are interdependent."This is true of education at all levels. One of the serious shortcomings of the ELT situation in India particularly at the lack of definite of linguistic undergraduate and postgraduate K levels-is the of objectives of teaching English. At terms statement

school level the objectives are stated more or less clearly in

structures and vocabulary items. These objectives at

the 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 University 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

38

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 to this shortcoming At the school level where undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in English seems to lack direction owing such a statement of objectives exists it seems hopelessly by pupil achievement. We expect our S. S. G.

ambitious judged

student to master about 200 odd structures and about 2000 vocabulary 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, teachers etc. Yet he achievement objectives when Dr.Walker Hill education implies their again, (the pupil) of objectives. untrained of grand is our only evidence

It is no use displaying

realization is hardly "Since any

possible. To quote

meaningful objective of

some change in the characteristics or the students that we must look in order to find such We must

competencies of students, it is to evidence, we must know

for evidence of its achievement. And

what we are looking for.

39

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 Independence fairly stable until Wei may venture to state that for several decades methods and had remained fairly stable inspire of the fact performance of candidates. The

preceding Independence our syllabi, teaching testing procedures

that standards of attainment in English were deteriorating judging from examiners' reports on 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. by their very Michael West would have us believe that teachers done by Add to this, in India,

nature are conservative creatures. They are apt to do as they are 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 taught English in India first generation of British teachers who

exactly as they did in the U.K. Wilga Rivers comments on such a teaching situation as follows "Frequently such teachers teach as

40

they were

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

and techniques appropnate in another era are perpetuated. From time to time such teachers add a few techniques which they seen demonstrated or of students may not exciting, classes fact but as that which they have read, but

approach to their lessons remains fundamentally unchanged. Their find the lessons particularly interesting or their be pass if they pass examination of a traditional type their they have always codueted them, unaware of the in foreign language teaching may their the and people passing its people who teaching may have become of time, new and these who

teachers are satisfied. Sueh teachers continue to conduct objectives

changing around them and that through cheir classes. a With nation

anachronistic and irrelevant to the young situations arise for

establish priorities of objectives for foreign-language teacher, appropriate to the generation of students before him."

must be continually aware of such changes if his teaching Is to be

The sort of flexibility which a country needs in its approach to the teaching of foreign languages is illustrated by the history of foreign-language teaching in the U.S.A. in a slightly different context. In the U.S.A., as in several other countries, foreign languages like German, French, Spanish etc. were held in low esteem until the First World War. Latin and Greek, the classical languages, had a prestige of their own. In 1900 Latin enrolled 50.6 percent of the total public high school population in the U. S. A. After the year 1900 the popularity of Latin began to wane, although it did not suffer greatly in popularity until after the First World War. After the First World War other foreign languages like French, German and Spanish began to attract the attention of teachers and students. In 1922, Latin enrolled only 27.5 percent

41

while

French

Spanis

hand

German

together

enrolled

an

equal number of students. Russian attracted no attention till the year 1957. But with the launching of the Space Sputnik-I, the U.S A. began to show considerable interest in Russian. In 1957, sixteen schools offered Russian, in 1958, 140 offered it and by I960, thirtysix States had enrolled 9722 pupils for Russian. This sensitiveness to the changing situation has hardly been in evidence in India. (In the sphere of ELT we continue to stick to old methods and cherish objectives which were dear to our teachers. Reform in teaching English ought to begin by stating the objectives in no uncertain terms. Objectives which are unrelated to Our immediate needs may fail to create the necessary motivation for learning the language. Foreign-language functional. The teaching generally tends to be

popularity of

Russian in the U. S. A. after 1957 A tiny minority of students may be impose a

is an instance in point. This is not to deny the cultural value of learning a foreign language. interested in the culture and civilization of a people. They have every right to pursue their interests. But to seek to heavily literature-oriented syllabus on students, whose linguistic competence is of a doubtful nature, is, to say the least, unfair to the learner and irrelevant in the context of our educational needs. For a long time English was taught for vaguely cultural ends. Predominantly cultural objectives may be appropriate in an L1 situation but they have little justification in an L2 situation and least of all in an L3 situation which now obtains in most of the States and Union Territories in India. Yet this was what was sought to be done and still continues to be done in the name of teaching English. The result is the typical M. A. student whose English is beyond redemption. Here is a specimen of English taken from the tutorial

42

book of an average M. A. student who subsequently passed the M. A. examination securing second-class marks from one of the universities in Maharashtra. It is a part of an answer, written not under 'examination' conditions but under /home' conditions, on T.S. Eliot, who is so popular with our teachers and students "When Sir Henry Reilly says Go and work out with your salvation' Edward did not like to go to the homeward. He say he wish to go restorant. Because he says their is no happyness in the house. In fact, we find it is a psychological phenomen a that any individual who is fed of the old life, he is interested in visiting the new life. In fact Edward was tempted by restorant on the other hand we find that Lavinia praying to god about the sorry, at last Lavinia says that her bed fortuned laugh at her." This student represents the middle point on the cline I linguistic competence and some of our universities. Here is a specimen of P, U. G. (now S. Y. J. G.) student's English. (The class was drilled in the use of tenses for a couple of periods before students were asked to write answers to the Questions for which they ware orally prepared. Q. A. Q. 2 1. What time did you go to bed yesterday ? I went to the bed at 10 p. m, yesterday. How long- did you sleep fast night ? of

is fairly representative of the class of

students who get through their MA. at the very first attempt from

43

A. Q. A. Q. A. Q. A. Q. 6 5 4 3

I sleeped till 7 O* clock last night, When did you wake up ? I wakes up at 6 O clock, What time do you come to College? I comes to the college at II a, m When do you go home ? I goes to home at 6 p. in, every day", What do you do in the evening ? A, I goes for walk, in evening-There is a certain pattern in the errors This student which can be corrected by remedial

made by work.

The point is what should be the objective in teaching English are hardly the fare for such what the situation is students, It would be in; countries like Kenya

to students whose English is so poor? Literature and literary appreciation instructive to see

where the study of English,

according to G, E. perren6y is not a

luxury but an absolute necessity, English, in Kenya, being' a link between 6,900,000'' Africans who speak forty different languages. Mr. J.F.Waif work7 of the Department of English. The Royal College Nairobi, Kenya, mentions some of the difficulties which teachers experience in a) b) c) d) e) teaching literature to their students;

Motivation is lacking. Students may. see no benefit, materially or spiritually, from this exercise,, vizy prose appreciation, Too often true appetite for any form of literature is lacking, Students read much too slowly Texts are often unsuitable. In a first year university student, to whom English is a second language, vocabulary control may be competent at the level but is wholly inadequate at emotive or associative the work expected*"

'factual' level for

44

It need hardly be added that the situation in India is Worse than what it is in Kenya.lln reformulating our objectives in the Indian context today, we have to take into account the motivation of the learner, the availability of resources for teaching English and the national needs that English may have to serve All these considerations indicate a frankly utilitarian approach which is the only one that seems feasible. For a majority of students anyway, English may have to be taught for practical purposes. What are these practical purposes for which English is needed for a fairly long time to come ? prof. Gok-ak8 mentions at least five reasons that 'prompt us to continue' with the study of English. These are: 1) 'English will continue to be the language of all important trade and industry in the country for many years to come. It will take many years before it ceases to be the language of administration at higher levels. A substitute has yet to be found for English as the language of competitive examinations. The physical set-up of offices has to change. There? are compelling economic reasons why it cannot be changed so quickly.' It was more than a decade ago that prof. Gokak published his book. His argument holds good substantially even today except that (i) at the All India Competitive Examinations, particularly the I. A. S. Examination, the Essay paper can optionally be answered in one of the fifteen Indian languages, (ii) A few joint stock .companies have introduced the regional language in certain, areas of their routine correspondence, (in) The universities, particularly the 'regional' universities, have mostly switched over to the regional languages as media of inst-ruction/examination in a few subjects. However/trade and industry, which involve inter-State and inter-national contacts, continue to use English. Similarly at higher levels of administration

45

which involve Hindi takes over.

inter-State

relations English may continue until

2) ' Knowledge of English is imperative for getting access to modern scientific and technological knowledge. Even universities that have regionalized the medium will think twice before extending this step to courses in Law, Medicine, Engineering or Agriculture, Such a step will put the cart before the horse, the medium before the content of a subject. Even for subjects for which the medium has been regionalized, students have to supplement their knowledge by reading books and journals in English, if their degree has to have any value. The popular argument that science and technology cannot be taught through University the regional languages or Hindi has been Their it is that science and technology questioned by prof.V.V.John9 and Mr.Lloyd Ferudo10, the latter of the of Malaya. which are con-physical phenomena and industrial arts can ally there is nothing easier to transplant from one languages into another titan technology. No verbal subtleties or fine shades of meaning are involved. Pure technological term terminology can be borrowed. The non-technical languages of higher learning would present the most serious difficulty Mr.Lloyd Fernando makes a similar has progressed by severely limiting the capacity of language to carry complex meanings. Science concerns itself with that part of language which expresses what is calculable in terms of material cause and effect that is, with the instrumental meanings of language. Literature and therapy criticism consist of statements of value. The reality of moral the is untranslatable into technological. Jargon technology is not concerned with the central problem of human living. The central concern of literature is with the ultimately inexpressible language of fear and love.

46

This criticism has a point. However as Quirk points out, English has become the language of scholarship. Scholars or international reputation, whatever their mother tongue, choose to write in English since English happens to be a world language. To quote quirk, A measure of the importance of English today even in the highly developed countries of Europe can be seen in this; A Norwegian of Europe can be seen in this: A Norwegian or Finnish scientist who a century ago might have published his work in French, and three centuries ago in Latin, well often today seek to achieve the maximum circulation of his ideas by publishing it in English. Swdish scientists in the distinguished and venerable University of Uppasala may be heard discussing atomic physics among them selves in English, since English is the language they associate with such scholarship. This is no argument for not teaching science and technology in the regional languages, particularly at elemenritary and intermediate levels. Some of these very scholars publishing their publishing their works in English may have very poor Quirk1 often such a factor who
2

f knowledge of English. As

himself remarks write or at

else- I where, "A scholar in Denmark or 1 in a vast country like Russia will today wider public. This does not mean that English. In

Czechoslovakia or even will thereby I reach a

I any rate publish in English, because his work knowledge of

1 scholar has a native-like corrected and checked

I the preface will usually acknowledge the help someone I has the English or even done a I

1 good deal of translation. The scholar himself may be very on any subject other than his own Often he has only the ability particular

poorly equipped to speak English or even to write it, espy Socially field of interest . to read (not even to listen to)

47

English material solely concerned with his subject" This points to the fact that even for a scholar of international repute reading comprehension might suffice; The argument that all the four basic skills are indispensable for teaching or learning science and light of Quirk's remarks. for teachingtechnology cannot be sustained in the

The recent decision of the Government of Maharashtra to reintroduce English as a medium of instruction mathematics and science from Std. VIII onwards in a phased that perpetuates, conservatism

manner needs to be examined in the context of these arguments. It is the dead weight of tradition and precludes any experimentation with regional languages as vehicles of scientific and technological knowledge, 3) 'So long as creative thought in every department of knowledge is not as active in this country as in the West, it would be rash to cut ourselves off from a language which keeps us in contact with the latest thought in Europe in every field of life and culture. So long as we have not overtaken the West in its intellectual leadership of the world or even matched it on its own ground, rejecting the study of English as a second language will amount to committing intellectual hara-kiri. "This is perhaps the soundest argument for studying English. According to Mr. L. G. is printed in Alexander13, 65% knowledge English, ; of/ world's the

The Annual Report of the

British Council14 for the year 1968-69 states, English is now

principal means of spreading ideas and values. 60 % of radio programmes and most television anaterials are in English. A flood of newspapers, magazines and comics in English covers the stalls of world's airports. Time and Times reach the ends book of the

earth. More educational material is available in English than in any other language." An American researcher cites the following

48

statistics: (i)

50,000

scientific and technical journals are English, (iii) As regards research reports

published m-English annually, (ii) 1}200,000 significant articles are published annually in "hot less about l,000,000 of them are published in English annually. English is important I in countries where it is used as a second Bandung Conference, in which twentylanguage. Barnett f reports that English was the language of the proceedings of the 1955 nine countries the communist with of Africa and Asia (in none of which was English side3in many cities, Russian Cultural Offices

native to their inhabitants) represented, 1,400;000,000 people, .On compete British and American Centers in advertising English large cities it is the one 70 % of

Gourses. Within the U.S.S. R. schools offer English from the fourth or fifth grade on and in some of the the compulsory language in the curriculum. Today more than world's mail is written and addressed in of the than 60%

English and more

world's radio programmes are in English,

(Barnett, Lincoln : The Treasure of our Tongue: New York: A Knopf: 1964),To this we may add that the proceedings of die SAARG held recently at Bangalore were com-pletlyin English, There were no interpreters. In India 80% of the books on University library shelves are in English. To keep pace with this knowledge explosion we need to retain English. The Report of the National Commissionr5 appointed by the Government of Pakistan makes the following point: "Living as we do in a highly competitive age, where the pace of advance in scientific knowledge, discovery and invention is so rapid as to make it impossible for any nation to be self-sufficient, Pakistan cannot shut itself up in isolation and must provide for the study of a well developed foreign language in its education system." The Report further recommends that English be taught as a functional language

49

not for any loosely defined cultural purposes but in order to serve a rapidly developing country's immediate practical heeds. The Report of the Education Commissionr6 (1964-66) Ministry of Education, Government of India, has emphasized the study of English for practical purposes. It has recommended that ''Special units for teaching English should be established in Universities and Colleges whose main objective would be to give a good working knowledge of English to new entrants by the adoption of modern teaching techniques and in as short a time as possible. A distinction has to be made between the teaching of English as a skill and the teaching of English literature. In most of the countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka Kenya and countries of South East Asia, as also in. India, the demand has been for teaching English as a functional language. Bruton'7 who knew the Indian situation so well put it succinctly. "There can simply be no argument that the average Indian student of today needs English for certain very specific purposes r to be able to follow a lecture given in English, to be able to read text-books in his subject in English, and on, occasion to be able to express his ideas In English. That is to say that he needs English primarily of a factual nature. It follows that to him-of course not to us, if we believe that he likes and needs literaturemost of what he is given in the name of English is irrelevant and a waste of time. To him factual English is the prime need, since most of his reading in English will be of materials related to the subjects he is studying. But to those who have been brought up in the literary tradition such English is anathema, and the suggestion that' they should teach the language is deeply shocking. The reason for this attitude is very frequently their own inadequacy, the feeling that they would be

50

unable to teach the language if they were called upon to do so. This attitude of refusal to face the facts and unwillingness to change will undoubtedly persist until the Universities make radical changes in their syllabuses and oblige degree students to devote some time to the study of the language as is done in most other countries where foreign languages are seriously studied." This is not a plea for excluding literature from our courses. It is a plea for choosing the right kind of literature, literature that may advance the linguistic skills of the learner. Cramming passages from 'books about books about books and reproducing them with an infinite variety of errors, orthographic, lexical, syntactic and stylistic as illustrated by the specimens cited earlier in this chapter, is neither teaching literature nor teaching language skills, 4) Aknowledge of English is necessary today if only for discarding English at a later stage. Translations alone can enrich the literatures in our languages in every way. It is possible to find in English translations of outstanding works relating to any field an written originally in any language of the world. English literature itself is rich in such writings. These can be translated into our language only by persons who know English well and the sub Ject which is their field of study. That is why English second language has to be studied by all students merely by those who wish to specialize in English. Dide for our literature of power in the past, yet to do for our literarure of knowledge. It need hardly be stated that the need of the is for a band of expert translators who would siphon literature of knowledge into the regional languages Hindi. But not all those who learn English as a second language would be competent to translate books faithfully translation is an exacting skill and requires a through understanding

51

of the subject and a mastery of both languages, English and the regional language of Hindi such a combination of translators. This is a national importance and the sooner we train a ban competent translators the better for the country. Did this years ago, with the consequence that literature knowledge is now tithing the reach of its masses. In I there is still a certain degree of hesitation in switch over to the regional media for teaching science prepared by expert both in Maharashtra, it is reported, are going waste for of buyers. The example of Japan quoted by Rabindra Nath Tagore,
18

about four decades ago, in the convocation of the Calcutta university has a lesson for us: at outset she (Japan) had to take recourse to textbooks writing in foreign languages but from the very first, her object had been to arrive at the stage of ranging freely over subjects of study in the language of the country. It because. Japan had recognized the need of such student not as an ornament for a select section of her citizens for giving power and culture to all of them that she med it to be of prime importance to make them universally available to her people. And in this effort of Japan. no trouble or expense was spared." The last point that Prof. Gokak makes concerns only a few of us. It is as follows : 5) "There is the need to interpret India's thought and culture, abroad. Our diplomats are learning many languages today, from Arabic to Russian. Even so, inter-national committees and conferences transact their business in English and French. A book translated into English or French stands the chance of winning a world public. Our budding diplomats, thinkers and interpreters in the international filed have to study the compulsory as well as optional courses in English. They have to express them selves with elegance

52

and grace in written and spoken English, not merely with formal correctness." Good spoken and written English of the sort described by Prof. Gokak is a minority ideal which need not detain us here. (Mr. R. K. /Tongue of the British Council raises issues similar to those raised by Prof. Gokak and late Mr. Bruton. Discussing the problems of remedial English teaching (Problems of Remedial English Teaching at Secondary and College Level : Newsletter No.19: December 1975 : CIEFL, Hyderabad) he asks, "What does he (the secondary school pupil and the college student) need English for ?" "What are We training him to be able to do with English?" Mr. Tongue answers the question both negatively and positively, that is, he first states what the student does NOT need to be trained for and then what he needs to be trained for. To quote Mr. Tongue, "To begin with, there is the vast range of communicative activities which will almost exclusively be conducted in the mother-tongue; in particular, personal and intimate communication within the and among friends." family In most of the informal contexts of life we

do not need to us English. Yet so compulsive is social. snobbery that

OU

undergraduates dare to write love letters in English an, we of the

older generation keep on code-switching even i, the most intimate contexts of family life. The middle-class ideal has been the anglicized minority, the Englishwallahs ideal has, whom Nirad Chaudhari19" describes as follows; -They (The English wallahs) even treat as inferior those who do not pronounce the English vowels and consonants in the exact English way. So a man who pronounces /0/ as a simple open vowel and not as a Tiphthong will be treated with some snobbery. By they get all their vocal trying to speak English correctly

mechanism so changed that they cannot speak any Indian language with the correct accent." This picture, of course, isgradually

53

changing and it is hoped there will be less of snobbery and more of sanity in the use of English both in our social and academic life. Mr. Tongue continues, "A activities can also be number of traditional language teaching with for example, the subon topics such as, 'The Adventures to be singularly unsuited at

dispensed

literary essay or composition Most' Essay and pre'cis seem

of a Ten Rupee Banknote' or 'The Person who Has Influenced Me this level. Free composition had better be discouraged as early as

possible since it encouragescramming of ready-made answers. Answering the question positively, Mr. Tongue states, "We should be encouraging the students to use language for purposes of genuine communication and for the solution of problem-solving tasks, to help them to use the English language in circumstances where it is the mdst appropriate medium and where it offers something of unique cultural or communicative value." Mr. Tongue points out at least four constituents which may contribute to the Indian student's repertory of knowledge and skills. These are (i) English literature (ii) Resources of English as a library language (iii) English as the most significant international language of science and technology and (iv) the special position occupied by English in certain spheres of life in India today. Of these four constituents he rules out literature, one of the reasons for doing so being, "any study of literary texts by students who have not mastered the basic elements of the language cannot be other than superficial and build up a Framework provided by the remaining three constituents within which teaching can be made relevant. The materials for exemplification provided by Mr. Tongue, although very scanty, are trivializing." He therefore proposes to

54

sufficiently

challenging.

They require a bit of patience and

understanding on the part of the student. Simplified and graded materials on the lines suggested by Mr. Tongue may prove helful. The debate on the usefulness or otherwise of learning English as a part of modernization process has been going on in China too. A letter in China Daily published recently argued that English as a tool was as important as mathematics and Chinese and every pupil both in rural and urban areas needed to know them. This was considered a tall order considering the fact that even in Beijing very few speak English well. Another letter writer, a teacher of English, how ever says/'Some of my students had started with the ABC three times-in junior middle school senior middle school and at college without making much headway." The writer wondered whether it was necessary to spend so much of time on English. It must be noted, however, that both China and Burma are paying greater attention to the teaching of English today than what they did a decade ago. However, The Times of India recently reported, "Take a stroll in Beijing "east is red", square and one can see clusters of young people speaking English to each other. In China anyone who speaks English fluently is immediately popular. Within minutes a crowd will gather round an English speaker with everyone eager to try a knowers of the language." The developing countries have, it seems, only two teach it to

limited numbers so that proper standards

are maintained (ii) to

water down the courses so that English for comprehension is made obligatory with a provision for advanced courses suited to the needs of'various consumers.' Mr. J. D. Corbluth (ELTJ Vol XXVIII Jan. 1975) supports the former option. He opines, "I have been coming round more and more to the concept that, in a developing country with the usual teacher and equipment problems it would be more

55

effective numbers not an

and economical and

to teach English properly to limited and

/or in limited areas. The normal decision, for all one. We all know that only a limited

pupils to learn English from Grade X to Grade Y, is a political educational

number will achieve success in the language, and that for the country's needs-and this is the really important point -only a limited number will need to ... It is better to be resigned effectiveness emasculated accepted." Mr. Corbluth is obviously thinking of excellence in all the four skills. It may also be true that educational policy is often influenced by political considerations. In the given circumstances, however, the only solution seems to be to impart the skill most useful to the vast majority of learners on a compulsory basis and provide opportunities for others to cultivate the excellence they need. If English is basically required for the purposes outlined above it is obvious that we need to design our syllabi on a different principle altogether. While cultural objectives would be appropriate in an L1 situation, a skill-based approach is what is needed in an L2 situation. Understanding, speaking, reading and writing are the four basic skills that need to be incorporated in our syllabi In an L 3 situation greater emphasis will have to be laid on reading comprehension than on skills of speaking and writing as envisaged by the Education Commission. From this situation transition to English as a 'library language' would be easy and natural. Wilga Rivers20 lists six classes of objectives which have dominated the teaching of a foreign language at different times. These are : (i) to develop the student's intellectual powers through foreign language study (ii) to increase the student's personal culture through the study of the in this pidgin English, to limited some sense than to 'attempt to teach

in which he go, ten dog, etc. are

56

great literature and philosophy to which it is the key (iii) to increase the student's understanding af how language functions and to bring him, through the study of a foreign language, to a greater awareness of the functioning of his own language (iv) to teach the student to read the foreign language with comprehension so that he may keep abreast of modern writing, research and information (v) to bring the student to a greater understanding of people across national barriers by giving him sympathetic insight into the ways of life and ways of thinking of the people who speak the language he is learning (vi) to provide the student with skills which will enable him to communicate orally and to some degree in writing, with the speakers af another language and with people of other nationalities who have also learned this language. Of these six classes of objectives the most relevant to us in 'English-as-L3context' is objective number foury viz., reading comprehension. Although for the vast majority of students English may have to be taught as a 'library language' in the India of tomorrow, it would still be necessary to teach English bo h intensively and extensively to those who may have the aptitude to learn it. National interest may oblige some of our students to cultivate all the language skills and some Cew of them to cultivate literary excellence. The suggestion that the study of English be made 'optional' has not found favour with the public and may not be acceptable to most people in the immediate future. In the circumstances we may be obliged to plan a diversity of courses suited to the ability of learners and the needs of education. We may visualize a teaching situation where 'English for comprehension' would be our priority No. L1 billowed by optional courses in 'written English,' 'spoken English' etc. Special courses in literature may be designed for those who want them. Even at the level of 'Reading

57

Comprehension'

several

graded

courses

may

be

offered.

Diversification of courses with multiple levels of attainment rather than one omnibus course with a single level of attainment may be the answer to our problem. In the Indian context where English is L, its teaching would have to be restricted in terms of the extent of achievement of the four basic skills.

58

CHAPTER 4 MOTHER TONGUE IN THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH

59

Althongh pedagogically speaking it may teach English mostly always be practicable. Poor

be desirable to

through the medium of English, this may not command of English on the part of the

the teacher coupled with poor attainment in English on the part of the learner may oblige even a good teacher to resort to mother tongue where the Use of English may be academically latter mostly into in small towns, would

rewarding, A survey of teaching practices in our schools and in quite a few of our colleges, the reveal that translation the mother tongue constitutes a name of teaching English. But

large part of what goes on under the

Where comprehension is the sole aim of teaching English this may not seriously be objected to, provided it is done competently. where skills other than comprehension are aimed at large-scale have to be taught though they may not As it is, the learner today is a his mother tongue and only for

translation may do more harm than good. In an L3 situation skills other than comprehension all receive equal exposed most of emphasis. the time to

fraction of the time

to English, nis target language. One of the expose the

secrets of teaching a foreign language effectively is to nslation deprives the learner of the target-language experience and interference. As Dodson1 the only way in which is for him purposeful to have a has pointed

learner to target-language experience as much as is possible. Tramuch-needed exposure to accentuate interlingua out, "the best and perhaps may

human being learns a second language this language in useful environments

the maximum number of meaningful and

contacts with

and situations. 'Yet it cannot be denied that translation has a pla-ce in teaching English. Rightly used, it is a help both in teaching and testing. However, the current practice of translating almost every sentence into the mother tongue is fraught with grave risks* It can

60

hardly help the learner cultivate skills other than comprehension which, although less important in the Indian context today, cannot be completely ignored. The practice of teaching English through the mother tongue is not new in India. It may be traced languages much the in like Greek the to the Grammar-translation classical Method which was widely practiced in Europe for teaching

and Latin. In India, Sanskrit was taught 19th century the teacher saw other methods swung back no reason

same way, and when English began to be taught in

latter half of the

to depart from the time-honored practice. After a brief period of experimentation with of teaching English the to translation, describes owing the teacher today seems to have

mostly to his incompetence. Wilga Rivers Grammar-translation Method as follows :

"This method aims at inculcating an understanding of the grammar of the language, expressed in traditional terms, and at training the student to write the language accurately by practice in regular translating from his native language. It aims at

providing the student with a Wide literary vocabulary; often of an unnecessary detailed nature, it aims at training the student to extract the meaning from foreign texts by translation significance and value of what he has been taught by this method are frequently in the foreign language and may be to pronounce anything themselves. Little stress is laid on accurate pronunciation and intonation, communication skills are neglected, there is a great deal of stress into the native language and, at advanced stages, to appreciate the literary reading . . Students confused when addressed

very embarrassed when asked

61

on knowing rules and language actively writing . The language work hard

exceptions to express

but

little training in using the

one's own meaning, even in to

learned is mostly of a literary type, and the

vocabulary is detailed and esoteric. The average student has

at what he considers laborious and monotonous chores the mastery of the

vocabulary learning, translation, and endless written exercises without much feeling of progress in language and with very little opportunity time, a passive one." The Direct Method of teaching a foreign language, which was practiced seemed largely on and the in the early 20th century in some of J the schools in India, was a reaction to the Grammar-translation Method which so unpromising. The success of this method depended the competence a and resourcefulness of the teacher describes it in motivation of the learner. Wilga Rivers to express himself

through it. His role in the classroom is, for the greater part of the

the following words : "A direct-method class provided a clear contrast with the

prevailing Grammar-translation classes. The course began with the learning of the foreign words and phrases for objects and actions in the class-room. When these could be used readily and appropriately, the learning moved to the common situations and settings 6f everyday life, the lesson often developing around specially constructed pictures of life in the country where the language was spoken. Where the meaning of words not be made clear by concrete representation, the teacher resorted to miming, sketches, or explanation, in the foreign language but never supplied native-language translation. Since students were required at all times to make a direct association between foreign phrase and

62

the highly Intel Urgent student with well-developed induction who profited most from the method, for the very discouraging and bewildering from each other in

powers of

which could be

less talented. As a

result the members of an average class soon diverged considerably degree of foreign Language acquisition. The resourceful in order method made great demands on the energy of the teacher. He had of necessity to fluent the language, and very of the native language." This "all or none" approach characteristic of the Grammartranslation Method and the Direct Method respectively, is hardly helpful in teaseling sent Indian context. A tarsal than what the Structural
mor

to make meaning clear in a variety of rating at any time to the use

liberal seems to

use

of

Approach

permit

would be necessary and warranted by the teaching situation today. In an L, situation where would be using it Method unwise to reading comprehension is priority No. 1, it restrict the use of the mother tongue Direct-

severely. What is necessary is to curb the practicing teacher from without regard to any pedagogic principle. The fanatic who explains the word 'Sunday' as 'the day

preceding Monday and following Saturday' is as open to nodule as the teacher who translates a word like 'book' into the regional language. A balance has to be struck between these two extremes, A survey of the -views on the use of translation teaching

and testing a foreign language reveals three attitudes towards this vexed question. These are to highly rigid attitudes. They are, however, indicative of the general approach to the problem. These are: (1) Those who seem to lend support to translation in spite of certain reservation, (2) Those who approve of it under certain Specific conditions and at certain levels of teaching and (3)Those Who dismiss it outright as an objectionable device in teaching. It

63

may be stated here that there is a more tolerant attitude towards translation today than there was some years ago. (1) Among those who support translation are Henry Sweet, we begin to learn a new language we to him three the Harold Palmer, Pickett, Dodson and C. V. Taylor. Henry Sweet3 (1891) points out that 'when cannot help thinking in our Language, According

stages should be distains' unshed in the use of translation. In brought face to face by means of free idiomatic translation. -

third stage 'the divergences between the two languages will be

Harold Palmer4 (1922) criticizes the fanate supporters of the Direct Method who equate it with the principle of the exclusion of the mother tongue' and observes I that it is a natural process of proceeding from the known to the unknown. Palmer's attitude, however, is not always consistent, C. J. Dodson (1967) remarks : The foreign language learner's intial desire to know the situations. language, situations He and essential requirement to learn how for efficient learning, is to handle known and FL (Foreign-language) equivalent used in familiar wishes

consistently recurring situation through the medium of the foreign he does not wish to learn how to handle completely new in foreign-language terms. New situations which owe a sufficient grounding to enable him to cope

their u, peculiarity to their foreign origin r.re only introduced in-" to a language course after the pupil has had in the fundamentals of the with events strange to him. Why then should the teach r not use the mother tongue to new language

explain the meaning of FL sentence relating to these familiar situations? Linguists often produce the argument that words

64

translated from one meaning, and mother occur even book that tongue to not

language

into another do not possess equal

we should, therefore, avoid the use of the explain their meaning.; Yet differences in similar concepts spoken. a These of

meaning between words referring to apparently families writers where and the same language who is

only between languages, but also between regions or are mainly a matter of degree, researchers not of kind. Textstudy

differences 7

undertake

dispensability are aware of this fact, and select not only situations which are familiar to the learner and which contain graded speech patterns, but also choose words, which firstly have a high frequency count, secondly spring naturally out of the situation, and lastly which have as far as possible a one-one relationship in meaning between the two languages. If it is not possible to find words with a clear one-one relationship, words whose difference in meaning can be easily established by visual aids, e. g. "police man' 1, "polizist", "gendarme are selected. Thus words with different shades and. nuances of meaning" are avoided at the beginning of language courses, and the objection to the use of the mother tongue as a coivevor of meaning is not applicable at this stage because no misrepresentations can be caused. it is more efficient and less burdensome to the learner if the initial sentence-meaning is conveyed through the mother tongue and If the learner is helped to retain this meaning during his active response processes by means of visual aids. These aids also help the pupil to recognize the unavoidable minor differences between words relating to general concepts which differ In their detail between the two languages. Pickett5 (1968; examines translation as a testing technique and finds it more useful than the blank-filling technique. Translation

65

according to him tests more abilities than one and is 'nearer to real safe use of language. Lim7 (1968) conducted extensive research into the problem of interference from L2, a part of which concerned picture Test versus Translation Test. Lim Kiat Boey sums up the result of this research as follows: .....Other things being equal, a method of practice that makes use of translation to convey the meaning of a sentence seems to be more advantageous than practice with pictures as referential support. The former method doesnt result in a significantly higher amount of inter lingual interference and at the same time facilitates translating from the first to the second language. Further analysis confirms the view that practicing with pictures for meaning tends to produce a more practice-bound or specific skill than practising with translation." G, V. Taylor8 (1972) while supporting the raises an interesting question regarding use of translation

the motives that -

may have prompted opposition to the use of translation initially. He remarks "Opposition to the use of translation in Overseas English teaching was not always a policy with the purest of motives. Who were the first English teachers in all these areas ? A'most Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. How used translation any to learn languages way which in ? the always it was a team of native English speakers from Britain, the U. S. A. many of them could have What incentive was there for them climate of those days conferred

no particular benefits ?"" We believe, then, that* the guilt so many teachers feel when using translation is an irrational fear, stemming from a

66

misunderstanding of the concept of translation and of its proper function in a language-teaching situation." Elsewhere in the same article Mr. Taylaor states the principles, which according to him should be observed in using translation. These are as follows: 'Principle I is, that the teacher's translation is to being preferred to the pupil's .... what's bad about translation IN /J- is really the 'word for word' method. Now the teacher fusing situational methods is hereby warned not to translate single words. However, if he 'gives the sense' by trans- flatting a whole sentence, the pupils will have no time basis. Principle II is, therefore, teachers who use translation should translate at utterance level. Never use bits and pieces to assist the learners, or they will themselves tend to associate at the singleword level. Principle III is that any use of translation invovles a decision about when to u ? it. It is presumably obvious to most teachers that (a) ah translation into the learner's mother tongue must be given after the new linguistic material has been presented and (b) in many cases it will not be required. We are not, then, advocating the indiscriminate use of translation by teachers of English. We are saving^ use it when communication breaks down; even early in the course, if it appears at the right moment a relation to the perplexity of the learners. Don't ask pupils to do it overtly themselves. Finally, keep all translation at utterance level. or incentive to match the individual words but will be learning their new language on a broad conceptual

67

(2) Among those who support the use of translation under certain conditions and at certain levels of teaching are Jcspersen, Allen, Ryao, arts and P. D Stevens. Jespersen9 (1904) is of the view that translation fought to be used sparingly and at all events it Is not necessary to translate whole connected pieces, but merely a word, or, at the very most, a sentence now and then. Jespersen maintains that translation encourages perfunctory attention to the forms of L2, hence he argues hat it must be kept to a minimum in teaching a foreign language. Alien10 (l948} while generally disapproving of translation maintains that L2, could be used in drilling certain structures Ryam11 (I960) maintains that it has a place the main termed, ate-course and that it has the merit of highlighting the -more subtle differences in thought patterns between speakers of different languages." F.G.A.M. Aarts
12

(1968) is of the view that one of the most

important factors to be taken into account in an inquiry into the use of translation as a means of instruction is the level of proficiency that has been attained. He is of the view that translation at the secondary school level should be done away with but that at the university level it can be a most useful teaching tool. P.D. Strevens83 (1964) AGRUES THAT TO FACE A PUPIL AT AN EARLY STAGE With an ungraded mixture of problems in grammar, lexis and orthography is pedagogically unsound: translation is an exercise which entails and indeed entangles all these levels. The use of isolated sentences lacking any linguistic or situational context, other

68

than the artificial situation of the translation exercise, renders the translation process meaning less an linguistic activity and lends to a concentration of formal equivalence at the expense of contextual equivalence. No attention is paid to appropriateness of register, since there is no clue to what use of language is involved by which such appropriateness can be judged. Translation is in fact, an extremely complicated and difficult task. It difficult task, It is far from being the simple, obvious exercise it is some times described to be. In its usual form it is appropriate more in the advanced stages of a university I special degree course, when literary and historical styles j are being studied than to the early stages of acquiring I practical skills in a foreign language."' Finally Catford84, an authority on this subject, states,

''translation is not a dangerous technique in itself I provided its nature is understood and its use is carefully controlled, and translation is in itself a valuable skill to me imparted to students. (3) Among those who disapprove of translation are,

Getenby, Cartridge, and Brooks, Gatehby15 C1948) concludes his the Class Boom with these words "What should be avoided at all costs if the pupils are to make progress in hearing and oral or written. learning one is so speaking, is translation as an exercise, Why use two languages when the time allowed for short? Translation is a deceptive process in that, article, Transla- I Hon in,

being laborious it/persuades teacher and pupil that a great deal has been accomplished. Unfortunately such work is all but useless. in translation may give meaning. But it does not teach. It perpetuates the time-wasting habit of always associating the new language

69

with the my and it actually hinders full comprehension, As a skill, the proper time for practicing it is when an equal command of both languages has been obtained.3" Cart ledge (1953) regards translation as one of the hardest language exercises and

completely disapproves of teaching a foreign language by means of translation, "It is the end, not the means of the study of a foreign language/'; Brooks17 -1964) regards translation as "The most serious of all false objectives . . . He too permits -translation only when a certain proficiency has been attained. Speaking about foreign language learners in the IX S. A., whose mother tongue is English, Brooks lays down the following rules : (a) The learner "must not speak English, (b) he must not learn lists of English-foreign equivalents and (c) he must not translate from the foreign language into English.1 In the Indian context today where English is L3 and where the teacher's command of the English language shoctitt1y poor we cannot do without translation. Conditions are so bad that to stop translation would virtually can to stop teaching English. A survey of EnglishLanguage teachings techniques employed in standards 5, 6 and 7 in 350 out to some 5,000 urban schools, conducted by the State Institute of English, Maaharashtra, revealed hat most of them used translation freely. It may be safe assumed that in rural schools it is nothing but that. The survey also revealed/mat not even five per cent of the tea hers used a dictionary. Our hope then lies in minimising general use and adopting it in a sane and consistent inner so that objectives of teaching English are not lost of. We need to evolve a suitable methodology with insulation as a vita' component, to ensure that L3 observes are achieved. Dodsons approach and Div Shastri's18 experiment may help evolve such a methodology suited the

70

Indian needs. Meanwh- ile it is no can put it to some practical uses.

use

spurning ans!ation 5 if we

Translation is in-two directions: from source langue to target language and vice veria. Both these kinds of anslation could be exploited for mother language teaching and sting. Of the two kinds of translation it is the latter, viz., insulation from English into the tongue that is. Translation into the dominant language is target language, The naturally easier than translation Into the

second kind of translation,- vlz,7 translation from English in -to the mother tongue^ may be used explaining voca1 bleary items which have equivalents or near-equivalents in the mother tongue. Where the semantic area regional covered by the two words m English and the example, to
:

language,, say, Marathl, are almost Identical it saves

time to translate besides ensuring, comprehension. For have near equivalence in meaning etc. are fetranslaifon. That may be called semantic 'fits' language and these can be translated. may be contextual constraints on the word tooth But

wed day by cardinal and ordinal numbers,, content words which I amenable exist Ira |

However,- an item; may range of its use. For

have a corresponding equivalent m the source language i but there instance,, the word face' has an equivalent in Marathi so has the where-English uses face5 Marathi may prefer -mouth5. The sentence, ''Wash your face ean only he rendered into Mara-this as Wash your mouth, A lot of care needs to be exercised in selecting, items for translation and their use in sentences. Computers face a similar problem, They deal only with things of an unequivocal- nature. Although they have been able to churn out understandable translations of straightforward technical materials they are facing problems with languages like. Japanese,

71

Bustard, Head; of the U, S. Air Forces Machine Translation office In Ohio-remarked recently, "'I-see no future in using Japanese for machine translation. Japanese is too complicated. Translation of course has its limitations. Since language is 'culture-bound3 there would be difficulties in-translating, certain items. A-number of words expressive of native culture, idioms (including prepositional idioms) certain special turns of phrases, fixed be formulas etc, will always present difficulties. These cannot translated literally. Where translation fails description,

explanation and graphic representation may be necessary. There is always a large dark area, in foreign language learning which the learner explores rather haltingly. If translation can illuminate a part of this area there is no reason why it should not be exploited in teaching a foreign language. Translation from target language into source language rnav be used for testing passive vocabulary and the knowledgenot the active useof L2 structures of the learner. A vocabulary item which can easily be recalled by the leerier and used freely may be called 'active'. A vocabulary item whose meaning is known to the learnercontext may also help him here-------may be said to be 'passive.' A word like 'picture' for instance, would be a part of the 'active' vocabulary of Std. XI student, while 'image' may be a part of his passive', vocabulary. If a Marathi student can give appropriate equivalents of 'picture' and 'image', as respectively, he has known them adequately. Appropriate or near-appropriate equivalents exist for some items any way in the core vocabulary of languages. The teacher has to discover them and use them wisely.

72

Understanding of structuresnot their active use-could be tested by means of translation from L2 to L'. It the learner can correctly translate a sentence like, 'It's time 1 went home', into Marathi, he has known it, although "he may not be able to use it in sentences of his own. While corresponding vocabulary items would be easy to come by, corresponding structures may be comparatively few. The basic sentence pattern in English viz., S. V. O. dose not correspond with the basic Marathi sentence. pattern S. O. V. Where structures are concerned translation The other kind of translation viz., from source language

into target language can be used for testing active vocabulary and the production of active structures. The student may be asked to translate words from Marathi into English for which near-equivalents may exist. If he can translate words like for and correctly and also translation can be used. A sentence like Unless the tense marker use them freely he has learnt them actively. Similarly to test active use of English structures can only be rendered as 'When he comes I will go tense marker in the subordinate translation, Reviewing Esptein's findings, Vifdomec observes,, in this context, "Although in certain circumstances the direct method is preferable to indirect methods, there are also factors in favour of the indirect method of language study. Some foreign words are more satisfactorily and rapidly explained by translation than by any trick of the Gouin or Berlitz methods. In large classes with poor discipline, factors not mentioned by Epstein will sometimes force the teacher to use a modified direct or even an indirect method-------Experiments quoted by Braunshausen seem to show that where clause and future

student ! knows that unlike in Marathi, English requires the present in the principal clause he will not be able to make a good

73

mere reading ability is the aim of study, the indirect method is superior, although a carefully graded reader may help to limit translating-----What ever the method of study, it is rare for a multilingual subject to master two or more than two languages equally well." A method which integrates translation and yet does not ignore other skills completely may suit the Indian situation. Dodson's bilingual method with suitable modifications may be tried. Dodson's20 experiments show "that it is more efficient and less burdensome to the learner if the initial sentence-meaning is conveyed through the mother tongue and if the learner is helped to retain this meaning during his active response processes by means of visual ards. The airms of this method are: 1. To make the pupil fluent and accurate in the spoken word. 2. To make the pupil fluent and accurate in the written word. 3. To prepare the pupil in such a manner that he can achieve true bilingualism. Dodson claims that this method which uses translation initially has succeeded with his students. The method however, exacts care and attention and requires extremely competent teachers.

74

RESEARCH PROBLEM
Communication Skills Laboratory (GE1352), a course for

undergraduate engineering and technology students studying at colleges affiliated to the Anna University, Chennai, India was introduced in November 2006. The main objective of the course is to develop students' communication skills and prepare them for placement / campus recruitment. As it was observed that many students have speech anxiety, at the start of the course, the personal report of communication apprehension (PRCA-24) instrument (McCroskey, 1982) was used among a sample of 120 students at the Jeppiaar Engineering College, Chennai to measure their communication apprehension (CA) and speaking tests were administered to the same students to assess their speaking skills. The analysis of the PRCA scores and the results of the speaking tests revealed that majority of the students have high communication apprehension and around 60 per cent of them lack communication skills. Only if effective measures are taken to help students overcome communication apprehension, it is possible to develop their communication skills in an effective manner. Based on this assumption, certain measures were taken to help students reduce their CA. This paper discusses the results of PRCA-24 and speaking tests, lists the suggestions given by the students themselves to overcome their CA and explains the steps taken to help students overcome their CA and thus develop their communication skills. Tags: communication apprehension, communication skills, speaking anxiety, speaking skills Research Problem

75

Introduction In the Indian context, an engineering student's success in the oncampus recruitment is mainly based on their demonstration of communication skills. According to NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Services Company) president Karnik, only 25 percent of technical graduates are suitable for employment in the outsourcing industry because of their lack of abilities to speak or write well in English. (Karnik, 2007 as cited in P'Ray an 2008:1). Most students are not 'industry ready' because they lack communication skills. (Infosys, 2008). Around ten engineering colleges out of about three hundred such colleges in the state of Tamil Nadu in India have a good placement record. Most of the final year undergraduate students of these colleges are recruited by reputed IT and core-engineering companies. In some of these colleges more than 90 per cent of the students are placed and recruiters attribute the success of the students to their ability to communicate well and think clearly. The on-campus recruitment process consists of three or four stages: 1) aptitude test, 2) technical interview, 3) group discussion, and 4) HR interview. knowledge, unsuccessful During the four stages the candidates' critical Those technical thinking, educational analytical, candidates verbal are reasoning, out.

communication and group skills are assessed and at each stage the filtered institutions which impart employability skills in their students are successful in getting most of their students placed in top companies. In many engineering colleges communication skills trainers have been employed on full-time basis to train their students.

76

Aviv (2007) in her article 'Don't be shy' states "Because speaking well is often crucial to getting a job and to sounding educated nearly half of American colleges and universities require a public speaking or communications course, according to the National Communication Association." The urgent need to improve technical students' communication skills has been emphasized by educationists as well as employers. Narayanan, vice chairman of Cognizant Technology Solutions and chairman of the NASSCOM, in an interview (Warrier 2007) answered a question regarding the talent demand and supply gap and the role of the NASSCOM to help the industry bridge the gap: "The current situation is that, in terms of availability of talent, the numbers are good. The problem lies in the suitability of people. The industry has moved forward rapidly and technology also has changed but the educational institutions and the curriculum have not changed that rapidly. So, we have to bridge the gap by providing additional training to the people who are coming out of colleges so that they are industry-ready." Stating the importance of setting up finishing schools, Narayanan suggested the specific areas where training has to be given to those who are admitted to finishing schools. According to him, communication and soft skills and ability to learn on their own and work in teams are very important for those who join the industry. These are the broad guidelines given to the finishing schools. (Warrier, 2007). His statement implies that the teachers of English at professional colleges should undergo paradigm shift and cease to be mere teachers of grammar and structure; they are expected to play the role of communication and soft skills trainers.

77

The first-year Engineering English course has not been effective as students are not trained in listening and speaking skills and their final examinations assess only their reading and writing skills. In this context, it was decided that students should be trained in the skills which recruiters look for in undergraduate engineering students who prepare for on-campus recruitment. Based on the assumption that if students are helped to overcome their communication apprehension first, they will be able to develop their communication skills better and efforts taken by trainers to develop students' employability skills will be more effective. The following section discusses the background to the study. Background Jeppiaar Engineering College, Chennai, is one of the leading engineering colleges in Tamil Nadu. The students admitted to various engineering departments are from Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu. All the students do not have the same level of proficiency in English. Those students who are from Chennai have better communication skills than those who are from rural areas. Most students are highly motivated and have earnest desire to improve their abilities to communicate well. This has been proved by their joining the Business English Certificate (BEC) courses voluntarily and taking the tests. The major concern of the pre-final year students is to develop their communication skills and get placed in reputed companies. The department of English has been given the responsibility of developing the students' communication skills. The question that we constantly ask is whether we should teach English as a subject and prepare students for examinations or we should teach it as a life skill and prepare them to the workplace.

78

Communication Skills Laboratory (GE1352), a compulsory course for engineering and technology students studying at colleges affiliated to the Anna University, Tamil Nadu, was introduced in November 2006. It is offered to all third-year students. The main objective of the course is to develop students' communication skills and prepare them for placement/campus recruitment. The researcher has had the opportunity of teaching the Communication Skills Laboratory course for eight different groups of students. The components of the course are oral presentation, group discussion, interviews and computer-assisted English language learning. At the end of the course students are tested in group discussion and oral presentation and the students' performance is assessed by external examiners. As the main objective is to develop students' employability skills, the need for teaching the course as life skills arose. Over the past decade increasing attention has been focused on the importance of communication skills for engineering students in India but not on the problem of communication apprehension (CA) in them and approaches for reducing CA. Teachers of English have a responsibility to help their students in overcoming their fears about communicating and to assist students in developing more positive perceptions of communication activities. Miller (1984) says that our classes should produce students who are more confident about reaching out symbolically to others, rather than withdrawing from them. It is important to diagnose a patient's illness before prescribing medicine to him/her. Teachers often complain that students have communication problems. What do they mean when they say that their students have communication problems? Do they mean that students lack speaking skills or they are reticent or they are shy or

79

they lack certain skills to communicate effectively? Or do they mean that students do not have adequate language proficiency? Students too share their woes and aspirations. "I'm not comfortable facing the audience." "I'm scared of taking part in group discussions." "I don't feel at home when I meet strangers." "Sir, please don't ask me to propose vote of thanks. I can't do that. I'm very nervous." The fact is that most students have communication apprehension and that acts as a hurdle for them to communicate freely and effectively. Teachers who are not aware of the implications of the root causes of communication anxiety in their students have just one solution to the problem and that is communication skills training which is common to all. One size doesn't fit all. It is just like prescribing paracetamol (acetaminophen) tablets to any patient who has a headache without actually diagnosing the patient's root causes of the sickness. For this study, two classes of students of engineering (Information Technology) were taken as samples. Each class had 66 students and the total number of students was 132. The following section answers how the students' CA was measured, how their speaking skill was assessed and what measures were taken to help students overcome their CA. Communication Apprehension (CA) Originally McCroskey (1970) viewed CA as a multi-based anxiety linked to oral communication. Later, he redefined the construct to include more than an oral communication component. McCroskey (1982) denotes CA as "an individual's level of fear or anxiety

80

associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons. A simple definition of CA is anxiety or fear of communicating in different situations. According to Berger, McCroskey & Baldwin (1984), it is "the way a person feels about communication, not how they communicate". The fear or anxiety could be due to any of the following reasons: lack of proficiency in the target language, lack of practice, insecurity or any pre-programmed thought pattern. Even those who have high level of proficiency in a language can experience CA. Some people may be good at communicating through writing but they may have problems speaking in front of an audience. Some may be good at interpersonal communication, but may not feel comfortable making presentations and vice versa. Fear of speaking in public has been shown to be very common. According to Wilder (1999), these fears take one of five forms: i) career terror, ii) perfectionism, iii) panic, iv) avoidance and v) trauma. Wilder defines the five fears as follows: career terror is "rooted in the awful feeling that your job, your career, your future is on the line every time you step before a group, enter a meeting, or pick up the telephone". Perfectionism paralyzes the speaker when they demand of themselves that each speech or presentation be perfect. Panic is the combination of unreasonable expectations with fear of failure and real physical symptoms. Avoidance "is a selfsabotage that virtually guarantees anxiety, fear, and diminished performance". Trauma is fear rooted in a long history of being told you're not good enough. In order to assess the communication apprehension of students of engineering, a sample of 120 students of engineering was asked to complete the personal report of communication apprehension

81

(PRCA-24) (McCroskey, 1982). "The PRCA is the most commonly employed measure of CA in research involving this construct. It has a variety of forms, all of which correlate among themselves about 0.90." (Berger, McCroskey & Baldwin, 1984). This instrument is composed of twenty-four statements concerning feelings about communicating with others. It is used to assess the respondent's communication apprehension in the following four areas: i) group discussion, ii) meetings, iii) interpersonal communication and iv) public speaking. The students were required to indicate the degree to which each statement applied to them by marking whether they: strongly disagreed = 1; disagreed = 2; were neutral = 3; agreed = 4; strongly agreed = 5. See Appendix 1. The overall PRCA scores can vary from 24 to 120. Those who have scored less than 50 have low communication apprehension and those who have scored above 70 have high communication apprehension. Analysis of PRCA-24 Figure 1 shows the overall communication apprehension of the 120 students who completed the PRCA-24 questionnaire. The mean value of communication apprehension among them was 68.98. The highest was 97 and the lowest 34. The standard deviation was 14.27. Figure 3 shows the mean value of the students' communication apprehension in four areas: group discussion, meetings, interpersonal communication and public speaking. This is how the scores in each area are interpreted. Those who have scored less than 12.5 have low level of communication

82

apprehension in the particular area and those who have scored above 17.5 have high level of communication apprehension. The chart indicates that the mean value of communication apprehension in public speaking is the highest among the four sections. It is an indication that students need more training in public speaking (oral presentation) skills. A study by Wallechinsky (1977) illustrated that 41% of respondents listed public speaking as their greatest fear while only 19% of respondents' number one fear was dying. Analysis of students' communication apprehension in group discussion The following items are part of PRCA-24 and this part is related to the area of group discussion. The students were asked to indicate the degree to which each statement applied to them by marking whether they: strongly disagreed = 1; disagreed = 2; were neutral = 3; agreed = 4; strongly agreed = 5. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. I dislike participating in group discussions. Generally, I am comfortable while participating in group discussions. I am tense and nervous while participating in group discussions. I like to get involved in group discussions. Engaging in group discussion with new people makes me tense and nervous. I am calm and relaxed while participating in group discussions.

83

The analysis of the results showed that 23.3 percent of students had low CA and 39.2 percent had medium level of apprehension and 37.5 percent had high CA apprehension in the area of group discussion. The pictorial representation is shown in figure 4. Analysis meetings The following six items are related to the area of meetings. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Generally, I am nervous when I have to participate in a Usually, I am comfortable when I have to participate in a meeting. I am very calm and relaxed when I am called upon to express an opinion at a meeting. I am afraid to express myself at meetings. Communicating at meetings usually makes me uncomfortable. I am very relaxed when answering questions at a meeting. of students' communication apprehension in

meeting.

The analysis of the results showed that only 6.6 percent of students had low CA and 37.5 percent had medium CA and 55.8 percent had high level of apprehension in the area of meetings. Figure 5 is the pictorial representation of the details. Analysis meetings The following six items are related to the area of interpersonal communication. 1. I While participating in a conversation with a new acquaintance, feel very nervous. . of students' communication apprehension in

84

2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

I have no fear of speaking up in conversations. Ordinarily I am very tense and nervous in conversations. Ordinarily I am very calm and relaxed in conversations. While conversing with a new acquaintance, I feel very relaxed. I'm afraid to speak up in conversations.

The analysis of the results showed that 17.7 percent of students had low 1 communication apprehension and 32.5 percent had medium level of CA and 50 percent had high level of apprehension in the area of interpersonal communication. The pictorial representation is shown in figure 5. Analysis of students' communication apprehension in public speaking Given below are the six items related to public speaking (presentation). 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. I have no fear of giving a speech. Certain parts of my body feel very tense and rigid while giving a speech. I feel relaxed while giving a speech. My thoughts become confused and jumbled when I am giving a speech. I face the prospect of giving a speech with confidence. While giving a speech, I get so nervous I forget facts I really know. The analysis of the results showed that 13 students (10.83 %) had low level of communication apprehension in public speaking. Twenty-eight students (23.3 %) had medium level of CA and 79 students (65.83%) had high level of apprehension in public speaking. Given below is the pictorial representation (Fig.7) Diagnostic test in speaking

85

In order to compare the students' PRCA-24 scores in the area of public speaking with their actual performance, the students were given a diagnostic test in speaking at the beginning of the course. They were asked to give a short talk on a general topic for three minutes and were awarded marks based on the following criteria: confidence topics were level, given effective to communication, just a appropriate before body their language, comfort in handling questions and self-assessment. The students minute presentation. The students were also asked at the end of their presentations how they felt before and while giving their oral presentations.

86

Analysis of the diagnostic test scores Sixty percent of the students scored less than 50 per cent and they attributed their poor performance to lack of exposure and practice. Forty percent of the students said that it was their first experience to speak in front of an audience. The mean value of communication apprehension in public speaking (18.62) was the highest of the mean values of apprehension in other areas: group discussion, meetings and interpersonal communication. It was found that in most cases both the students' personal report of communication apprehension in public speaking and their performance in the diagnostic speaking test matched. Overcoming communication apprehension As Berger, et al. (1984) state that CA is conceptualized as a cognitively experienced phenomenon which may or may not have observable behavioral manifestations in a given case, it was not easy to find out students' CA while they were making presentations, enacting certain roles during role-play exercises and taking part in group discussions. The authors further state that CA is seen as having serious behavioral implications and people with high CA are more likely to avoid or withdraw from communicative contact when that option is available. According to them, it is important to distinguish communication apprehension from the constructs of reticence and shyness. "Reticence is concerned with people who are ineffective

communicators because they lack adequate communication skills. Shyness is seen as the tendency to talk ' less than the norm, which may result from high CA, reticence, or other causal factors. People with high CA may be reticent and/or shy. However, many people

87

who are reticent and/or shy do not experience high C A." (Berger et al, 1984) Is it possible to ease the anxiety of highly apprehensive speakers? Some people argue that communication apprehension problem is one of nature and not nurture. Those who have overcome their speech anxiety assert that it is possible to fight communication apprehension. Communication apprehension is purely psychological and it is possible to reduce one's CA if one really wants to overcome it. Role of English language teachers In the age of globalization, English language teachers are expected to play different roles: diagnosticians, counselors, communication skills consultants and soft skills trainers. As diagnosticians they diagnose the communication problems of learners and as communication skills consultants they devise strategies to develop individual learner's communication skills and as soft skills trainers they train the target group and empower them. As it is true that a student who has high CA in one area, for example, group discussion, may not have high CA in public speaking or any other area, it is important to identify the areas in which a particular learner has high CA and the training should be focused in that particular area and training should be individualized. Measures taken to overcome CA It was felt necessary to help learners overcome their communication apprehension and it was done in three stages: i) Group sharing, ii) One-to-one sessions, and iii) Learner-centred training.

88

i) Sharing in groups During the first stage the whole class was divided into eight groups and each group had 7-8 members. The students were asked to share their communication anxiety or problems with regard to making presentations or speaking in front of an audience and how they tried to overcome them. Then a member from each group was asked to summarize the major problems discussed and list the suggestions given to overcome speech anxiety. Each group was given a set of five questions to discuss. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Are you comfortable with the results of PRCA-24? Are you ready to accept that you have communication apprehension (CA)? What are your communication problems? Have you ever tried to overcome your CA? What are your suggestions to help students overcome their communication anxiety? As most of the students were highly motivated and were interested in overcoming their CA and develop their communication skills, they actively took part in the discussion and shared their personal communication problems with their groups and suggested solutions to overcome CA. P'Rayan (2008:2) lists their suggestions in an article entitled "Fighting Communication Apprehension" as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Be aware of your communication apprehension. Accept that you have fear and anxiety when you are asked to speak in front of an audience. Remember that speech anxiety is a natural emotion. List all your fears and find out where they come from. Take steps to enhance your confidence level.

89

6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.

Think positively. Develop 'I'm OK and You are OK' attitude. Learn from your friends. Don't compare yourself with others. Remember that you are different from others. Prepare ahead for presentation. Have an outline plan of your presentation. Structure your presentation: introduction, body and

conclusion. Get guidance from friends and teachers. Before delivering your speech discuss what you are going to speak with your friends. Use visual aids during your presentation. Take steps to improve your English. Don't memorize your presentation. Practise your presentation in small groups. Visualize your presentation. Know your audience. Write down two or three questions your audience might ask you. Share your communication problems with your teacher. The teacher should identify the areas in which students have communication individualized. Sharing one's language or communication problems with persons known to them helps learners in many ways. They can gain confidence, learn useful tips from their peers, develop speaking skills and gets help to overcome their communication anxiety. Most students said that group sharing sessions were therapeutic and useful. ii) One-to-one meeting with the teacher problems and training should be

90

Based on the students' suggestions (points 21 and 22), students were encouraged to discuss their communication problems with the teacher. At this stage, each student's individual score in the areas of PRCA-24 was analysed. About 60 percent of the students had a oneto-one meeting with the teacher and shared their personal communication anxiety and sought help to overcome them. These counseling sessions helped the teacher assess the students' abilities to communicate effectively in different situations. During this stage, the teacher played the role of a counselor. The students who had 11 meetings with the teacher found the counseling sessions very useful and said the sessions helped them overcome their CA to some extent. iii) Individualized training It was decided that based on the students' CA scores in four different areas and their 1-1 sharing, with the teacher training in group discussion, meetings, interpersonal communication and public speaking (giving presentations) should be individualized and thus learner-centred. To facilitate the process, the students were grouped as follows: a) b) c) d) Those who have high CA in GD Those who have high CA in meetings Those who have high CA in interpersonal Those who have high CA in public speaking

Due to time constraints, students were trained only in group discussion and public speaking. The students with high CA were motivated and given opportunities to actively participate in group discussions and speak on informal topics in front of the class. The outcome was very positive and encouraging.

91

Conclusion It has been discussed in the paper that it is essential to get students' personal report of their communication apprehension and measures should be taken to help students overcome CA. The three stages involved in helping students fight their CA have been found effective. The details of the research are discussed in another paper. This approach demands a lot from the teacher. The English language teacher is not just a teacher of grammar and sentence structure; he/she is expected to play an active role as a diagnostician, trainer. References Aviv, R. (2007). Don't be shy. Retrieved 30 January 2008 from http://www.nytimes.eom/2007/l l/04/education/edlife/reticence.html? fta=y&pagewanted =all Berger, McCroskey & Baldwin (1984). Reducing Communication Apprehension: Is there a Better Way? American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 48, Spring (1984) www.jamesmccroskey.com/publications/117.pdf Karnik (2007) Retrieved from http://www.networkworld.com/news/2006/060806-nasscom-iobscreening.html Infoys (2007), Retrieved from http://campusconnect.infosys.com/login.aspx Miller, R. (1984). Some (moderately) apprehensive thoughts on avoiding communication. In Avoiding communication: Shyness, Retrieved from counselor, communication specialist, soft skills

92

reticence

and

communication

apprehension.

Daly,

J.

A.

&

McCroskey, J. C. (Eds). London: Sage Publications. Pg.237-246. P'Rayan, A. (2008:1) Assessing Communication Apprehension, Education Express, The New Indian Express, 11 Aug. p.2. P'Rayan, A. (2008: 2) Overcoming Communication Apprehension, Education Express, The New Indian Express, 18 Aug. p.2. Wallechinsky, D., Wallace, D. & Wallace, H. {\911).The book of lists. New York: Bantam Books. Warrier, S. (2007). Retrieved from http://www.rediff.com/monev/2007/iun/04interl.htm Wilder, L. (1999). 7 steps to fearless speaking. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Appendix 1 Personal Report of Communication Apprehension The PRCA-24 is the instrument which is most widely used to measure communication apprehension. This instrument is composed of twenty-four statements concerning feelings about communicating with others. Please indicate the degree to which each statement applies to you by marking whether you:

93

Strongly Disagree = 1; Disagree = 2; are Neutral = 3; Agree = 4; Strongly Agree = 5

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Statement I dislike participating in group discussions. Generally, I am comfortable while participating Score in group

discussions. I am tense and nervous while participating in group discussions I like to get involved in group discussions. Engaging in a group discussion with new people makes me tense and nervous. I am calm and relaxed while participating in group discussions. Generally, I am nervous when I have to participate in a meeting. Usually, I am comfortable when I have to participate in a meeting. I am very calm and relaxed when I am called upon to express an opinion at a meeting. I am afraid to express myself at meetings. Communicating at meetings usually makes me uncomfortable. I am very relaxed when answering questions at a meeting. While participating in a conversation with a new acquaintance, I feel very nervous. I have no fear of speaking up in conversations. Ordinarily I am very tense and nervous in conversations. Ordinarily I am very calm and relaxed in conversations. While conversing with a new acquaintance, I feel very relaxed. I'm afraid to speak up in conversations. I have no fear of giving a speech. Certain parts of my body feel very tense and rigid while giving a speech. I feel relaxed while giving a speech. My thoughts become confused and jumbled when I am giving a speech. I face the prospect of giving a speech with confidence. While giving a speech, I get so nervous I forget facts I really know.

94

SCORING: Group discussion: 18 - (scores for items 2, 4, & 6) + (scores for items 1,3, & 5) Meetings: 18 - (scores for items 8, 9, & 12) + (scores for items 7, 10, & 11) Interpersonal: 18 - (scores for items 14, 16, & 17) + (scores for items 13, 15, & 18) Public Speaking: 18 - (scores for items 19, 2 ], & 23) + (scores for items 20, 22, &24) To obtain your total score for the PRCA, simply add your sub-scores together.

95

Appendix 2 ANALYSIS OF 120 STUDENTS' COMMUNICATION APPREHENSION

S.No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 GD 12 15 11 16 11 9 17 17 15 19 8 20 12 18 13 11 9 9 12 11 15 11 20 15 9 15 13 22 16 16 13 13 19 18 13 9 18 13 17 19 23 20 23 21 Meetings 14 13 11 14 18 11 18 22 21 13 16 22 18 17 13 13 9 13 13 17 14 11 17 25 11 14 15 15 20 23 14 18 16 23 14 14 19 20 13 23 24 13 22 21 Interersonal 16 18 14 18 13 11 14 23 19 21 19 15 22 16 15 11 11 13 14 12 16 12 25 21 10 14 14 17 18 25 12 10 24 19 18 8 15 14 20 22 23 18 25 23 PS 18 '18 11 19 19 17 15 15 18 21 19 20 21 14 17 11 12 12 10 21 14 11 18 18 9 16 16 13 18 23 12 18 25 23 18 15 16 25 14 15 24 18 23 21 PRCA 60 64 47 67 61 48 64 77 73 74 62 77 73 65 52 46 41 47 49 61 59 45 80 79 39 59 58 67 72 87 49 59 79 83 63 46 68 72 64 79 94 69 93 86

96

45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96

8 6 10 20 22 21 14 17 20 22 19 13 22 19 10 19 10 18 19 13 20 16 24 17 21 15 14 10 15 11 10 21 13 19 14 23 15 18 19 18 16 16 24 13 13 17 16 12 17 15 15 19

16 12 10 23 14 15 16 20 22 21 22 19 25 19 15 25 13 20 16 15 17 20 22 23 23 18 24 16 20 19 14 26 13 27 15 20 25 31 17 21 18 27 20 19 17 20 18 16 18 18 18 20

18 10 12 23 16 18 14 18 18 22 10 18 22 15 15 16 5 18 18 13 14 18 19 21 20 15 11 13 12 14 14 22 20 18 14 20 19 21 20 9 23 24 22 14 12 17 19 15 23 17 19 13

20 6 14 24 19 18 .17 18 25 22 18 18 28 19 20 25 12 17 22 18 14 26 24 20 23 12 22 17 21 16 15 22 21 18 8 29 18 26 19 27 27 23 25 16 19 25 19 18 16 18 20 24

62 34 46 70 71 72 61 73 85 87 69 T 68 97 72 50 85 40 73 75 59 65 80 89 81 87 60 71 56 68 60 53 91 67 82 51 92 77 96 75 75 84 90 91 62 61 79 72 61 74 68 72 76

97

97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 Mean SD High Low

8 9 20 15 16 10 15 17 17 23 20 23 21 21 17 10 20 13 13 17 18 12 21 19 15.86 4.28 24 6

19 13 23 18 14 16 17 13 18 21 20 20 21 19 21 18 18 17 10 19 19 17 22 21 18.05 4.18 31 9

12 9 25 14 16 10 14 19 18 21 18 22 20 16 20 19 20 13 8 15 15 20 27 18 16.81 4.41 27 5

14 12 24 16 14 13 18 24 18 21 24 22 21 19 18 20 22 20 13 20 15 20 23 23 18.62 4.52 29 6

53 43 92 63 . 60 49 64 73 71 86 82 87 83 75 76 67 80 63 44 71 67 69 93 81 68.98 14.27 97 34

98

CHAPTER 5 AUDIOVISUAL AIDS IN TEACHING ENGLISH

99

Audio visual aids may be described as aids that facilitate the understanding of the written and the spoken? word in a teaching/learning situation. Known as A. V. aids-these cover visual aids, audio aids and audio-visual aids. Visual aids pertain to the sense of sight, audio aids to the sense of hearing and audio-visual aids to both the sense of hearing and1 the sense of sight. According to Hilga 94% of knowledge comes to us through the sense of sight and the sense of hearing. Of this 83% comes through the sense of sight alone and the remaining 11 % through the sense of hearing. This claim is said to be rather on the tall side. However, experts are-agreed that about 85% of knowledge comes to us through these two senses. There is a moral here for teachers'. The two senses, particularly the sense of sights could foe exploited to advantage in teaching. In India, however, a highly verbal approach has been characteristic of teaching both language and non-language subjects. Such an approach is fraught with verbalism, Verbalism is the use of words which are not clearly-understood by the learner. A definition of a word like guillotine" as "machine for beheading with a heavy blade sliding in grooves dropped from a height" is an instance in point. An illustration would help to comprehend the meaning promptly where no amount of verbalism is likely to succeed. Good dictionaries and textbooks often provide illustrations for ready comprehension. The danger of verbalism becomes all the greater in a situation where both the of instruction target language and the language

100

happen to be other than

the

mother tongue.

In

India,

Sanskrit was taught for a long time through the

medium of English

even at school level, a situation which considerably increased the risk of verbalism. The learner found both Sanskrit and English difficult, since both, in a sense, v/ere target languages, the learner having to learn both the languages at school. Unlike the kept guessing at textthe books of today I the Sanskrit textbooks contained no illustrations of any I kind. teacher English aids in a The happiness learner often meaning of the Sanskrit word rendered in English by his erudite

Thus, which asked what the Sanskrit verb if e5" meant word 'wallow' meant the answer invariably was Visual would have greatly

the pupil invariably answered, 'wallow', and when asked what the situation like this, where the use of the mother tongue

was spurned for non-academic reasons, helped the learner.

Visual Aids in a situation like this, where the use of the mother tongue was spurned for non-academic reasons, would have greatly helped the learner.

Visual Aids.
Visual aids are as old as the hills. Leters of alphabets must have been intended originally as visual airds. The history of the letter O may be cited as an example. Its first appearance seems to have been in the Phoenician alphabet as a slightly irregular circle. It was supposed to represent an eye, and was called Ayin, the Phoenician word for eye. In the Greek alphabet, as we now have it; there are two characters for this letter , great O (Omega) and little o (Omicron o), but originally there was only ancient inscriptions were due to the difficulty of inscribing a circle in stone. (The

101

Pictured Encyclopaedia edited by Harold F.B. Wheeler: Vol. VI, Indian Edition, Page. 2657). The Chinese script has retained a large pictographic element. Thus there must have been a very thin line between the Visual and the Verbal to start with, in most letters of the alphabets the world over. In course of time the visual element gradually receded to the second position and letters became conventionalized. Visual aids fall into three broad divisions: the first covers still materials like pictures, Hash cards and the-blackboard. The second covers materials like the magnetic board, clock model and rotating charts which display movement. The third covers moving materials like the film. Their number is infinite. As Pit Corde says, Anything which can be seen while language is being spokes may be a visual aid, They are of such diverse nature and of snobs complexity that a systematic classification? seems difficult. T. L. Green,, however, has attempted a simple classification which is as follows : 1. Reality and Experience Real thingies: Specimens slides etc. m nature and museums. Direct experience. "School visits and expeditions. Infect experience ; dramatic reconstruction 2. Pictorial Materials Representational work. 'copies7 likenesses original work by artist,, pupil or teacher on black board; reproductions, monochrome colour lithographic, etc. photographic material S. Graphic Materials (vicarious)

102

Diagnostic: charts,,

Pictograph, graphs

picture Symbolic

graph, :

picture

map

etc., :

Diagrammatic scales,

diagrams, black boards textbook, wall sheets,, maps. Stereographic

Stereograms to give illusion of soli 4. Plastic Materials (three dimensional ) Models: representational, working, non- working; scale models ; sectional or cut-away models ; low relief : chip carving, moulded surfaces ; relief : contour models. 5. optically Projected Still pictures : episcopic diascopic: standard lantern, film-strip, micro-projector. Moving pictures: 16mm film- silent - sound; black and white- colour. (8 mm and 9,5mm polarizers. Moving pictures- anaglyphs and polarizers. Not all these aids are easily available nor are they all necessary in an every - day teaching situation. The most useful and easily available are; real objects, the blackboard, the flannel board, pictures, flash cards, wall sheets, charts and maps. The pity is some of these easily available aids are not exploited fully in teaching. Real Things: The ordinary classroom is full of real things like tables, doors, windows, walls, boys and girls etc. for There is no point in bringing pictures of these things teaching. Pictures, however are often used in amateur noncommercial pictures - anaglyphs and SH production.) Stereo-projection: Still lantern, miniature

103

realistic, do not give the the indefinite

feel of real things. For teaching the use of

article fan', for instance, an apple or an egg could

be brought into the class but in the case of an elephant or an ant the teacher obviously has to bring pictures of them. Pictures should normally be used when real things are either difficult to handle or not readily available.

Boards:
There are at least three kinds of boards which may be used in teaching. These are (i) the blackboard, (ii) the flannel/khadi board and (iii) the magnetic board. The blackboard is used for stationary representation, the flannel/ khadi board for quick creation of a situation, and the magnetic board for mobile display. Of these the first two are easily available and frequently used in teaching. The last is not usually seen in ordinary class-rooms. We had, therefore, better discuss the uses to which the first two could be put.

The Blackboard:
Blackboards are of two kinds: (i) the fixed blackboard and (ii) the roll-up blackboard. The fixed blackboard,,, also known as the chalkboard, is a common sight. However, not all blackboards are maintained properly. They are often too small for the class, are positioned awkwardly and their surface is not smooth enough to facilitate writing with ease. A small blackboard is not useful for doing sustained work of any kind. Its central position at the back of the teacher's seat with a lectern or a table in front often hinders the pupil's vievy. The 'mobile' teacher who loves to flit about on the dais may distract the view of the pupils intent on copying what is written on the blackboard. Perhaps, the proper place for the blackboard is towards the right a littie distance away from the teacher's seat which is in the centre. When the teacher wants to explain a point he

104

ought to stand on one side so that the pupils have a full view of what is written. Standing centrally before the black-board will hinder the pupils7 view. The teacher's writing must be large and bold enough to be seen easily by the black-bencher. The virtues of the blackboard are many. It helps a 'shift of focus' from the teacher to itself (the blackboard), thus providing an additional focus of interest. The teacher is often the only focus of interest it in the class and this is likely to prove monotonous. The but text-book, of course, provides an additional focus of interest

is not half as interesting as the blackboard. On the

blackboard

things can be made to grow item by item. This helps sustain interest. There is a certain degree of unpredictability about what is going to come next on the blac-bbard. This stimulates and sustains interest. (In thetext-book, you know what is going to come next since it is already there in the book.) For instance, the teacher, say, writes the first two letters of the word 'knot on the blackboard like this, kn-, looks around and asks what letter he is going to write next. The pupils may answer writes 'o', again looks 'e' as in 'knee' for instance. Then he round and asks what letter he is going to

write next. The puplis may respond saying 'w' since ''know' is a frequenter word than 'knot'.The teacher completes the word by writing '"C This element of unpredictability for sustaining the pupils' interest. The blackboard also helps in delaying the appearance of the written word which is as it ought to be. Oral practice must precede writing. The adjustment of the time element between oral practice and writing is easily facilitated by the blackboard. This time element cannot be so adjusted where the text-book is concerned. In the case of the text-book the act of' seeing' (comprehension) and the act of' saying' (speaking) are almost simultaneous. Understanding avid can be exploited

105

speaking, particularly where children are concerned, are nearsimultaneous activities. Perhaps the greatest of all the virtues of the blackboard is

that it is completely under the control of the teacher. The content, the manner of presentation and the time element can be controlled and adjusted by the teacher. In the case of other visual aids like pictures, for instance, the content and the manner of presentation are predetermined. No modification or erasure is possible. In the case of the blackboard partial modification, complete erasure or redrawing is not only possible but easy. No time, no expense are involved. Yet another virtue of the blackboard is that blackboard work can easily be integrated with class work. Some of the visual aids like the film, for instance, seem to fall apart from class work, They seem to obtrude rather rudely into the business of teaching and dictate their own terms. While the film is showing the teacher becomes a mute spectator, In the case of the blackboard the teacher can turn to it as often as he wants without disrupting class work. Most visual aids seem demanding, not so the gentle and versatile blackboard. Its maintenance is easy and inexpensive. It has remarkable longevity and it can brave any weather. It is for these reasons that it is aptly described as "the cheapest and the most versatile of visual aids. The blackboard can be used for a variety of teaching items : tenses,, degrees, spelling, guided composition, picture composition and several others. Indeed, there is hardly any item which cannot be taught with the help of the blackboard. Its potential is infinite. An

106

imaginative teacher with a touch of the artist in him can play wonders with it. The roll - up blackboard shares most of these virtues but is not as effective as the fixed blackboard. It has necessarily to be small in sizebig size roll - up black-boards are available in plenty-if it has to be carried from place to place. Its surface does not make for ease in writing since it is not firm. Erasure may leave faint marks and smudges rendering rewriting unclear. However, it is a great time saver. If elaborate pictures are needed these could be pre-drawn, similarly questions could be prewritten on the roll-up blackboard to save class time. The roll-up blackboard is better regarded as an ancillary to the fixed blackboard and not as a substitute for it. The flannel-board or flannelgraph The flannel-board, also known as flannel-graph, consists of a loosely woven rough piece of cloth, stuck on any hard surface, on which paper cut-outs backed with sand paper can stick easily. They come off equally easily when they need to be taken off or rearranged. Cloth cutouts too stick easily. Khadi may be used with equal ease, the basic principle being that
i(

rough sticks to rough,"

The cut-outs can be displayed on the flannel in any manner the teacher may choose, thus enabling him to create a variety of situations with ease. The flannel-board can be used for dramatizing stories as well as for teaching structural items. It can be used for teaching picture composition too. There is a certain dramatic quality about the flannel-board which makes it a very Interesting teaching aid. The flannel-board is generally of the size of 4 feet by 3 feet. Gare has to be taken to see that its surface remains flat. It is also necesary to ensure that the requisite number of cut-outs are ready

107

at hand arranged in proper sequence for quick display. The cut-outs must have a stiff paper base so that they farm and last long, Pictures : Pictures are two-dimensional visual materials which con be used to lend concreteness to a situation where verbal description is found to be inadequate. Pictures do not have a three-dimensional reality although the artist may strive to give such a'feel'by 'drawing m perspective/ It is the beholder who translates them into threedimensional reality. Pictures of various sizes representing- a variety of scenes and situations can easily be collected from illustrated magazines,, pamphlets, calendars, brochures etc. Such material was not available in plenty a quarter century ago. Thanks to advances in printing technology illustrated material of various kinds is readily available today. The teacher should collect the right kind of pictures from these sources arid build up a pool for ready use. The pictures so collected need to be sorted out and arranged in sequence to suit the purpose the teacher has in mind. If an extended piece of composition is what the teacher has in mind a series of pictures report senting the development of the theme could be theme cold be connected - Gaps in the sequence, if any may be filled in by the teacher. For developing a paragraph one single large picture representing a few actions should suffice. A crowded; picture with minute details is better avoided. In selecting pictorial materials we shouM be guided by the following considerations: remain straight and

108

i) The

pictorial materials should be as large as possible.

ii) These should be clear and drawn bold outline:

iii) Their colour should be deep and intense.

iv) They should be easily visible from the back of the class.

v) 'They should be directly objectives.

relevant

to

the

specti teaching

109

Films: Although films interest pupils they have certain in limitations. These limitations are of two kinds (i) intrinsic and (ii) extrinsic. Intrinsic limitations arid from the fact, that they cannot be easily integrated with class-work, While walk and talk can go together film and talk cannot -go well together. The teach? cannot intervene to explain or to comment which the film is showing. Another inherent limitation of the films is that they are generally standardized and connect for adapted to suit local needs and conditions, (iii) The extrinsic limitations are: (a) They are rather expensive Ordinary schools and colleges cannot afford to buy their They need projecting equipment and the services of technician, (b) One film is not enough. A film libra needs to be built up. All these are generally beyond tl resources of most schools and colleges. Films de not make particularly good teaching ai since language practice cannot be integrated with the learner is exposed to a vast amount of language, materials within a short period of ten minutes which the normal duration of 16mm 400-feet reel. In language learning, practice is essential after an item has been presented. Similarly correction on the spot is equally necessary when the learner goes wrong. Films do not facilitate the adoption of such a procedure. Of the two kinds of films, silent and sound5 It is 'the silent film that gives the teacher a change to ma] comments while the film is showing. The 'sound' film does not give any such chance to the teacher. The sour does quality of 16mm film projector is not very good epithet For these reasons some teachers prefer the silent the 'sound' film. film to

110

Other disadvantages of the film are that the teacher has no control over the content and manner of presentation. They take away a large chunk of time and seem rather obtrusive. The inefficient teacher may regard it as an end in itself rather than as an aid do teaching. Notwithstanding all these limitations it cannot be denied that films have a directness of appeal and that pupils love to see them. If the material is properly selected and presented and if the films are used as teaching aids they should serve the needs of teaching Film Loop: In order to get over one of the difficulties inherent m the films, viz:, continuous presentation without time for student practice, Dr. I. A. Richards invented what is; called the film loop "loop film. It makes use of an endless loop Instead of the usual two spools. Such a loop facilitates repetition of the same item. Its cost is low and its projector is compact. It is also easier to operate than the 16mm film projector. Film straps: Filmstrips are more useful for teaching language [teres than regular films. They could be made for discrete units f language teaching materials.- Long strips are undesired l)Je since the learner is likely to be overwhelmed by an excess of language learning materials, In most advanced countries lake the II. K. and the U. S. A. filmstrips are made by teachers themselves keeping, in view their practical needs. When these are made by teachers themselves they are likely to be more useful than standardized filmstrips. The content and manner of presentation could easily be made to suit the needs of the learner. Short film-strips could easily be integrated with class work.

111

The filmstrip projector is small and handy. It enables the teacher to stop at any stage and comment on the situation. Billows who used the filmstrip effectively in teaching English remarks, I have been able to use comprehensibly in accompaniment to a filmstrip language which is far beyond the normal range or comprehension of the class and get an effective response. One can use the continuous present tense for what one is showing, the general present tense for generalizations from that, the future tense for what may be expected to be seen in the next frame and the past tense for what has been seen in previous frames and one can turn back to see whether we have remembered correctly." The visual aids like the audio aids provide ample exposure to language experience. If prepared by experts who have some knowledge of local conditions they are likely to be more useful than those prepared commercially or by teachers who lack the necessary expertise. We now turn to audio aids and assess the contribution they can make in the teaching of a foreign language. Audio Aids : Audio aids include : (i) gramophone (ii) tape recorder (iii) radio and (iv) language laboratory. The sound film, discussed earlier and television are audio-visual aids, not pure audio aids, Audio aids are useful in that they lend permanence to speech which by its very nature is transient. It is here and now, that is, it is bound by place and time. The audio aids help us in overcoming these limitations of place and time. In learning to speak a language perception precedes production. Ample exposure to good spoken language is therefore the first step in learning to speak a language. The audio aids provide:

112

(i) (ii) (iii) (iv)

Ample exposure to spoken language Improved quality of language experience A wide variety of spoken English Better organized spoken materials

(i) Ample exposure to spoken Language : It is said that God has given us two ears and one \ tongue that we may listen twice as much as we speak. The audio aids provide us with increased quantity of language experience, which if imbibed carefully, may help us in producing good speech. The teaching time for English is being severely curtailed today with the consequence that the learner is exposed to a limited amount of spoken language experience and that too of a very poor quality. The audio aids provide unlimited quantity of good spoken English which may compensate for this deficiency. (ii) Improved quality of language experience: The average teacher's spoken English is of a shockingly indifferent quality. The learner is exposed all the time he is in the class to downright bad English. The learner's only chance of redeeming it is by listening to a good model of spoken English provided by the audio aids. These provide spoken English of excellent quality which hopefully may improve the quality of the learner's spoken English. (iii) A wide variety of spoken vices: In the class the pupil has no alternative except to listen

to the voice of the teacher. This may become monotonous and boring. The audio aids provide varied fare. A range of voices

113

representing the two sexes of different age groups drawn from different walks of life can be heard with the help of audio aids. This makes for variety and interest.

114

(iv) Better organized spoken English materials. The audio aids provide better organized courses. Materials suited to the needs of various kinds of consumers could be designed and are in fact available. Spoken English for beginners, for tourists, for advanced students etc. can be designed to meet the varying needs of a large number of consumers. Our needs are increasingly going, to be of an institutional kind. The audio aids are best suited Ito meet these needs. Some of the important audio aids are as follows : The Gramophone : For a country like India the gramophone is a blessing. It is inexpensive, easy to maintain and operate and it provides first rate materials. Billows rightly observes: "The gramophone is and will remain for many years the most convenient, portable and cheap mechanical device for bringing the authentic sound of a native speaker of the language into the most remote class-room. " The gramophone is so cheap that almost any school can buy it. Unlike the film it can be stopped at any stage and replayed. The facility for repetition which it provides is one of its great virtues. Where no electricity is available battery operated gramophone is good enough for small groups of pupils. The disadvantages of the gramophone are that it cannot record the learner's voice for purposes of comparison, a facility which the tape-recorder offers. Its content and manner of presentation cannot also be controlled by the teacher, Standardized and commercially produced records may not meet local needs. Records suited to local needs can be made at university centers. However, very few universities in India have the equipment to

115

manufacture such records. Meanwhile the only alternative is to use records produced by the B.B. C. or B. I. E. T. These are excellent. However, they may not always suit local conditions. Tne tape -recorder : The tape-recorder has all the advantages of the gramophone recorder and has, in addition, the advantage which comes from self criticism. On the tape the teacher's voice and the student's voice can be recorded to facilitate comparison between the two. Comparison makes self criticism possible and this may lead to self improvement. The tape-recorder provides the necessary * and this is its greatest virtue. It was during the Second World War that the tape-recorder came to be used extensively for teaching foreign languages; particularly in the U. S. A. Since then it has almost become an indispensable aid. The language laboratory is a later development based essentially on the same-principle. It has some minor disadvantages : it requires electricity although battery-operated tape-recorders are by no means bad. High fidelity tape-recorders are expensive. Compared with the gramophone the operation and maintenance of the tape-recorder are difficult and expensive. The Radio: One of the striking advantages of the radio over the virtues of the radio. In this context the role played by the B. B. G. in language teaching is most striking The B. B. C. has been described as " the largest language-teaching enterprise in the world ". The B. B. C. began to broadcast its English lessons in 1943. These became so popular that even the U. S. S. R. responded to them warmly. These
e

feedback

116

lessons are purely academic, that is, they are absolutely devoid of propaganda and have been received well all the world over. The B. B. C. records, English by Radio, are sold along with the text in at least forty-five countries of the world. The Language Laboratory : The language laboratory is now about three decades old. It was in 1947 that the Louisiana State University in the U. S. A. set up a rudimentary type of language laboratory. Its creation was the result of experiments in language teaching made during the Second World War. By 1950 a Bout hundred colleges and other educational institutions had language laboratory facilities. The Material Defense1 Education Act (NDEA) 1958, gave a fillip to the installation of language laboratories in schools and other institutions by providing them with necessary financial assistance. In the U. K. the first language laboratory came into operation as late as the year 1961. A mobile language laboratory was on display during that year at the University of Leeds. By 1965 however, more than three hundred schools and educational institutions had language laboratory facilities. In India the language laboratory made its appearance sometime in the mid sixties. Even today the language laboratory facilities are not easily available. In Maharashtra, for instance, outside the metropolitan city of Bombay where there are a couple of language laboratories, only Poona (Pune) and Ahmednager can boast of these facilities. The Bharat Electronics Ltd., Bangalore, have developed an entirely indigenous language laboratory in cooperation with the National Council of Educational Research and Training. It is available in seven configurations depending on the

117

degree of sophistication required. However, these laboratories are being installed rather tardily. Language laboratories are of five types ranging from the simplest to the most complex. These are as follows : Hi) Audio Passive (AP) In this type of language laboratory the student is provided with a headset with the help of which he is able to listen to the teacher speaking into the microphone or listen to the taperecorder or to the gramophone. The student can receive the lesson and repeat it. However, his oral responses cannot be checked by the teacher unless he is standing by the student's booth. This is the simplest type of language laboratory and the most inexpensive. It helps concentration on materials received through the headset. The headset keeps off extraneous noise thus helping concentration. The disadvantage is that the student's responses cannot be checked by the teacher. ii ) Audio Active ( AA ) In this type of laboratory the student can listen to the lesson and repeat the same into the microphone which is inset in the microphone itself. This is fed back to the headphones to facilitate comparison. This type of language laboratory has a certain advantage over the AP type inasmuch as the student can listen to his voice and compare it with that of the teacher's. iii ) Audio Active Comparative (AAC) In this type of language laboratory the student can listen to the lesson, repeat it in the microphone and record his own response on the tape provided in the booth. He can play back the tape at a later stage and compare his response with that of his teacher's and effect improvement. iv ) Audio Active Comparative with Control ( AACC }

118

In this type of language laboratory in addition to the facilities provided by the AAC type the student's response can be controlled by the teacher from the console. The teacher can monitor the student individually and if correct him without disturbing others. The AACC language laboratory is the most useful since it makes it possible to teach each student at his
M

own pace. When the

teacher wants to address the entire 1 group of students he can do so by stopping all the students recorders. He can speak to any individual by stopping his recorder or to a group by stopping there orders of ail its members. The AACC language laboratory is costly and complex in its mechanism. Its operation and maintenance require the services of a technician. For its effective functioning air-conditioned room is generally desirable. All this makes language laboratory facilities forbidding in terms of cost and maintenance. It is therefore necessary to exploit the facilities, when they come to exist,, to the best advantage of the learner. Commercially produced software may not always suit local needs. The teacher himself must learn to prepare the necessary software. This involves expertise which i* provided by institutes like the NCERT and the CIIL. The language laboratory facilities do the following things: 1. 2. Provide for active simultaneous participation of all students an a class in listening and listening-speaking practice. Provide a variety of native speakers' voices as models to follow,

119

3.

Provide for individual differences through guided practice in individualized group, small group, or individual study with facilities for student self-instruction and selfhis own learning rate.

situations 4.

evaluation at repetitive 5.

Free the teacher from the tedious task of presents ting drill material, thus allowing him to per-I form a dual role simultaneously. Afford the teacher an opportunity and convenient facilities for evaluating and correcting the performance of individual students without interrupting the work of others.

6.

Provide intimate contact with the language, equal hearing conditions for all students, and facilities for simultaneous grouping of different activities through the use of headphones.

7. and 8.

Provide a reassuring sense of privacy^ reduce distractions encourage concentration through the use of headphones and partitions. Provide facilities for group testing of the skills. listening and

speaking

The language laboratory facilities can easily be misused or not used at all. Reports from some parts of the country language indicate that these facilities are not being properlp utilized. While some of the laboratories have been starving for want of proper software others have become mere status symbols. Unless the language laboratory practice is properly integrated with our academic programme there is every danger of the language laboratory becoming a mere show piece. Audio- Visual Aids Voix et images de France : This is an audio-visual course consisting of thirty lessons for teaching French. It uses still pictures and the tape-recorder. Thus

120

the voice and the image are synchronized to make an effective audio-visual aid. A still picture Is first projected and is immediately followed by a voice from the tape-recorder describing the object or event. Its great long a time as advantage is is that it can be stopped for as

necessary. The learner can be given enough

time to practice the linguistic item.* The course has become very popular with adult beginners. Television: Television with its simultaneous appeal to the sense of sight and the sense of hearing is the most effective and the most sophisticated audio-visual aid available to-day. Described as " the queen of audio-visual aids " it is used for educational purposes in more than one hundred countries to day Japan was the first to start teaching-English by T. V. T.V. combines a number of aids for teaching English-tapes, models, films, charts, maps,- diagrams and several others. All these go to make the T. V. lesson lively and useful. Writing a T. V. lesson, however, is not easy. It requires a special technique for which training is necessary, A T. V. lesson is very expensive. However,-if the coverage is large the per head expenses could be substantially reduced. It is owning to its cost mostly that T.V. lessons failed in Poland and Spain. In France 12% investment is reported to have given 6% return. Like the radio the T.V. too needs co-ordination with the school programme: the lessons must be based on the school syllabus and must be linked with what is actually done in the class. Unless it fits

121

into the total teaching programme the T.V. lesson is likely to prove of very little value.

CHAPTER 5 DEVELOPING LISTENING SKILLS

122

CHAPTER 5 Developing listening Skills The first of the objectives of teaching English is listening to English and understanding it. It is the skill to be taught to and learnt by learners of any language. All of us learnt our mother tongue first by listening to it as babies. Babies listen to others speaking their language all the time when they are awake. This means, to help our students to acquire the skill of listening to English and understanding it, the teacher should speak in English. That is he should expose the students the students to a lot of Spoken English in the class room. This implies that listening and speaking go together. There cannot be listening without any one speaking. When some one speaks, those around him listen. In our teaching context, listening is not mere use of the ears but using the brain to understand what has been listened to. Therefore listening has been termed as a knowledge guided process. It involves active cognitive processing of the spoken form of the language. This process covers the grouping of sounds, the grouping of words, the stress and the intonation etc. used by the speaker. This processing of the information that reaches the listeners ears is done during the pauses in the speech. That is why we sometimes fail to under stand a speech if the speaker speaks too fast without pauses at the appropriate places. By sub skills we mean the students competences written in behavioral terms. They are students we make the students understand the meaning of words. We make them to follow commands, directions given orally. We interpret elementary information patterns. They will understand questions. They should understand simple narrations and descriptions to help students acquire these skills, teachers should ensure that students understand what has been uttered by speaker. They realize the need for listening to English in the classroom attentively. We train the students to speak English words only after listening to those words intensively. They should listen to good English. They will enjoy listening to them. They understand what they say through the techniques used, namely teaching aids, gestures, students, activities, black board drawings etc. They are not laughed at or made fun of when they make errors in any manner. Towards this objective, teachers

123

can follow some techniques. Some of them described here. They must not forget that if students acquire the listening skill properly they will find the learning of other language skills fairly easy. One more thing that the teachers should do is to brush up their English usage, improve their pronunciation and provide a good model of Spoken English to their students, perhaps the easiest way for the teacher to teach students listening skill is through rhymes. Besides providing enjoyment to the young learners, rhymes help the teacher to expose students to the sounds of English Language that are basic to learn it. Rhymes are also sources of learning English Speech rhythm. Some rhymes are action rhymes which are recited with actions. The teacher should to get students to act while reciting rhymes. The actions also help students understand what the rhyme is about. They are an excellent introduction to poems to be studied in later years. One more class room activity that is useful to teach listening skills in narrating simple short stories. Stories provide students practice in listening. All teachers will agree that this is the most enjoyable way of giving students listening practice. Some suggestions on how to make the best use of the stories to develop students listening abilities are shown here. We rehearse the students narrating the story at home before we go to the class room. Teacher should read the story aloud for a few minutes as often as we can. We read naturally and slowly at a normal story telling speed. To make the story intelligible to the students, we should use proper facial expressions, gestures, mime etc. we may also change the tone of your voice wherever necessary. Our reading should look dramatic. All these will make children listen attentively and the story becomes intelligible as well as interesting. Let students listen to the story with their books closed. They may not fully understand the story because some words may be new to them. You need not worry about these problems at this stage on the third or fourth day, let the students look at the pictures of the story and listen to you. We may tell students the meaning of some words in the story. But we should not translate sentences. We do not use the stories for any other kind of language practice. They are meant for exposing students to spoken English and developing listening skills. We do not ask any questions on the events of the history, we may use them to lead a simple discussion of the story. We should accept simple answers. In the later classes, different types of tasks are made use of, to confirm listening and comprehension. For example, in classes, students are trained to make notes while listening to passages. What they do in classes is only a small but important steps towards

124

acquiring the higher and most useful skills. It is imperative on the par of the lecturer that we should say the words with correct pronunciation and stress. While teaching sentences he should say some sentences, let them first say it altogether when every one in the class is saying the sentence, the teacher can detect from which part of class same utterances are ahead. Then ask groups of students to say it. Finally we ask the slow learners to say it. We dont ask the individual students to stand and say in the very beginning. We shall waste our time. If they are not yet ready to speak. When the students say the sentences correctly, they understand that they have listened to the language item properly. We can also provide students with listening practice using taped material through a cassette player. All India radio lessons broadcast regularly. Those may be arranged for the Listening practice in the class rooms. Listening games also provide listening practice, but they can be used only after the students have acquired the skill during a certain period of time. Language games are meant for consolidating the language skills already acquired. Speaking is, perhaps, the most important skill to acquire while learning a language, more so in the case of the first language, the mother tongue. If any one asks you how you have learnt your native language, you may not give a satisfactory answer. We may say that we have learnt it from our parents, our siblings and others around us. Speaking a second language can also be learnt in a similar manner but with a more conscious effort. The trainers role is very crucial, of course, because in most colleges, he is the only person who speaks English and teaches it as a second language. One French man said, Speech is the ground work, all the rest are built up from it. The view is supported by Champion who said, The first duty of the lecturer of English is to teach students to speak English. Thompson and Wyatt suggested the method to teach correct pronunciation to the students. They said, To acquire correct pronunciation, prolonged practice is listening to speech sounds is needed. Champion also said that we should teach our students to speak English as a native speaker does. Even in England there are different varities of English spoken different parts of the country. How ever, one variety of English largely spoken by the educated people of southern England is considered as the Standard and it is called the Received Pronunciation (R.P). Although teachers are expected to teach RP to their students, they fail to achieve the objective for some genuine reasons. They were not trained to use R.P. The pronunciation they have picked up has been adequate to communicate with others. The word enough said

125

as R.P or differently as is understood. The students do not take any terminal test or the annual examinations in spoken English and therefore, teachers neglect this aspect of teaching English. To improve the students English pronunciation, the teachers own pronunciation must be correct as per R.P or GIE. The starting point is learning the phonetic symbols for the English sounds. The International Phonetic Association devised an alphabet called the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). Each letter of the English alphabet or a symbol stands for one English sound. English Pronouncing Dictionary by Daniel Jones and other good dictionaries make use of these IPA symbols. Unless the teacher learn these symbols he cannot look up the words in a dictionary and learn their correct pronunciation and stress. We cannot produce any sound unless air from the wind pipe attached to our lungs passes out through the mouth or nose. The first of our speech organs, the lungs act as bellows to send out air through the wind pipe and the vocal chords. Then the air passes by the pharynx and comes out either through the mouth or nose. If the air should come out through the mouth, the uvula rises up and closes the nasal cavity. If the air should come out through the nose, the lips close and the uvula comes down.

126

Chapter 6 DEVELOPING SPEAKING SKILLS

127

CHAPTER III Developing Speaking Skills While dealing with the oral approach to the teaching of English as a second language, it was mentioned that language is primarily meant for speech. That is, a very large number of languages in the world are only spoken and they dont have scripts to communicate through writing. Even among those who use a language that has a script, like Hindi, a majority of them use the spoken form for communication. We speak when we want to express our feelings or when we want to obtain some information. Every one of us is aware that we learnt our language by speaking it first. All the ELT experts believe that speech is important for the practical use of English. Learning through speech is the natural way of learning a language. It is easier to handle for practicing the language learnt by Listening carefully. Speech is a good introduction to the other language skills. Though the lecturer can ensure more economical use of class time for learning the four language skills. Listening and Speaking are taught and learnt it quick succession. The trainer introduces the language item structural words patterns and vocabulary items, orally in meaningful situations. Students listen and understand. The teacher trainees are advised to read situationalisation. Oral presentation of the language items by the lecturer is followed by speaking by the students. The following activities should form an important part of the teachers work in each class. We should encourage students to speak as early as possible. We do not wait till we teach them practically a number of sentences for practice. We encourage them to speak right from the first day. We should not hesitate even if students simply repeat what he says. And allow them speak correctly with whatever English they have. The teacher of English should use suitable teaching aids while introducing the teaching items orally. Charts are one of the teaching aids used by teacher to stimulate oral interaction between the students and the teachers. The trainer points to the part of the picture on the chart students come out with sentences relevant to the part of the picture. On the chart, for example by using the chart containing the picture of a bakery, the teacher can stimulate speech. The model sentence is He wants to buy some bread he points to biscuits, students will say He

128

wants to buy some biscuits and so on. Charts may also be used to develop oral compositions which may later be written by students at home. Now and then the teacher of English makes use of what are called verbal situations. Teacher has to encourage students to narrate their experiences in simple sentences. He says in a few sentences what has happened to him. He arrives at the sentence containing the structural item. The teacher trainees are advised the study the book titled the teaching structural words and sentence patterns by A.H.Hornby which contains verbal situations. Let us look at the verbal situation suggested here. We should give repetitions and then put questions to the class. Verb the sequence by using names of towns cities in our state known to the students. Audio / Video cassettes require the multimedia equipment. If such equipment is available, the trainer can use them for giving the students some speech practice through repetition of what they listen to on the tape/cassette. The teacher trainees are advised to refer to the section concerned from beginner to advanced levels in the teaching aids. Narrating stories is also a useful class room technique. The students may be asked to read a short story and narrate it one sentence. If any one makes a mistake the other students or the teacher may correct him and elicit the right sentence. Similarly students may be asked to narrate jokes they have read in Magazines, news papers, - The Hindu and the Deccan Chronicle publish a children section page every Saturday and Monday respectively and students may be encouraged to read that section to take up such narration in the class. The teacher himself may start narrating some interesting items printed in news papers / magazines to kindle interest among his students. The teacher can use these teaching aids to teach some difficult sounds to his students. Minimal pairs are pairs of words differing by one single sound. Practice drills are also called oral drills. The teacher trainees are advised to read English conversation practice by Mark Taylor. It will be of an asset to teacher in improving their students speaking skills in learning Standard English.

129

Chapter 7 Developing Reading and Writing Skills

130

CHAPTER 7 Developing Reading and Writing Skills Reading is one of the best skills of learning a language accurately. By all counts it is the most important skill for our students who learn English as a second language. In the mother tongue, reading is a source of enjoyment to average and above average students. Because of non availability of books at colleges or outside, most of their reading is limited to their course books only. It is generally accepted that students who are good at reading the mother tongue are good at reading English too. The teacher of English will do well to request the first language teacher to improve the reading skill among the students. According to Michael west The bilingual child does not so much need to speak his second language but rather to read it. He also said that acquiring reading skills is easier than acquiring speaking skills. Most of the teachers of English are an eloquent testimony to this. For a detailed discussion on the reading skills to be imparted to our students, the teacher trainee is requested to study the objective of teaching English. For a variety of reasons, it is essential that the habit of reading should be developed among our students from the very beginning. In the initial stages it is reading aloud. We want to make sure that our students read with correct pronunciation. The early reading material usually consists of phrases such as an ant, a ball a cat etc. If a person changes the written word into the spoken form and stops there, he is not reading it. This happens when we read the title of a Hindi movie written in English on a wall poster. We only give the sound to the symbol. The reader must go a step further and pickup the meaning or the sense of the word and this is called the 3s in the process of reading. When students learn to read silently they drop 1s namely the sound H.A. Cart Ledge says, of the four skills of learning English the one which is likely to be the most useful reading. The story method tries to make reading interesting. In this a short story/ an anecdote / a joke in not more than five to six sentences is presented children have a natural liking for reading stories/jokes. A series of pictures will motivate students to read. It begins with a narration of the story / joke by the teacher. He writes the sentences on the black board. Then the students are helped to read all the sentences. Reading aloud also helps the students to improve

131

their reading skills. This is also called oral reading and taught by the teacher in the early stages, say during the first six to seven moths of teaching English. Reading aloud trains students to link the written printed symbol (S1) with the spoken word (S2) together with the meaning (S3). Reading aloud improves students pronunciation and gives them confidence to speak English also. Reading silently is the most important skill a learner of any language should acquire because very few around us read aloud. Reading aloud eats up ones energy and time. Reading aloud may not result in effective comprehension. Reading aloud in public places is not allowed. Reading aloud is usually slow. Although we have accepted without any doubt that our students must acquire the skill of silent reading there are further ways of reading silently skipping, skimming, scanning etc. In skipping the reader reads the matter leaving out the unimportant when you read the score card, if you want to know how many runs, your favorite bats man has made, you skip the runs scored by the earlier batsman printed above his name. This type of reading need not be fast. In skimming, the reader reads the whole passage rapidly to get the gist of the passage. The reader is very conscious of the information he wants. While reading a report of a murder, the reader is interested in the name of a person murdered, the time of the crime, the loss of property if any, the arrest of any culprits, etc. In scanning, we generally scan lists of names. We look up the contents page, index of a book, and scan it to find out on which page a certain topic is found for further reading. In silent reading, there may be two types depending on what you are reading passage. For reading the passage in the reader for different purposes is called intensive reading. Reading passages in the class room gives enjoyment, expansion of vocabulary, information etc. is called extensive reading. Intensive reading is primarily for thorough comprehension. Reading should be mainly silent. So the teacher should ensure comprehension of the passage and practice of structures, vocabulary items and phrases / idioms. We teach English to help students to acquire the ability of reading, writing, speaking and understanding Spoken English. The text is an aid to achieve the objective. We teach English, but not stories using the contents of the text book. A text book contains example of structural items used in passages of suitable length. Topics and different literary forms like narration, dialogue, story etc. vocabulary items used in the same passage notes on grammatical usage. Exercises for oral and written practice. Composition exercises, suggestions for teaching. All the contents of text

132

book should be made use of by the teacher. We should ensure that students recognize and understand the advanced language items introduced in each lesson /unit. We train them to practice the use of new items through speech, reading and writing. We revise the use of items through speech, reading and writing. We make them read silently at a reasonable speed with good comprehension. We train them to read silently and write reasonably well within the scope of the class syllabus. Class room procedures are very important for a successful teacher in teaching field. We present new language items found in each part of lesson / unit giving students oral and written practice. Let students read silently. We must ask comprehension questions and drill the answer when necessary. We consolidate the use of language items. Get the students to guess or inner meanings of some words from the context. Let them loop up some words in a dictionary to develop reference / study skills. Let students read the passage again. The lecturer should remember that the language items for though practice are those needed for active use and practice of English by students. Those dealt with during or after the reading are meant for passive recognition or understanding. We can organize extensive reading systematically if there is a library in the college, with books published especially for this purpose. A list of such books may be found in one of the appendices towards the end every book. Those books should be categorized according to the age group of students and issued to them periodically. The library should also have reference books for the teachers. Books under this category are 1) Books on English Language Teaching. 2) Books on English Usage. 3) Books on English Pronunciation. While a dictionary explains words, an encyclopedia explains facts. But in most cases the library books are not issued to students for different reasons. One of them is the absence of a full-time librarian. In such cases we can organize class libraries in order to create a healthy academic competition. The teacher should display on the class notice board the names of the best readers. He may also check why some students are not able to catch up with those ahead of them. If there are genuine reasons, he should give them proper guidance. Some students madly find the books rather difficult. The teacher can give them books that are less difficult and encourage them to read. To promote reading habit among students, the teacher himself should be a voracious reader and he should often tell his students a number of interesting things in the class. He may read in any language but should narrate in English. We do not generally find many teachers doing this.

133

Developing Writing Skills: In learning any language, writing is not as important as the other skills, namely listening to it with understanding, speaking it and reading it with understanding. As users of language we need the writing skills only on a less number of occasions. But our students are expected to let us know their learning English through writing only especially at the time of tests and examinations. Hence we should teach them how to write English. Here we can recall Bacons words writing makes an exact man. By the time we start teaching English writing skill our students know how to write English effectively, they have already learnt the mechanics of writing. Mahatma Gandhi has said, bad hand writing is a sign of imperfect education. Therefore, the teachers of English should help students to acquire good hand writing. Good Hand Writing is recognized by legibility means easy to read for all and simplicity means each letter should be written in its simplest form without any un necessary stokes or loops. Uniformity in size of a letter written any where must be of the same size approximately. Distinctiveness each letter should have a clear form, that is one letter should not be mistaken for another. The letters in words and words in sentences should not be too close and the students should have space between words in a sentence. Speed, students should be able to develop good hand writing and at the same time they should be helped to write at a reasonable speed. Some educationists studied why students fail to acquire good hand writing. They arrived at the following reasons for bad hand writing. Sentences are not parallel to the top and bottom edges of the paper. The student has not placed the paper in the right position. Letters and words are not clearly visible. The pencil has become too small to hold properly. Dots and dashes are not at the right places the students write too fast or the teacher also with those errors. Capital and small letters are written students needs more practice with words that contain the capital and small forms of each such letter. Most of languages are syllabic which means they are written as they are spoken and they are read as they are written. But the English language is not like that. There is not one to one correspondence between its spoken form and the written form. There are silent letters in

134

words. The five letters a,e,i,o,u individually and in combination stands for 20 sounds. The 21 consonants stands for 24 sounds. Students cannot guess the spelling of words correctly. They may have to learn it by conscious effort with the help and guidance of their teacher. It is said, not to speak clearly, not to write legibly, and not to spell correctly are marks of discourtesy. Learners of the English language, adults or students learn spelling in different methods. It is accomplished by making use of one or more of three parts of the body, eyes, ears and hand. By looking at words in point or in charts again and again, one can learn the correct spelling, or by constantly listening to the spelling said by the teacher or the classmates one can remember the spelling of words. Finally by writing the words with correct spelling in isolation or in sentences the learners pick up and remember the spelling of words. The technique followed is visual auditory motor learning of spelling to achieve anything we should have proper planning. during the stage of planning, we should have a clear cut idea of why we should do something at every step. As teachers of English, we should be clear about why we do something, in the name of teaching, in our class rooms. That is, we should remember the objectives or aims of teaching by us. The objectives of teaching English should be clearly understood by every teacher of English. So that he takes up relevant activities in the class room that are in consonance with the objective. We should help our students enjoy the learning of English. We should help them to listen to and understand English spoken by you. We should help them to speak English with us and their classmates. We train them in reading and understanding written English. We should help them to write English. We must develop study skills in our students. We make them to read understand and enjoy short stories in English. We help them to learn the elements of the English language such as sounds, words / phrases, their spelling, sentence structure etc. The teachers of English should teach in such a manner that students achieve these objectives without fail. You have long term aims and short term aims. The short term aims are called general objectives or goals. We enhance the ability to understand spoken English. Learners competencies have to be developed. The students understand the meaning of words, phrases, sentences in contexts. They understand elementary intonation patterns. They understand simple statements, questions and commands, they understand the simple narrations and descriptions. Context specifications

135

are also suggested conversations in the classroom, dialogues, stories, descriptions etc in the books prescribed. We make them to produce English speech sounds correctly. We use appropriate word-stress, sentences stress and elementary intimation patterns. They select a language appropriate to the context. Conventional greetings, answers to questions, dialogues, role plays, reading aloud of reader passages etc. These steps to be taken to improve the ability to speak English proficiently. We make the students to read phrases, develop desirable silent reading habits, acquire reasonable speed in reading, grasp meanings of words and sentences from the contexts and to locate central ideas of passages. In the context specifications to improve the ability to write English. They should master the mechanics of writing. They should use the capital letter and marks of punctuation, they should spell word correctly. They write neatly and legibly with reasonable speed. They should use appropriate words and sentences patterns. In the content specifications, transcription, practice in hand writing, dictation of words sentences short paragraphs, short pieces of controlled compositions first and relatively free compositions later. When the students listen to the teacher of English, they receive the language in the form of sounds and sound clusters that make words and their combinations which make sentences in English. These words and sentences have certain meanings. The teacher should ensure these words and sentences are understood by students. When we help our students to speak English they are engaged in producing language. They are supposed to have acquired the mastery of vocabulary, the mastery of sentence structure, the mastery of grammar, the mastery of English stress and intonation. The education commission (1964-66) has recommended that English should be studies as a library language together knowledge of science, commerce and other subjects at higher levels, by reading books in English. About 54% of books published in the world are in English. Perhaps all the books on information technology, a knowledge of which send anyone to the US for a lucrative job, are in English. So at the basic level reading is an important skill to acquire luckily. It is a skill which can be easily acquired even by a slow learner. In the early stages reading aloud enables the teacher to correct the errors in pronunciation made by students. Later they can concentrate on silent reading which s more useful as they grow up. Once the skill of reading is acquired through comprehension exercises

136

and faster reading material, students can practice the skill for self-study almost unaided. Michael West who did a lot of work in teaching English out side England, opined that in Indian conditions reading is the most important skill. Writing is the most difficult of language skills, but student should be enlightened on the importance of writing. Writing helps students to consolidate the language they have learned through listening speaking and reading i.e. the vocabulary and the structure of the English language. The teacher trainees are advised to read the lessons completely before they teach the students.

137

Chapter - 8 Group Discussions

138

CHAPTER 8 Group Discussions Time bound analytical discussion of an issue / problem / case / scenario by a group of three more people. The persons conducting the Group Discussion (Moderator or Moderators) will choose a topic and ask the students to discuss. We may or may not set conditions for the GD. The group will be given anywhere between 10 minutes to 2 hours to discuss the topic. Sometimes we may ask the group to suggest solutions / or summarize in brief. We divide the topics into one of the three categories-abstract, issue and case. Abstract topics are rare. The topic does not give many clues. The creativity and innovativeness of the participants will be apparent in such topics. The abstract topics often will be ridiculous, but they help moderators understand clarity, swiftness and organization of candidates thought process. Once I gave If cows give petrol instead of milk as a topic and some of the candidates were shocked and started day dreaming. Some times quotation of famous personalities serve as topic William Wordsworth, The child is the father of man, John Donne. No man is an Island etc. Issue topics are very common cultural, social, political and economic issues often dominate this category. If we scan news papers or magazines of the past few months, we can come up with these topics easily. For example special economic zones are very much in the news for the last few months. Space tourism, missing children, Indian crickets dismal form, violence on campuses (Virginia Tech Shooting Spree), Indian Tourism, Judicial Activism (Aggressive Courts) are same of the current topics. Cases are real life or fictitious situations that need to be analyzed. The teacher plays a major role in English Language Teaching. What will be assessed in a GD : (Assessing the GD) Content is the king. All other skills do not help, if there no stuff in what a participant speaks. General awareness helps the participants to have opinions / facts / figures about various issues. Good reading habits over a period of time really helps a person especially students shape up. Ability to work in a team or group is the most desired skill. People demonstrate this skill when they make constructive contributions to the discussion, encourage teammates, assist the teammates when they are in trouble etc. clarity and organization

139

of thought helps the participants to articulate their thought in a lucid fashion that makes the teammates job easy and interesting. Leadership skills of a participant help the group stay course and ensures total participation. Many people demonstrate leadership skills by taking initiative in starting the discussion and defining the terms, proposing goals, defining the problems, suggesting a procedure and inviting participants opinion about any assumption that are warranted. Leader also summarizes the discussion at the end by incorporating all the important points that come out during the discussion. Critical thinking skills help participants to view the problem from various angles / facts. Good listening skills are very important people demonstrate this skill by asking clarifying questions and remembering the points made. No man is an island. Most of the achievements are group efforts. People working in software industries, spend most of their time / days attending meetings. In some companies, they ask the employees to attend the meeting more than 60 hours of meetings. Major problems will be solved in those collaborative efforts. So the ability to work in a group is the most desirable quality of a prospective student. GDs are better suited to recognize that skill. Participants are always advised to politely object to any attempts by anybody to move in that direction. GD is a unstructured plat form for brain storming ideas and hence the time slots defeats the purpose of the GD. This is very plausible as most people are anxious to demonstrate. Their leadership skills by taking first initiative. Participants should not loose composure as this is bound to happen for the first few minutes. True leader grabs the opportunity either by raising voice when the noise reaches some low point or polity grabbing the groups attention in some other manner. Though it will be advantageous to take initiative and start the discussion, It does not guarantee the success of the person who initiated the discussion and it does not spell the failure of the others. The contribution and demeanor in the rest of the discussion will have large impact on the result. Though it helps to have good English language skills, GD put more emphasis on team player and leadership skills. Examples, data, illustrations, quotations, facts give credibility and reliability to the point one makes presentation. So wherever possible, points need to be supported with personal experiences / examples / data / illustrations / quotations / facts etc. Having a good emotional intelligence skills is a very desirable skill. Not getting upset in the face of consistently irritating behavior will be seen as key skill. At the same time, one has to be assertive. So, the best approach is to reason with the misbehaving

140

participant in a soft tone. Ignoring the misbehaving participant is better option than using inappropriate words. To excel in the GD, one should have strong desire to win the GD. Secondly understanding the structure of GD and understanding the parameter of assessment. Thirdly, practicing various topics with friends and over coming any short comings. It is tough to guess what topic may come up in the GD. It is better to prepare on a variety of topics. Ten Commandments of Group Discussion 1. Dont criticize other participants. If their view point / opinion / understanding is wrong / misleading / narrow, try asking polite questions with data, facts, examples. So they will realize what they missed. 2. Dont display strong emotions loud laugh / aggression / volatile temper / strong disappointment. 3. Dont be stubborn. Instead of bluntly opposing / disagreeing, give reasons for your stand. 4. Dont drag individuals / entities into discussion unless there is a well publicized case for it. For example, if the topic involves political parties do not make derogatory statement on any party or individual unless there is proven case for it. 5. Do not beat around the bush. It are not sure about the details, try involving others and give your views / opinions only after we understood the topic. 6. Do not keep looking at one person and talk. While talking slowly move your head and make eye contact with every body in the group. 7. Do not give the impression that you are tense or nervous. Let your body language compliment your talk. For example, when you mention cooperation you can hold your palms together (right hand giving hand shake to your left hand is the universal symbol of cooperation). 8. Do not speak in a monotonous voice. Raise your voice for your strong points or key words. Lower your voice for supplementary and other points. Pronounce the words / terms clearly.

141

9. Do not give impression that you are giving sermon. Be persuasive in your talk by raising pertinent questions and use examples / data. That can influence others into agreement. 10.Do not look at moderators / outside environment as it gives the impression that you are not focused. Once learners are aware of the use of the basic phrase types and how they are used, it is time to put them in groups and hand out the first topic discussion. Topic selection of the discussion allows the teacher the opportunity to modify the course for students needs. For instance, a class of medical students could be given a topic where students must choose the most suitable candidate for an organ trans plant or controversial medical technique or a class of business majors could be given a topic of a loan officer screening and selecting prospective borrowers or the best way to invest one million dollars. The topics chosen simply need to be provocative enough that students need to form an opinion after considering several plausible alternatives. The next stage puts learners into groups of 3-5 and a group leader is chosen. Some teachers prefer to put stronger students with each other while others prefer to mix the stronger with the weaker ones. For the authors group discussions, students were randomly assigned to groups five students per group. An add number is preferable so that the group cannot become dead locked when trying to reach a decision via a consensus. Students are randomly assigned to a new group at the start of a new discussion and a new group leader is chosen. The purpose behind random group selection is for learners to become more comfortable expressing their opinions in front strangers and also to have the opportunity to become the group leader. The group leader is responsible for keeping the discussion moving and bringing in new people to keep the topic from stagnating. Although it is more challenging for these students, it is also much easier to score points. Once the small groups are formed and students choose their own group leader it is time for them to study and discuss the topic given to them by the teacher. Preparation for the first discussion will be the most difficult as learner feel unsure of what to do or how to approach practicing for the discussion in front of the teacher. In addition, some may have difficulty forming or expressing an opinion. In this case, the teacher may want to

142

explicitly teach a few phrases that learners should emphasis. One topic used in the authors class, for example had students choose the best mate for a single 33 year old working woman. Students had to formulate and express their opinions for each bachelor from the information given. For instance, Bachelor A is a 50 year old successful businessman who enjoys traveling and does not want children. Bachelor B is a 38 year old college professor who enjoy music, reading and quiet evenings at home. He would like to have children. Based on this type of information, students form their own opinion and express this to the group while trying to incorporated the phrases. For example, students may say something like, In my opinion, Bachelor B is better because or I agree with you on that point or Actually, I think it may prove useful for the weaker students to write down specific phrases to practice their opinions. By the third class (90 minute class), most groups are ready begin their first discussion. The teacher will need to be in front of the particular group or part of their circle to listen for and award points to each person. The teacher can use the following grading criteria for a total of 25 points per discussion. Students says something relevant to the discussion = I point. Student uses one of the phrases correctly =2 points. Students uses one of the phrases correctly and logically = 3 points. Learners will quickly realize that to score well, they must speak and interact more and use the phrases. Thus, the grading system itself provides an intrinsic motivation for students to prepare well for their discussions. Another advantage of the grading criteria is that there is less, subjectivity as it is mostly based on students performance and not merely the teachers interpretation. The award of 3 points for Logically used phrases does allow some subjectivity for the instructor to judge if the phrase was particularly logical to the speech event or natural in the course of the discussion however. Below is an example of the beginning of how one can score a discussion. Example Discussion Mr. Ito (leader) : we are here today to discuss who is the best person for Jane. (2) What do you think Mr. Jujuki ? (2) B is the best person because he has a lot of money and could take care of her (2)

143

Mr. Honma : I see your point, but I cant agree with you (3) Mr. Ito : Why not ? (1) Mr. Honma : Bachelor B is too old for her that is, he will not be interested in the same life style as her (2) Mr. Ito : Do you agree with in him Mr. Tani ? (2) Mr Tani : I completely agree with him (2) Personally, I think it is important to have similar life styles (2) Points Awarded : Mr. Ito (leader) Ms. Suzuki Mr. Honma Mr. Tani : : : : 7 Points 2 Points 5 Points 4 Points

The group leader has the most opportunity to score points by keeping the discussion moving along. However, She also has more responsibility. In the example discussion above, Mr. Honma was awarded 3 and 2 points each for his two phrases but I cant agree with you, was used in a logical way 3 points. It also served to expand the conversation for the others. Ms. Suzuki took one turn and used one relevant phrase for 2 points. The group leader, Mr. Ito, took three turns and used two phrases for a total of 7 points. After 15-20 minutes, students should be nearing completion of their discussion. The teacher can then total each students points and explain any relevant speech errors that need correcting. Proving corrections or feed back in the middle of the discussion may hinder students performance. In the authors class, feedback was given to each group immediately after each discussion had finished to aid their performance on subsequent group discussions. Through the use of specific topic oriented phrases, this small group discussion methodology allows learners to practice language that they would normally not produce. It also allows for teaching creativity in choosing topics and a more objectivity way for the teacher to grade conversational interaction based on turn-taking. This methodology also works well if supplemented by a listening or pronunciation text book to add some variety to the course. In addition, the authors students were occasionally quizzed on the relevant vocabulary they had to work with in their topic preparation. The limitations of this technique are that it may be too difficult for beginners or unmotivated learners. Also, the group discussion is

144

necessarily staged at the beginning as learners begin to feel comfortable with the flow of managing the discussion. However, students who are willing to say their opinion and enjoy interacting with others will practice a wide variety in phrases and language. That they normally would not have in a standard text book course. Another assumption and limitation of this methodology is that learners will be motivated and mature enough to practice the discussion topic amongst themselves without constant teacher supervision or prompting. The author has successfully used this teaching method with motivated university students giving 4-5 discussion sessions each semester. Finally, while a learner centered small group discussion may not be for every one, it offers learners an excellent opportunity to practice their language and debating skills in their future interactions with other English speakers out side the class room. It also offers the teachers a way to tailor the course to the specific needs of the students and a more objective way to grade oral discussion without significant effort to motivate students to perform at their best. A Group Discussion Consists of 1. Communication Skills 2. Knowledge and ideas regarding a given subject 3. Capacity to co ordinate and lead. 4. Exchange of thoughts 5. Addressing the group as a whole 6. Thorough preparations. Communication Skills: The first aspect is ones power of expression. In a group discussion, a candidate has to talk effectively so that he is able to convince others. For convincing, one has to speak forcefully and at the same time create an impact by his knowledge of the subject. A candidate who is successful in holding the attention of the audience creates a positive impact. It is necessary that we should be precise and clear. As a rule evaluators do not look for the wordage produced. Your knowledge on a given subject your precision and clarity of thought are the things that are evaluated. Irrelevant talks lead us nowhere. Group discussions are not debating stages. Ability to listen is also what evaluators judge. They look for our ability to react on what other participants say. Hence, it is necessary that we listen carefully to others and then react or proceed to add some more points. Your behavior in the group is also put to test to

145

judge whether you are a loner or can work in a group. You should be able to convey your thoughts satisfactorily and convincingly before a group of people. Confidence and level headedness in doing so is necessary. These add value to our presentation. Incase we are not good it, we might gain by joining an institute that offers specialized courses in public speaking. For instance, most of the English language teaching centers offer a wide range of courses like conversation skills, business communication skills, business writing, negotiation skills and presentation skills. Mostly people attend these courses to improve their communication skills. Students here are involved in activities which use communication skills and teacher provide inputs, monitor and facilitate the classes. These courses make us confident enough to speak before people without any nervousness. Knowledge of the subject under discussion and clarity of ideas are important. Knowledge comes from consistent reading on various topics ranging from science and technology to politics. In-depth knowledge makes one confident and enthusiastic and this in turn, make one sound convincing and confident. The basic aim of a group discussion is to judge a candidates leadership qualities. The examiner withdraws and becomes a silent spectator once the discussion starts. A candidate should display tactfulness, skill, understanding and knowledge on varied topics, enterprise, forcefulness and other leadership qualities to motivate and influence other candidates who may be almost equally competent. A group discussion is an exchange of thoughts and ideas among members of a group. These discussions are held for selecting personnel in organizations where there is a high level of competition. The number of participants in a group can vary between 8 and 15. Mostly a topic or a situation is given to group members who have to discuss it within 5 to 10 minutes. The purpose is to get an idea about candidates in a short time and make assessments about their skills, which normally cannot be evaluated in an interview. These skills may need the best team membership, leadership skills, listening and articulation skills. A note is made of your contributions to the discussion, comprehension of the main idea, the rapport you strike, patience, assertion, accommodation, amenability etc. Body language and eye contact too are important points which are to be considered. In a group discussion, it is not necessary to address any one by name. Even otherwise you may not know every ones names. It is better to address the group as a whole. Address the person farthest from you. If he can hear you every one else too can. Needless to add, as for the interview, attend the group discussion in formal dress. The

146

language used should also be formal, not the language used in normal conversations. For instance, words and phrases like Yar, Chalta Hai, I dunno etc should be dropped out. This is not to say we should use a high sounding, pedantic language. Avoiding both, just use formal, plain and simple language English, (Mixture of Hindi and English) should be discarded. Confidence and coolness while presenting our view point are of help. See that you dont keep repeating a point. Dont use more words than necessary. Dont be superfluous. Try to be specific. Do not exaggerate. Start making preparations for interview and group discussions right away without waiting till the eleventh hour, this is, it and when called for them. Then the time left may not be adequate. It is important to concentrate on subject knowledge and general awareness. Hence the prime need for thorough preparation. Remember the competition is very tough. Only 460 candidates make it to the final list from 2.75 lakh civil service aspirants and each year the competition may go higher and higher. In a group discussion we may be given a topic and asked to express our views on it or in a case study students have to read a case study and suggest ways of tackling the problem. For this we should have a good general knowledge, need to be abreast with current affairs, should regularly read news papers and magazines. Our group behavior and communication skills are on test. i.e. how you convince the others and how clearly we are able to express our points of view. You should be articulate, generate ideas, not sound boring, should allow others to speak and adopt a stand on a given subject. During the course of the GD this stand can even be changed, giving the impression that you are open to accommodate others view points. Additions marks may be given for starting or concluding the discussion. While selection tools and techniques like tests, interviews etc. provide a good data about an individual they fall short in providing real life data of how an individual would be performing in a real life situation especially a group discussion. Team work being an integral part of the BPO work profile, it is important to ascertain group and interpersonal qualities of an individual. Group discussion is a useful tool to ascertain these qualities and many organizations use GDs as a Selection tool along with personal interviews, attitude tests etc. A GD is an activity of 8-10 candidates are formed into a leaderless group, and are given a specific situation to analyze and discuss with in a given time limit which may vary between twenty minutes and

147

forty five minutes, or they may be given a case study and asked to come out with a solution for a problem. They may be given a topic and are asked to discuss the same while GD reflects the inherent qualities of an individual, appearing for it unprepared may not augur well for you. These tips will help you prepare for GDS.This is the first and the most crucial step in preparation. This is never ending process and the more we read, the better we are in our thoughts. While we may read anything to everything. We must ensure that we are in good touch with current affairs, the debates and hot topics of discussion and also with the latest in the IT and ITES industry. Chances are the topics would we around these. Read both for the thoughts as well as for data. Also read multiply view points on the same topic and then create your point of view with the rationale. Also create answers for counter agreements for your point of you electronic media also will be of good use here. Create an informal GD group and meet regularly to discuss and exchange feedback. This is the best way to prepare. This would give you a good idea about your thoughts and how well can you convince. Remember, it is important that we are able to express our thoughts well. The better we perform in these Mocks the better would be we chance to perform on the final day. Also try to interact and participate in other GD groups. This will develop a skill to discuss with unknown people as well. some of the qualities assessed in a GD are ability to take leadership roles and be also to lead, inspire and carry the team along to help them achieve the groups objectives. Candidates will be assessed in terms of clarity of thought, expression and aptness of language. One key aspect is listening. It indicates a willingness to accommodate other views. People skills are important aspect any job. They are reflected in the ability to interact with other members of the group in a brief situation. Emotional maturity and balance promotes a good interpersonal relationships. The person has to be more people-centric and less self-centered. The ability to analyses and persuade others to see the problem from multiple perspectives. GD is a test of your ability to think, your analytical capacities and your ability to make your point in a team-based environment. These are some of the subskills that also get assessed with the skills mentioned above. Clarity of Thought. Group working skills (Especially during a group task of case study discussion) Conflict handling.

148

Listening and probing skills Openness and flexibility towards new idea. Data based approach to decision to decision making. Knowledge about the subject and individual points of view. Ability to create a consensus.

While it is not possible to reflect all these qualities in a short time, you would do well if you are able to show a couple or GD mistakes. Heres a list of the most common mistake made at group discussions. Rashmi was offended when one of the male participants in a group discussion made a statement on women generally being submissive while explaining his point of view. When Rashmi finally got an opportunity to speak instead of focusing on the topic, she vented her anger by accusing the other candidate for being a male chauvinist and went on to defend women in general. What Rashmi essentially did was to Deviate from the subject Treat the discussion as a forum to air her own views. Lose objectivity and make personal attacks. Her behavior would have been perceived as immature and de motivating to the rest of the team.Gautam believed that the more he talked, the more likely he was to get through the GD. So, he interrupted other people at every opportunity. He did this so often that the other candidates got together to prevent him from participating from in the rest of the discussion. Assessment is not only on your communication skills, but also on your ability to be a team players. Evaluation is based on quality, and not on quantity. Your contribution must be relevant. The Mantra is Contributing meaningfully to the teams success. Domination in teams founded upon. Krishna was happy to have got a group discussion topic he had prepared for. So, he took pains to project his vast knowledge of the topic. Every other sentence of his contained statistical data 20% of companies. 24% of parliamentarians felt that, I recently read in a Jupiter report that . and so on so forth. The rest of the team either laughed at him or ignored his attempts to enlighten them as they perceived that he was cooking up the data. Exercise restraint in anything. You will end up being frowned upon if you attempt showing off your knowledge. Facts and figures need not validate all your statements. Its your analysis and interpretation that are equally important not just facts and figures. You might be appreciated for your in depth knowledge. But you will fail

149

miserably in your people skills. Such a behavior indicates how self centered you are and highlights your in ability to work in an atmosphere where difference opinions are expressed. Sri Kumar knew that everyone would compete to initiate the discussion. So as soon as the topic Discuss the negative effect of India joining the WTO was read out, he began talking. In his anxiety to be the first to start speaking, he did not hear the word negative in the topic. He began discussing the ways in which the country had benefited by joining WTO, only to be stopped by the evaluator, who then corrected his mistake. False starts are extremely expensive. They cost you your admission. It is very important to listen and understand the topic before you air your opinions. Spending a little time analyzing the topic may provide you with insights which others may not have thought about. Use a pen and paper to jot down your ideas. Listen to it in given time to conceptualize and present the information in a better manner. Some mistakes are irreparable starting off the group discussion with a mistake is one such mistake, unless you have a great sense of humour. Sumati was very nervous. She thought that some of the other candidates were exceptionally good. Thanks to her insecurity, she contributed little to the discussion. Even when she was asked to comment on a particular point, she preferred to remain silent. Your personality is also being evaluated. Your verbal and non-verbal cues are being read. Your confidence level is being evaluated. Decent communication skills with good confidence is a must to crack the GDs. Focus on your strengths and do not spend too much time thinking about how others are superior to inferior to you. It is easy to pickup these cues from your body language. Knowledge is strength. A candidate with good reading habits has more chances of success. In other words, sound knowledge on different topics like politics, finance, economy, science and technology is helpful. Power to convince effectively is another quality that makes us stand out among others. Clarity in speech and expression is yet another essential quality. If you are not sure about the topic of discussion, it is better not to initiate lack of knowledge or wrong approach creates a bad impression Instead of that we might adopt the wait and watch attitude. Listen attentively to others, may be we would be able to come up improving the skills with strengths. A GD is a formal occasion where slang is to avoided. A GD is not a debating stage participants should confine themselves to expressing their view points. In the second part of the discussion candidates can exercise their choice in agreeing, disagreeing or remaining neutral. Language use should be simple, direct and straightforward. Dont

150

interrupt a speaker when the session is on try to score by increasing your size, not by cutting others short. Maitain rapport with fellow participants. Eye contact plays a major role. Non-verbal gestures, such as listening intently or nodding while appreciating someones view point speak of you positively communicate with each and every candidate present. While speaking dont keep looking at single object or member, address the entire group in such a way that everyone feels us that we are speaking to him or her. This is one of the best techniques that the speaker can enjoy his presentation.

151

Chapter 9 Conclusion

152

CHAPTER 9 Conclusion Language, as we know, is a means of communication. When we use language for communication, we must have a knowledge of the linguistic forms of the language. We use it appropriately and acknowledging the communication from speaker to receiver effectively. That is, the users of a language, to make communication effective, require a knowledge of the social meaning of the linguistic forms and their functions. If the user of a language has only the knowledge of language rules and forms, then he is said to have linguistic competence, and if he also has the knowledge that enables him to communicate functionally and interactively then he is said to have communicative competence. The purpose of learning a language is to enable students to communicate in that language. It is essential therefore the second of every language class is directed to equip students with the language skill they really need. The four main skills are speaking, listening, reading and writing. To be able to use the language to convey thoughts, intentions, wishes, information etc. a person needs a mostly of various elements. By mastery of elements what is meant is the mastery of sounds which are arrayed in words, which are related to each other in utterances by structure. In addition to the mastery of sounds, words and structure, the mastery of skills is also required. The four skills maintained above can be classified as receptive and productive skills. Listening and reading fall under the category of receptive skills. That is while listening we understand the spoken language and we understand the written language while reading, speaking and writing are productive skills. While learning these productive skills, what is aimed at is learning the selection of the relevant language for the situation concerned. Also with in the main skills there are a number of secondary skills, which often overlap and reinforce one other. If the teacher decides the particular kinds of practice his students need he can then blend them with his teaching of structure, vocabulary and pronunciation. Some secondary skills which determine the way students need to form or react to language when speaking, understanding reading or writing are; a) making statements b) describing c) narrate d) asking and

153

answering questions. e) giving and understanding messages f) agreeably and is agreeably g) Asking the way h) referring i) Asking the way j) Introductions k) inviting l) thanking m) congratulation n) expressing surprise o) reassuring p) encouraging q) apologizing r) complaining s) criticizing. These secondary skills may be termed as the skills which will perform the communicative function of the language. Listening and speaking as we know are two skills which go together. In a communication activity both these skills play a vital role if the communication is orally done. Communication is a two way process involving a speaker and a listener regarding the roles of the speaker and the listener. In the process of communication both of them can either be an initiator or a responder. Hence we concentrate on these two skillsspeaking is articulating all the ideas through comprehension thoroughly and listening, responding and discriminating. In the class room to develop these two skills a lot of activities that would promote classroom interaction between the teacher and the student to develop there two skills a lot of activities that would promote classroom interaction between the teacher and pupil, pupil and pupil, teacher and a group etc must be thought of and planned by the teacher. How to promote these skills ? what kind of activities must be planned by the teacher? How to reach these two skills ? These are a few questions that we will have to ask. Speech comprehension or listening is an active, knowledge guided process. Stored knowledge is necessary for segmentation of utterance and for interpretation of utterances. This implies that listening is a process , which involves perceiving that there is a systematic message, in a continuous stream of sound and then apprehending and identifying with in this stream bounded elements. The listener has never heard in exactly this from before, each segment having a distinctive structure and combining with other segments within a more extensively organized system. As listeners seek to interrupt messages, this structuring within and among segments requires them to retain elements they have already apprehended until relationships with succeeding elements have been established, and then to engage in a continuous readjustment of their interpretation of each developing structure in view of what had proceeded and in anticipation of succeeding segments. Listeners are then involved in a continuous cognitive process, in which factors of attention and memory are vitally involved. Listeners must recognize in phonic substance the sound patterns in bounded segments related to phrase structure. To

154

extract a message, the listeners must immediately begin processing identifying the groups. They have detected according to the knowledge they have already stored. Then, the listener recapitulates the material he/she has organized through his/her memory and builds up an auditory memory of it that helps him/her retain the segments she/he is processing. Hence, it is very important to recapitulate mentally what is being heard as the process of extraction of meaning goes on. Listening should be accompanied by some activity through which students can demonstrate their comprehension and experience the pleasure of success. If they can do this through some form of personal expression in speech or writing, they learn at the same time that comprehension of a message is part of a communicative art. Activity is also important in testing listening comprehension because then we are not testing something vague which we may be calling the listening skill. We are testing the results of listening - something students have learned or something they can do as a result of what they have heard. For example, they may be asked to. Fill in maps or diagrams as they listen. Make notes of information they will need to complete a project. To solve a riddle or mystery To act out a role in a dramatic activity. This approach will make a listening exercise more purposeful and maintain attention. As attention also plays an important role in effective listening, the students must be asked to pay attention to what is being spoken. If they are not attentive, they are likely to misunderstand the message by missing some groups or segments and it might also lead to misinterpretation of what is being uttered by drawing inferences from the wrong cues. Of course in normal communication, there may not be a problem because the situation, or the content, the time, the persons interacting, may help in their effective listening. But in the class room, listening comprehension is facilitated better when there is a visual or some other aid in the form of the tapes the background noises to indicate that the speakers are in a rail road or at the sea-side. Listening is a creative process. We are receiving linguistic and extra linguistic input as we listen, but from what we extract from the stream of sound and from

155

the situation, we create a message. The speaker has a meaning to convey that is expressed in a certain arrangement of words uttered with an intentional intensity and rise and fall of the voice. What the listener understands the meaning to be, however is influenced by factors other than these. This process of incoming information takes place during the pauses in speech. This means, the speech that is speeded up within segments is comprehensible if the pauses are slightly lengthened. This also implies that students should learn to use the pauses in natural speech to gain processing time. The teacher is the only important person who can do wonders in class room with his creative and intuitive abilities what records, materials cannot do. He alone can give the students opportunities to listen and respond. So he has an important role to play in the development of oral ability. Hence, great skill is needed in getting the right balance between teacher talk and learner talk. Listening and speaking and mentioned earlier go hand in hand. Whenever there is an activity for listening we must anticipate good speaking by the learner, in order to develop the skill in the learner. The class room language or the teacher talk must be representative of real life speech. This is possible only if teacher trains them talk, as the representatives of real life speakers if teachers make them to come out with their natural talents but not to be restricted to the language of the text books only. Students must learn to cope with utterances they have not previously got exposed to, and they need opportunities to acquire forms and vocabulary from outside the syllabus and the sound system in English is phonetic it stands for one important purpose of teaching speaking is to make our students learn some of the features of spoken English, which includes pronunciation, stress rhythm, intonation etc. this means language teaching must include the teaching of pronunciation. Therefore the knowledge of sound system of the language thus becomes essential to teachers. However, care must be taken to give a lot of practice in the features mentioned above. It is advocated not to teach the students the theory of spoken English. Let there be natural free environment to students for their communicative talent to speak out their hearts. They feel at home with English communication.

Developing Speaking Skills : Speech is primary. We speak when we want to express our ideas, opinions, desires and to establish social

156

relationships and friendship. Also as (a) language is a system for the expression of meaning (b) the primary function of language is for interaction and communication. (c) the structure of language reflects its functional and communicative use and (d) the primary units of language are not merely its grammatical and structural features, but categories of functional and communicative meaning as exemplified in discourse, there is every need to develop the skill of speaking in our learners. In our spoken communication, we use transactional language or international language. Transactional language contains factual information. It is also for conveying a message as international language written language is transactional. Another example of transaction language is the language that a policeman uses when he wants to give directions to a bus driver. International language is also message based but it is the language which is used to establish and maintain social working. In such a communicative situation where international language is used the content is not as important as the ability of the speakers to establish and maintain relationships. When we are trying to teach our learners speaking skills, we have to make them became aware of the types of language that they will have to use in different contexts, to communicate what they desire to express. Promoting Speaking Skills: Dialogues making the learners converse with each other by exposing them to a few model dialogues. Dialogues were used earlier to teach the rules of communication, appropriately and use. Earlier the focus was always in structural forms. Dialogues then must focus on communications. Information gap activities are suggested. 1. The teacher divides the class into two groups. He asks one section to turn around or makes face sideways. Then place to achieve communication, a small picture on the board which can be seen by the other section only. The section of pupils who face the other side, will have to draw the picture according to the descriptions given by the group which sees the picture. The effectiveness of communication can be seen when the drawers are allowed to compare their work with the original. This is also to check whether real unbroken communication has taken place and also to find out the gap in the information provided by the group that sees the picture. This can be done in pairs also while making the other

157

2.

3.

4.

5.

group draw, they must be encouraged to ask questions, make queries etc. Discovering Secret : In this, one learner has a piece of secret information, which the other in his class or group must discover by asking appropriate questions. The questions must be restricted to a certain level such as yes/no question in order to prevent the discovers from simply asking directly for the piece of information. Discovering missing information : Learner A has information in a tabular form. For example, he may have a table showing distances between various towns or a summary of the results of two teams etc. However, some items of information have been deleted from the table. Learner B has a similar table except that different items of information have been deleted. Each learner can therefore complete his own table by asking his partner for the information that he lacks. In such an activity, the teacher can make it more controlled, the teacher can make it more controlled by providing the learners with specific language forms to be used. In the above activity, the learner will need to use the form such as How for ---from ? which town is ---- miles from --- ? etc. Communication Games : Speaking activities based on games are always a useful way of giving students practice in speech. Game based activities may focus an oral strategies like describing, predicting etc. Role Play : Role play is a technique than can be used to make the students use language there by develop spoken English skills. It can offer enjoyment and also a mental escape from the class room. It can be controlled or free. Role Adoption : This is a team used to describe a drama-type activity where just one student of a group or a pair take on a new role or identify. He /she transforms the practice and exploits the text for real performance the moment that a chosen student becomes someone else that same practice becomes simulation, with potential for the unexpected. In any role play there must be a minimum of two actors. A role play that is often functional in focus with a series of tasks to be accomplished in a specific situation, is called prescribed Role play. Free Role Play: In this type, the guidances is oral and also the students will have to develop their own scene. An advantage is that weaker students can restrict themselves to a few simple exchanges.

158

The context is provided by the teacher. For example you are in General Post Office, Abids in Hyderabad and want to send a parcel home. Reading can be defined in many ways. It is the amalgamation of visual and non-visual experience or behavior, or reading is decoding print or deciphering print, or reading is understanding interpreting or making sense of a given text etc. However reading in the class room for easy understanding can be defined as making sense of a given text the process during which all other possible meanings of reading include themselves. There cant be the definition of reading. Reading is the total understanding of a message or a message in a text. This means the meaning is not nearly lying in the text waiting to be passively absorbed. On the contrary the reader will have to be actively involved and will have to work to get the meaning out. The reader must understand that reaching the message. The message involves his own efforts as well as those of the writer. Further, before reading, the reader assumes that, he and the writer are using the same code the writer has a message. The writer wants the reader to understand the message. Hence reading involves an active effort on the part of the reader. Reading is an active skill and a receptive skill. We receive information when we read. Reading may mean many things and it takes on a different meaning in different contexts. Reading a timetable means referring to a table, reading the palms means interpreting the lines in the palm, reading a dictionary also means referring to a particular lexical item or a structural item. We read in order to obtain information which is presented in a written form, but the nature of the information. So obtain requires a more explicit definition, information means the content which is cognitive or effective or intellectual, or emotional. We read referentional material in order to obtain factual information with which to operate on our environment. For example, a set of instructions of how to use a piece of equipment. We read material whose content is intellectual rather then factual as a way of augmenting or developing our on intellectual skills, so that we can more effectively manipulate ideas, with the aim of influencing the behavior of others or of determining the out come of a series of operations, eg. Making a proposal for a project. We read for emotional gratification or spiritual enlightment, that is, for pleasure of self improvement. Reading is carried out for a purpose other than reading the language itself. Just as we read messages in order to be able to do something else, so the students who are learning

159

a foreign language should be less concerned with the language than with the message it is used to communicate. That is, his interest will be in use than usage with function rather than form. He wishes to do something with language other than simply learn it. So the materials we use depends on the purpose of our reading and you would learn that how we read depends on why and what we read. Reading is interpreting a message. This means interpreting correctly the value of an utterance. For example, an utterance like Arent you cold ? may express surprise, if said by a mother to express her concern for her sons well being, and may be a complaint to someone who was just opened the window when some one is feeling chilly. What is it ? When and why ? depends on the situations and the content in which it is spoken or written. The meaning of this utterance any be referred to by using the term signification and the significance of the utterance for particular speakers in a particular situation may be referred to as value. The concept of value is important because it is quite possible to understand the signification of an utterance without interpreting its value correctly. And competent reader grasps not merely the signification of what he reads but also its value. This involves understanding the writers presupposition sufficiently to recognize what he means by a particular statement not just what he says, but why he says it. Reading can done be silently. This we call silent reading. We read aloud a text to our students. Experiments have proved that more comprehension is achieved only though silent reading when we make our pupil read silently. Instructions must be given to them. a) not to wag their need b) not to use their pen or pencil on the print c) not to move their lips. We should instruct them to move their eyes along the lines in the text only. Reading is extracting information form a text. But this definition of reading can be narrow in its perspective because if we can read we can get information from directories menus and steer signs and recorded labels as well as from text books and novels, but there is a lot of information in much of this print that we do not get, for the very good reason that we do not want it. The telephone directory is full of information number of people whom we shall never want to call. Like wise, the news papers and a novel, we are unlikely to pay attention to all the information that is available in print. So it can be said that we do extract information from print but very selectively. The basic skill of reading and understanding lies more in the visual information that bombards us from the print.

160

Hence reading can be defined as getting specific questions answered. Reading is not only an active process alone but also an interactive one for various reasons. Firstly an incomplete interpretation of what is written may end up in a failure of communication. Secondary, a lack of understanding of the shared assumptions between the reader and the writer, may make the readers comprehension incomplete. To get at the meaning involves an up hill task. He can bring to the task so little of what the writer has taken for granted that the way forward is continually blocked up by problem of unfamiliar vocabulary, ignorance of facts or intellect limitations. Hence a reader who can think along with the writer will find the text relatively easy. At the same time the reader may not be consciously predicting this way through the text may hypothesis about what the writer intends to say. The hypothesis may immediately be modified by what he actually does say and replaced by a new hypothesis about what will follow. We may have the experience of believing that we are understanding a text until suddenly brought to a halt by some word or phrase that do not fit into the pattern and force us to retread and read just our thoughts. Thus reading in such contexts may be looked at as constant making and remaking of hypothesis a psycho linguistic guessing game. Hence, if reading is to be efficient, the students should be thought how to use what they know to understand unknown elements. Whether these are ideas or simple words. By starting with longer units and by considering the layout of the text, the accompanying photographs or diagrams, the number of paragraphs etc, the students can be encouraged to anticipate. What they are to find in the text. This is essential in order to develop their skills of inference, anticipation and deduction. We all know we read either for information or for pleasure me. The main ways of reading are Skimming : quickly running ones eyes over a text to get the gift of it. Scanning : quickly going through a text to find a particular piece of information. Intensive Reading: Reading shorter texts, to extract specific information. This is more an accuracy activity involving reading for detail. These different ways of reading are not mutually exclusive. For instance, one often skims through a passage to see what it is about before deciding whether it is worth. Scanning a particular paragraph for the information are is looking for we teach prose lessons to develop reading skills. Reading is one of the most effective means of language learning. It expands ones proficiency in the use of the language and gives the skills

161

necessary to acquire more knowledge. While developing reading skills we must bear in mind that we are developing three sub skills of reading. A) Skimming to grasp the general theme or central idea B) Rapid reading for a broad understanding of the main points and C) Study reading for a close understanding of all details. We are concerned with how these tasks and activities are integrated into lessons and a used as the basis for teaching and learning. There are three dimensions to a method at the level of procedure - a) the use of teaching activities to present a new language and to clarity and demonstrate formal, communicative or other aspects of the target language. b)the ways in which particular teaching activities are used for practicing language and c) The producers and techniques used giving feed back to the learner. Concerning the from or content of their utterances or sentences. This means that procedure focuses on the way a method handles the presentation, practice and feedback phases of teachers. Motivate the students to read through a brief introduction. Get a few pre-questions pre-questions are questions asked before the students read the text. Get the pupils to read silently through the whole passage. These questions should follow the main story line or line of argument in the text and be in the correct sequence. They are intended to indicate the basic structure of the text and help students understand the text by focusing attention on key words and ideas. Ask broad comprehensive questions about the main points. Get the pupils to read silently a unit of the passage closely. We ask comprehension questions on the details of the passage. The questions can be a) lower order questions in other words information seeking or factual or direct questions. B) Middle order questions c) high order questions d) then elicit answers orally of make students write e) Discuss the answer. Teaching Vocabulary: There is now a practice to pre-teach certain new words which occur in the text. This can be helpful particularly if one or two words which are known to be new occur frequently in the text. However, it will be more useful if we invite students to anticipate the vocabulary themselves. How to do this ? this may be done by using a word ladder. For this a word which is central to the content of the text is written at the top of the ladder. Students may be asked to fill in the other steps of the ladder. Each word, they fill in, should be connected to the previous step, in the case of the rows each word must be connected to the central word. After the students have completed the exercise, they are

162

asked to read their words If some students do not know the words used by others, they may encouraged to ask each other about the unknown words. It is true that many of the words introduced in this way will not occur in the text, but if the first has been well chosen the exercise may prove to be fruitful. Students will remind themselves of several important vocabulary items before reading the text. This kind of vocabulary focus in which the learner brings to mind a word he thinks will be useful is typical of natural language use. It has been remarked that writing is the most difficult part of the language abilities to acquire. It is a skill in which we produce a sequence of sentence arranged in a particular order and linked together in certain ways. It is a productive skill which involves manipulating. Structuring and communicating. This can be further discussed in terms of sub skills of writing. The sub skills of writing are a) Manipulating the script of a language b) Forming the shapes of letters c) using the spelling system d) using punctuation e) expressing information explicitly f) expressing information implicitly through inference and figurative language. G) Expressing, communicative value of sentences and utterances. The goal of writing is two fold. Psychologically students are more impressed by exercises that are to be written and handed in than by those that are to be learned. Realistically the teacher knows that writing home work exercise and other written activities help the students to acquire the vocabulary and the grammar of the lesson. Practically the students minimum contact with the language in the classroom must be expanded as much as possible. The over all objective then will be to help the learners express their ideas in written form. The introduction and practice of same form of writing enables us to provide for different learning style and needs. Some learners especially those who do not learn easily through oral practice, feel more secure if they are allowed to read and write in the language. For such students writing is likely to be an aid to retention if only because they feel more at ease and relaxed. Writing is often needed for formal and informal testing. The exposure to a foreign language through more than one medium is likely to be more effective than relying on a single medium alone. Writing also provides variety in class room activity; serving as a break from oral work and increase the amount of language contact through work that can be sent out of class. The art of writing becomes difficult because we are required to write without the possibility of interaction or any feedback. It is a solitary activity. Language itself is highly favorable to oral communication. This

163

means, that there are opportunity during ones speech, to repeat back teach, expand, rephrase or record and spontaneous. Even ungrammatical sentences will be tolerated. Writing involves the use of a few structures which we may not normally use while speaking. It is learnt only through a process of instruction. This includes practice in the organization of our ideas. Also when we write we have to always imagine the reader before us. Teaching communication skills is task based. This means the role of the teacher is a facilitator. He is a manager of the classroom and the ones who creates situations that are like to promote communication. During these activities, he acts as an advisor, answering students questions and monitoring then performance. At other he might be a co-communicator. In communicative language training they become a learner canted approach and stands a part from the other teacher centered methods. The learners get actively engaged in the process of learning. The students mother tongue has no particular role in this approach. The teacher and the students as well, use the target language during communicative activities.

Audio Visual Aids in the Teaching of English

Language learning can be dull, especially if the learners do not feel a real need to catch and rivet their attention. The learning process itself must be exciting and enjoyable. You can make it so, by frequent changes of activity and a diversity of materials. Also the real difficult in language teaching lie not in vocabulary and grammar but in the creation of a steadily expanding awareness of the generalized contents. Also much of what we say in any language is promoted by what we see or have seen around us. We therefore have to give our students practice in reading in English to objects or pictures. Hence aids becomes an addition to our armoury. They allow us to explain a word or concept simply, by showing a picture or pointing to an object. Abstractions can often be expressed in this way there mime or words are insufficient. The maneuverability of objects or pictures is a great advantage. Time can be saved by passing pictures or objects around the class and getting group work going; tempo can be accelerated because showing or pointing is a more rapid process than speaking or explaining. However, you must not become intoxicated with visual aids. It will be advised to combine them with other teaching techniques to fulfill

164

immediate and long term aims. To sum up in the words of Lee and Copper (1964) audio visual aids have the following advantages. a) they can brighten up the classroom and bring variety and interest into the lessons b) they can help to provide the situations which may be used to illustrate linguistic items. C) aural aids can give the students the opportunity of listening and imitating native speaker d) they can stimulate both children and adults to speak the language not only to read it write it e) aural aids can help the teacher to improve his grasp of the language he is teaching. Objects using classroom objects for presenting vocabulary and structure. The advantage is that everything is at hand and familiar to them. The objects help to set a scene with props. For example, telephone conversations can be enhanced by bringing in toy telephones and getting students to sit back to back so they cant see one another. Objects are also evocative. This is one of the most important visual aids, commonly available and inexpensive. It has the advantage of providing a focal point of attention for the whole class and can be used for a variety of purposes. This must be regarded as an integral part of a lesson. Prepare your blackboard work in advance and ask yourself before the lesson how you can use it best of fulfill your particular teaching aims. Write or draw clearly so that all the pupils can see. Use the left hand side for content work and the right for keeping a record of the work done during the lesson. Correct spelling and punctuation are essential. Practice a good, clear, legible handwriting and learn to draw simply and unambiguously on the board. Except for the blackboard, the flash card is probably the most widely used visual aid in language teaching. It is just a simple picture on a piece of card or paper. In other words, these are cards on which words and or pictures are printed or drawn. These can be used for consolidating vocabulary, practising structure and word order, or for a variety of games. They are simple and effective but they also require careful thought and preparation in advance. Flash cards have a few advantages over a blackboard drawing. We can save class time. They are more motivating and eye catching. They can be more colorful and used again and again.

165

When practicing word order, have a number of cards representing all the words in a sentence. For example, if you are practicing asking questions in the past, you can have the following word cards. Doctor was the then ? The card can be fixed to a board or given to a student and arranged correctly either by the class as a whole or individual student. That is, key words or short phrases can be written on the back of any flash card. This allows presentation of the written from at the same time as the meaning and sound are presented. Some teachers believe that this helps learner to internalize the new word. Word cards can be used to practice word order structure, like, the use of was/were. For example, we can ask our students to sort out two possible jumbled up sentences. Tired we are at they school was he These can be sorted out to from---- He was tired. They were at school. Here the students, as well as getting the correct word order, have to make a structure choice as well. Similar exercise are effective if the class is divided into small groups. Each student is given a number of cards and puts down what he regards as the most likely word to start a sentence. For example They. The next student put down were; and they continue until a finished sentence is formed. Another way is to give each group the same word cards. In a given time, each tries to form the maximum number of sentences which are then read out to the rest of the class. The competitive element here can make it interesting and lively. Games with word cards are also effective. For example, we can practice the first conditional with sets of cards. Each student can be asked put down a card and try to exchange it in order to get a complete set: Eg : If you give me some bread, Ill give you some butter. Another game that can be played in a small groups is to have each students taking a card in turn from a pile, until he can form a sentence, whoever forms most sentences wins. These are useful for presenting, practicing, and revising vocabulary or as prompts for other activities. These are also useful for identifying verbs of action. These can be used to indicate a sequence. Wall charts are useful for drills. We simply point at the prompts instead of saying them. For instance, you are using a chart of

166

a shopping scene. Your model sentence is He wants to buy some clothes. Butter Cheese He wants to buy some butter. She wants but some cheese.

This refers to a number of pictures which make up a story. As with visual aids, students can describe each picture, separately. In this, you write or draw on a transparency and project it on to the screen. The transparencies can easily be added to while the lesson is in progress. The overhead projector is a useful alternative to the blackboard in that the teacher can save time by preparing the material in advance. This is a strip of square cardboard which is held up momentarily in front to the class by the teacher or fixed to the wall or blackboard in order to teach a linguistic item. The cards may have a word or words, phrases, drawing and photographs on them. They are a considerable aid in presenting a situation and in electing oral responses from the class. When you use flash cards you must : (i) Make flash cards clearly bring out the point you want to teach and show that they are uncomplicated. (ii) Dont try to teach more than two linguistic items at the same time. (iii) Make sure the cards are language enough for students at the back of the class to see and understand. (iv) Must not wave the cards about; hold the card steadily in front of the class long enough for the students to grasp what situation you are trying to present. (v) Be sure students on your right and on your left as well as those in front of you have a good chance to see the flash card and understand it. (vi) Must hold the card at about the same level as your shoulder above the head of the first row of students. (vii) While showing the card to the class, must talk the situation through. Film strips and slides can be used to great effect. They help take students out of the confines of the classroom. Filmstrips are similar to slides except that they are easier to use, as all the pictures come on a roll, and you can switch from one to another without worrying whether the

167

pictures are upside down or in the wrong order. Otherwise, both slides and film strips have the same function as well charts, flash cards or pictures for oral composition. The advantage is that on ecan move from one to the other more easily. You can make your own slides for any form of lecture. A tape recorder is an essential classroom aid. In the first place it brings other voices into the classroom and gives the students valuable practice in listening to varieties of English different from the teachers. Tape material can be used for listening comprehension and other activities like dialogues. You can also use the tape recorder to record students while playing it again, with the class commenting on the mistakes, the learners get an opportunity for revising. These can be used to trigger discussions or introduce a text in an interesting way. Full page pictures, labeled by them will be useful resources to have at home when planning lessons or sessions. The wall picture is used to give a detailed view of a scene or scenes different from that of the classroom in the first place and students own country. It brings a new environment into the classroom and this helps the pupil to associate, in the same way as the physical environment would. Using wall-pictures has its own limitations also. The major defect is the absence of appeal to any sense but that of sight, the child can see what is before him, but he cannot hear, touch, smell or taste it. Hence, it becomes the duty of the teacher to draw attention to all that may be comprehended as well as seen from the pictures if wall pictures are to be employed systematically in language teaching in colleges, the teacher should have access to a series covering the major activities and general knowledge of his pupils. The aim must be to supply basic or essential linguistic material. Wall pictures though invaluable in the elementary stages, decrease in usefulness with advancing knowledge. They must deal with the usual, the everyday familiar experiences not with specialized subjects. The blackboard is the best visual aid. Its principal function is to show the written forms of the language items being taught in such a way that the whole class can see them at once. 1. Use the central area of the blackboard for writing items which are to be concentrated on, one by one at particular points in the lesson. Ensure what you write can be seen and read clearly by everyone. When a particular point has been introduced, written up and dealt with, at least for the time being, the teacher should erase all of it.

168

2. See that there is enough space available for the items to be written

in a clear and orderly fashion and that when the written items have fulfilled the purpose they are completely rubbed off. But, those items which you think will be needed for reference again during the lesson, should be written on one side, in spaces allocated for the purpose. The procedure for this will be to write in the central area the words or sentences being considered at moment and to write again at the side what is to remain on the blackboard for the rest of the lesson. Write word with short explanations in English on the left hand side and sentences on the right handside. The pursopse of this arrangement is to make important items appear not once but twice and thus to get established in the minds on the learners. Items presented in the lesson, to the left and right of the central areas; this will help establishment and revision. Practice using the central areas for teaching structural tables (if your lessons require you to) Have the diagrams and drawings in the central area. Blackboard work thus becomes very important and unless the teacher is accurate and clear, his blackboard work will be of no use Blackboard drawing can be used when the teacher is presenting new words or grammatical patterns whose meaning cannot be showm by objects like a tree, an elephant etc. It can also be used to test the pupils pronunciation with out the teacher giving them clues by speaking or writing. For example, to test the sound /v/ and /w/ you can draw a violin, a compass showing the west, a window, a van, a wheel etc. You can use blackboard drawing to give the pupils materials for oral and then written composition, for this it is best to draw several pictures. A particularly effective way of using blackboard drawing for oral composition work is to draw one picture and then gradually change it by rubbing things out and drawing things in. for example, you can begin by drawing a man sitting at a desk with some papers and ask questions about them. Then draw an electric fan in the room. Discuss that. Then show it blowing the mans papers out of the window. Ask the pupils what has happened and why it has happened. Now erase the drawing of the chair, draw the chair lying on its back on the floor, and the man running to the door. Ask why the man is running, what he is going to do, why the chair

169

is on its back etc. when you have got the man into the street, erase the whole picture and draw a street scene. Show the man chasing his papers down towards the river, etc. talk and ask questions as you are drawing. Pupils enjoy getting a story developed before their eyes and will remember it clearly when you ask them to write the story after you have cleared the blackboard. Blackboard drawing, thus, helps you to teach and test English in realistic contexts which make the language a living practical thing. A good book on this will be The Blackboard Book by Flean or Walts (Longman Ltd). With a clock face we can teach students how to ask or give the time. Making a clock face. stick some white paper on a piece of cardboard and cut a circle from it. A square card about 20 cms in size, provides a circle which is enough to be seen by the whole class. Write the hour digits around the circle. Start with 12,6,3,9. in this way fit the other digits. Cut two hands for the clock, one short and fat, the other long enough to reach the rim. Blacken them and attach the, to the centre of the face using a split pin. A Small square of cardboard stuck behind the centre gives added strength. How to use the clock face The following sequence can be used : 1) Practice the hours out of order 1 to 12 oclock. Get the class to learn the questions too, What is the time, please ? Could you tell me the time ? i) Contrast past to for the minutes (4 past 10, 10 to 4 etc) ii) Contrast a quarter and a quarter to iii) Reach half-past In our situation, you must remember to add the word minutes when you are contrasting past and to. For example, five minutes past ten, ten minutes to eight. Teaching machine This machine may be as simple as a cardboard box with a slot into which a program can be introduced and with a knob which the student

170

turns as he completes one line or frame. On the other hand, it can be a highly complex, electronically controlled device into which the program is inserted. Material is presented in the smallest possible installments. The students learns immediately whether he has answered correctly. Programmed texts are excellent for individuals learning since not only can students work at their own pace but they receive immediate confirmation of the correctness of their responses. A few other common audio-visual aids are the radio, television, video tape recorder, record player, film, picture scenes, and a vocabulary wheel. A vocabulary wheel A large circle is made of cardboard or other stiff materials. On the circle at regular intervals pictures of a uniform size are placed either related to a central theme or without any specific relationship. On the circle is placed a second circle with a small window, the size of a picture. In the centre is a long paper fastener which permits the second circle to spin round so that the picture will appear in the window. The wheel may be used for the identification of objects, for forming original sentences based on the pictures, and for building up stories around the picture A note on language laboratory A language laboratory is a classroom or other area containing electronic and mechanical equipment designed and arranged to make foreign language learning easier than is usually possible without it. It is, in a sense, more restricted than the classroom as a means of development, since it can produce only half of the process of communication. The principal task of a language laboratory is to consolidate what has been introduced initially in the classroom. What are the forms of practice that can take place in a language laboratory? 1. Listening 2. Meaningful drills 3 Comprehension exercise 4. Problem solving . In the initial stage where a special pupil teacher rapport is necessary, the shorter attention span of slow learners and the special administrative

171

problems tend to serve as reasons against the full-scale use of the language laboratory. Advantages of a language laboratory
1. All students can practice simultaneously but individually.

2. The teacher is free to focus his attention on the individuals performance without interrupting the work of the group. 3. It provides untiring and unvarying modes of authentic speech for imitation and drill. 4. Recording can provide a variety of movies. 5. It facilitates the testing of listening comprehension. 6. Provide teachers who have sufficient preparation in understanding the language with an opportunity to improve their own proficiency. 7. Helps students to evaluate their own performance. 8. Can provide technical facilities for self-instruction with speacially designed instructional material. Briam Hill and Edith Baer commenting on the use of audio visual aids says, resource-based learning provides no magic solutions, and the teachers role in selecting material and controlling the learning process is crucial to success. When these aids are properly integrated into the course work they give a unique dimension to teaching. For the average mixed adult class, where understanding and responding in basic linguistic is likely to be a primary aim, these aids provide a realistic similar for oral to be a primary aim, these aids provide a realistic similar for oral and aural activities. In todays English syllabus, there is no importance to improve students oral English. So students completing studying English for may years still not able to speak English fluently where they want it. Hence there must be the full lab equipment to enhance the all skills of a student.

172

Our syllabus must also be designed and all the facilities should be arranged in the colleges for this purpose.

173