| Regressive ELT… in God's Own Country? | | | | Indian Universities are avidly planning the |
| | | | introduction of PG courses in Communicative |
| (An article originally submitted for | | | | English! |
| publication in the daily newspaper, The New | | | | |
| Indian Express, under the title The Affluent | | | | What ultimately?…Covert Strangulation? |
| Apathy vis -a-vis The New English Curriculum | | | | |
| : A Recipe for Disaster in God's Own | | | | Those new generation teachers who are |
| Country…? but was not published! | | | | engaged in applying the Philosophy of the New |
| | | | curriculum, in Kerala are more or less in |
| The following version save the first two | | | | an inebriated condition. The improvement in |
| paragraphs was submitted for publishing in | | | | pass percentage in English in recent times |
| the popular Indian weekly, | | | | in secondary schools have made them blind |
| | | | to the lowering of linguistic competence. |
| The Week … and again was not published | | | | Perhaps the best reference we have in |
| .. Thanks to free online publishing this | | | | literature to this is, 'Newspeak' of |
| article will now see light!!!) | | | | Nineteen Eighty Four by George Orwell. |
| | | | 'Newspeak' we know was designed to diminish |
| Abstract | | | | the range of thoughts and this purpose is |
| | | | helped by reducing the choice of words to a |
| The south India state of Kerala, popular to | | | | minimum. ELT in Kerala too has pathetically |
| tourists as God's Own Country has witnessed | | | | reduced itself to the Newspeak-type language |
| experiments in Education such as the District | | | | acquisition! The emphasis on Communicative |
| Primary Education Programme (DPEP). Then | | | | Language Teaching, the decision to drop the |
| followed a revision of textbooks and these | | | | direct teaching of grammar and the shunning |
| have gone a long way in overhauling the | | | | of purely Literature - based textbooks in |
| education system in the state. | | | | the Government schools where the common man |
| | | | sends his child and where the New Curriculum |
| The author, a former faculty of the Regional | | | | is vigorously introduced, results in the |
| Institute of English South India, Bangalore, | | | | common man's child developing a limited |
| critically examines the introduction of the | | | | perspective of language! But language, we |
| New English Curriculum with its excessive | | | | know is actually intended to serve as ones |
| insistence on 'discourse-based language | | | | food for thought! Could this insistence on |
| teaching'. The author believes that an | | | | Communicative Language teaching be a covert |
| apathy of sorts has crept in some where and | | | | attempt to paralyze the development of |
| in the article attempts to give a clear | | | | intellect of those attending Government |
| perspective of the problems the 'apathy' is | | | | schools ? |
| likely to create for the people of God's Own | | | | |
| Country. | | | | Lesson for 'communikats' from History |
| | | | |
| Regressive ELT… in God's Own Country? | | | | Its worth recalling how a wrong approach to |
| | | | grammar resulted in the emergence of |
| Background history | | | | 'grammarian' a term of reproach as Chambers |
| | | | Cyclopedia (1727-41,1779-86) puts it. The |
| 1986 saw the revision of syllabus in English | | | | term meant 'a person wholly inattentive to |
| in the South Indian state of Kerala , which | | | | the minutiae of language, industriously |
| tourists extol as "God's Own Country". The | | | | employed about words and phrases; and |
| texts basically reflected the | | | | incapable of perceiving the beauties, the |
| Communication Approach, with an admixture of | | | | delicacy, finesse, …etc of a |
| cognitive approaches. The controlled | | | | sentiment'. Can we use the term 'communikats' |
| gradation of vocabulary and structures were | | | | to describe those insisting on |
| dropped. DR. N. Vedamani Manuel, the former | | | | communication as the only objective of ELT? A |
| Dean and Professor of Education of the | | | | derogatory term of the kind is likely to be |
| University of Kerala and a scholar | | | | used sooner or later for the sheer fact that |
| extraordinaire, who has no axe to grind, | | | | those new generation teachers are |
| commented on the introduction thus: "When | | | | assiduously engaged in introducing a |
| introduced a vast majority of teachers did | | | | 'diarrohea of discourses' in the English |
| not have the competency to transact these | | | | language classroom as the one and only |
| materials. Perhaps 5 to 10% of pupils in the | | | | language learning activity and ignoring the |
| superior schools profited by these . The | | | | teaching of literary texts that actually |
| examination system was traditional as before. | | | | help in developing a fine literary |
| So in practice communication materials were | | | | sensibility. |
| converted to a set of question answers (aided | | | | |
| by bazaar notes) to prepare for the external | | | | Dogs tell tales too!! |
| exam objectives. The real objectives of the | | | | |
| scheme were bypassed." | | | | It is common knowledge that one can often |
| | | | come across very intelligent and talented |
| New Directions (or misdirection ?) in English | | | | children even in families of the common man. |
| Language teaching | | | | Analogically speaking we can come across pet |
| | | | dogs, some with traits of pedigree breeds in |
| Perhaps the most noticeable of all changes | | | | families of ordinary folks. Such families may |
| in the recently revised secondary | | | | not have the financial resources to feed |
| curriculum in the state of Kerala, is the | | | | this pet dog, the kind of good quality meat |
| focus on communication, cognitive | | | | and milk normally given to pedigree dogs like |
| approaches, activity and child-centred | | | | the Alsatian. So they serve it the leftovers |
| approaches. This, no doubt is a welcome | | | | of the family or perhaps rationed rice. This |
| change and after all language is essentially | | | | dog will not complain nor bite the hand that |
| meant for communication. But should the | | | | feeds it. It gobbles up whatever is given, to |
| emphasis be on communication alone? What | | | | satisfy its hunger and has a famished |
| will come about if all activities are aimed | | | | existence. If this be so, imagine what |
| at communication skills alone in the | | | | happens to those intelligent and talented |
| language classroom? These are questions that | | | | children who are given only a poor exposure |
| one cannot afford to ignore. But what exactly | | | | to the English language ? Dogs grow and |
| is now being transacted in the classroom ?. | | | | perish usually within the compound wall of |
| Let me once again quote Prof. Manuel who | | | | the family…but not necessarily human |
| seriously studied the whole new ELT venture | | | | beings. Its frightening to conjure up the |
| in Kerala: "The examination scheme has | | | | kind of existence the child is likely to have |
| changed permitting more activity by the | | | | once it enters the world of adults! Well, |
| pupils. Under these conditions, the better | | | | educationists have drawn several insights |
| pupils are likely to achieve far more than | | | | from the Pavlovian dog... and might go on to |
| they did earlier. They are more free from the | | | | justify the kind of stuff being delivered |
| fetters of the teacher-controlled uniform | | | | today in the language classrooms. But dear |
| rhythm, with a chance of achieving many of | | | | reader , you and I know that the human mind |
| the expected objectives. But the ordinary and | | | | never works like that of an animal. If you |
| below average pupils pass through the motions | | | | are sensible, and if rotten food is |
| of the activity without really realising the | | | | served, you will say 'No'… You will |
| higher objectives. Since the evaluation | | | | shun the person who serves such food and turn |
| procedures are liberalised, many of these | | | | to those that serve better quality food. The |
| glaring mistakes (and failure to really get a | | | | point I am trying to make is that one may |
| real control of English language even at SSLC | | | | know, that one has every right to get |
| level by most pupils) have not got focussed. | | | | better quality education but one may fail to |
| The availability of bazaar notes written from | | | | get it , if one has a slavish existence! |
| the old perspectives, violating all the | | | | |
| modern principles, and supplying material for | | | | Are Malayalees really aiming to tick smart? |
| satisfying the project assignments by copying | | | | |
| from them has also been a factor in | | | | The greatest harm all this does to education |
| distorting the objectives. There is reason to | | | | is that Malayalees do not realize the kind of |
| believe that there are some high level | | | | intellectually impoverished citizens for the |
| resource persons behind the production of | | | | global world which they will be nurturing |
| materials. But it would seem that the lower | | | | in Government run schools where the new |
| rungs of resource persons do not have these | | | | English Currriculum is diligently being |
| competencies and most teachers have not | | | | implemented. Some of them are likely to lack |
| imbibed them. The new curriculum requires a | | | | a sense of grace in language use and are |
| high level of competency in English is | | | | most likely to be thoroughly ignorant of |
| several dimensions and in pedagogically | | | | literary classics. It is a flaw which would |
| transacting them in the spirit of the new | | | | be apparently poignant when the learner of |
| scheme. It must be recorded that the highest | | | | the present system attempts to communicate as |
| level of pupils now really achieve English | | | | a votary of the arteries that the Techno |
| competencies - several times what they were | | | | Park or the Smart city of the little state |
| attaining even five years ago - because of | | | | of Kerala. And who knows, these 'lesser |
| the higher visible targets and more freedom. | | | | mortals' may one day directly or indirectly |
| But the ordinary and below average pupils | | | | serve all sections of our society! |
| have cumulative deficiencies in English | | | | |
| competencies - which may be three to six | | | | What Malayalees need today is the concerted |
| years for most". | | | | efforts of experienced educationists |
| | | | especially of the older generation, the civil |
| Struggle for survival…? | | | | servants, elected representatives, and of |
| | | | course the affluent class who can be willing |
| It is interesting to note the kind of | | | | sponsors to chalk out a meaningful programme |
| individuals who end up as the new generation | | | | for English language teaching in God's Own |
| English language teachers in God's own | | | | Country . Failing to do so could result in |
| country. Some have a bachelors degree in | | | | Malayalees failing to effectively utilize the |
| Functional or Communicative English . They | | | | products of their 'Smart City' or Techno |
| are a breed of English teachers to whom the | | | | Park which is striving to make Malayalees the |
| magnum opus of Joyce or Eliot are simply | | | | Children of a Greater God ! |
| beyond their grasp and the intellectual | | | | |
| masterpieces of FR Leavis or Walter Benjamin | | | | Conclusion |
| , shamefully unpalatable! After all, to pass | | | | |
| the MA English correspondence course which | | | | Experienced teachers of the older generation |
| over a dozen Universities in South India | | | | see the kind of English language teaching |
| offers never requires a smattering of the | | | | given in God's Own Country a kind of |
| literary sensibility of the stalwarts of | | | | trivialization of English language teaching |
| English literature !...Baazar guides could | | | | (ELT). The over emphasis on teaching |
| always assure the acquiring of a PG | | | | 'language functions' and 'discourses' as part |
| degree in flying colours! Could this be the | | | | of Communicative Language Teaching and the |
| reason for advocating Communicative Language | | | | neglect of English literature, the older |
| Teaching in the classroom? | | | | generation of teachers believe , impoverishes |
| | | | English language education and makes literary |
| New … but ill conceived | | | | sense which gives grace to ones use of |
| | | | language, difficult to cultivate in learners. |
| A few other time tested approaches to English | | | | |
| Language Teaching (ELT) is also being | | | | If we don't guide and help the common man who |
| ignored in the teaching of English in Kerala | | | | sends his child to a Government run school, |
| . These include the use of TV , Film and the | | | | to see the flaws in the kind of English |
| New media for language teaching . But the | | | | language education their children receive, |
| hitch is that today, English Curriculum | | | | we will one day regret the kind of products |
| developers in Kerala dub all other forms of | | | | this system is likely to generate .Much |
| English language teaching as something worth | | | | water would in the next few days flow under |
| ignoring. The result is that Communicative | | | | the magnificent Bharatha Puzha rail bridge |
| Language Teaching and discourse- based | | | | and what will be will be for English Language |
| teaching and testing continues to receive a | | | | Teaching in Kerala unless something |
| privileged status. Unfortunately enough the | | | | concrete and constructive is done soon. |
| trend is not likely to halt because many | | | | |