Working with more than one lakh students from several institutions across the country for developing their competencies in communication, has resulted in interesting discoveries. One of them is associated with Communicative English. As a part of the intervention, around 2,400 students from three different institutions were taken through workshops on the subject with particular reference to their suggestions for developing and improving their communicating skill in English. Each group consisted of six students with one student as the leader who would prepare the report of the discussions. These workshops as one unit of a learning and development intervention on employability was conducted in eleven batches of a little more than 200 students each with each batch divided into 30 to 35 groups. The leaders submitted the suggestions in a written format after discussions. Some of the suggestions were repeated by many groups.
The compiled suggestions of around 2,400 students provided not only an insight into their thought lines about one of their important needs but also gave an opportunity to think about possibilities of enhancing the competencies of students in Communicative English.
After collecting and compiling the opinions of the students, a workshop on the conduct of training in Communicative English for them to enhance their communication in English, particularly in its Spoken form, was conducted with a participation of 84 professors from different institutions who also brought up several suggestions alongside those of the students.
Undoubtedly, all students were of the opinion that their institution has to take care of interventions for Communicative English, especially where a large number of students come from vernacular medium institutions or rural areas. Almost sixty percent of the participants were in favour of an organised learning and development intervention on Communicative English in the institution itself immediately after students were admitted and before the starting of regular classes. They also thought that the first two weeks of the first semester could only be allotted for learning of Communicative English. They even suggested that a special course fee may be charged so as to make students see the importance of the intervention. However, some participants expressed their anxiety that some of the students may join late, and therefore, they may miss the intervention.
More than half of the participants recorded their opinion that all teachers in the college, should speak only in English to the students and insist on the students replying in English not only in the classroom but also outside. This, they thought, would offer plenty of opportunities for students to respond in casual conversations. They were of the opinion that collective conversations between and among teachers and students would prompt the latter to communicate in the same way in English language whenever they will also interact elsewhere. In some of the notes attached to the suggestions in the report of the leaders of the groups, they had mentioned that the major problem in conversations was in responding to specific casual matters while responding in subject matters taught in the classroom was not as difficult as responding in casual conversations even on simple subjects.
An important suggestion that the students brought up in their group discussions was the issue of converting classroom work through group discussions. A little more than 40% of the groups suggested that every teacher in every class should conduct one group discussion on any minor topic of the subject dealt with in that lecture. They thought that this would give them an opportunity to discuss subject matter more thoroughly than comprehending through listening to the lectures or the explanations.
There were suggestions for conducting orientation intervention by teachers during the first semester on the importance of learning to communicate in English. It will be necessary to do this in specific groups of vernacular medium students who would have joined the institution. Such sessions may make use of newspaper reading or textbook reading as a practice so as to provide chances for students to open their mouth well and pronounce words. It was suggested that the teachers may note words which are mispronounced and offer the correct pronunciation to students.
Yet another suggestion was to offer tutorial sessions in Communicative English by senior students who were good at speaking in English. A batch of students of the first semester may be attached to a particular senior student of the third or fourth year. These could meet together according to their convenience and take up one unit or the other of Communicative English. Some ready-made materials could be made available as worksheets which could be done by the first semester students and the senior students could guide them. About 35% of the students thought this would be very effective. Some groups suggested that students as guides could be selected from the first semester itself, among those who speak English well. They thought that this would avoid the play of superiority by the seniors.
One suggestion to enhance the speaking communicating competencies of some of the students who are good at speaking could be to organise public speaking sessions and debate competitions. This would satisfy those students who are able to speak in English well and who aspire to improve their Communicative English. Through such sessions, participation of students who do not use Communicative English very satisfactorily as listeners would help in enhancing their Communicative English competencies. Some suggested that there could be a Spoken English Club which would meet regularly.
About 30% of the student groups suggested exhibiting short English movies in class to be followed with a discussion on various aspects. They thought this should be led by any teacher who would know the nuances of films and filmmaking with special reference to the use of the language. The institution could have a library of short films which could be lent to the students once a week during the first semester.
One interesting suggestion was about declaring one day in a week as English Speaking Day. Every teacher and student in the institution should speak only in English from the beginning to the end of the day. One group went up to the extent of suggesting to collect on the spot fine of small amounts for speaking in any other language from both students and teachers. Such a fine could be imposed only by teachers and not by students. There was also a suggestion that if there was a student who did not speak in any other language, except in English could also be given an incentive of some gift for speaking only in English.
Some groups suggested that students should be given appointments for meeting professors. The first semester students may be divided into groups according to the total number of teachers who regularly teach them and it should become the responsibility of both the student and the teacher to meet at least once a week, at least for five minutes to speak to each other in English. Some groups suggested that it could also become training for facing interviews.
Short story books in English being made available for groups of students would make them read at home. This would increase the comprehending competence and support their communicating in English. One batch could have a set of books which could be distributed in rotation by a representative of the class who could be given the charge of giving in rotation such books. Also, different groups may be made and some of the short stories could be discussed by each of the groups in class.
There were also suggestions on diary writing in English, some grammar classes for correction intermittently, cultural programmes in English every month, even class-wise, competitions in speaking, online classes in Spoken English and the like as parts of the suggestions made by different student groups.
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Prof. Sunney Tharappan, is Director of College for Leadership and HRD, Mangaluru. He trains and writes and lives in Mangaluru.
Next week – Our People Speak the ‘Best’ English