Changes

India is a land of multies and the historical fact has proved the role of English in connecting people from north to south and east to west. To open the door of knowledge, window to the world and to perform the role of a convener  India needs English Language. In fact being monolingual is not a strength but  a handicap in present scenario.   

India is a land of multies and the historical fact has proved the role of English in connecting people from north to south and east to west. To open the door of knowledge, window to the world and to perform the role of a convener  India needs English Language. In fact being monolingual is not a strength but  a handicap in present scenario. D.P Pattanayak in his book Multi Lingualism and Mother tongue Education says, “The notion of one dominant language as the medium of instruction leaves thousands of children illiterate in their mother tongue and fosters low achievement levels in the dominant language itself . There is no doubt that Language is a major factor in the case of school dropouts and stagnation in Education. To a great extent the high rate of illiteracy especially in tribal areas, can be attributed to the acceptance of the notion of one dominant language in a state and the lack of proper language planning.” In order to over come this issue an English teacher can incorporate techniques like tales, riddles, proverbs, songs, and so on to makes the class easy to understand and interesting. The students can learn English language better in this way because these techniques will allow the students to make connections between the new English terminology and the equivalent words in their mother tongue or local language. This technique will helps them in easy English language attainment. And this is even recommended by National curriculum framework 2005.   

The success of any  Indian Language Classroom largely depends on the answers to the following questions:

The success of any  Indian Language Classroom largely depends on the answers to the following questions:

 Can Multilingualism be considered as an alternative method in ELT?

 Can Multilingualism be considered as an alternative method in ELT?

The monolingual classroom tends to be monotonous and unproductive at a larger perspective. The students tend to make same mistake due to their same background. It will reduce the learning capacities of the children. The Indian diaspora is versatile and hyper in interactions. Since ages Indian subcontinent gave shelter to many cultures, languages and practices. And English is one of those accepted, adopted, adapted language which has flourished a lot in modern times. It is an evitable entity in our socio-cultural-political context. Its a best way connect with each amid this multie state.  

The monolingual classroom tends to be monotonous and unproductive at a larger perspective. The students tend to make same mistake due to their same background. It will reduce the learning capacities of the children. The Indian diaspora is versatile and hyper in interactions. Since ages Indian subcontinent gave shelter to many cultures, languages and practices. There are 22 official languages 1162 existing languages with many more dialects and even there may be unknown languages. And English is one of those accepted, adopted, adapted language which has flourished a lot in modern times. It is an evitable entity in our socio-cultural-political context. Its a best way connect with each amid this multie state. It is crucial to understand both the medium and the context of what we are teaching , and what the student brings to the classroom, so that our teaching becomes an aid not a hindrance to the student’s potential. The deep rooted diversity factors influences both. Cultural diversity and the classroom monopoly are in continuous clash. It can only be addressed by multilingualism. 

Multilingual class basically consists of students hailing from different social and cultural background with different mother tongues and regional languages. And they try to interact, share and exchange their own experiences in the best way they can, which is best possible in their mother tongue or regional language only. A heterogeneous classroom usually face language barrier among themselves. The only way of their communication among these students can happen only in common language that is English. In this way English works as a medium to connect these two ends. This is the best way to acquire the target language also.  

Multilingual class basically consists of students hailing from different social and cultural background with different mother tongues and regional languages. And they try to interact, share and exchange their own experiences in the best way they can, which is best possible in their mother tongue or regional language only. A heterogeneous classroom usually face language barrier among themselves. The only way of their communication among these students can happen only in common language that is English. In this way English works as a medium to connect these two ends. This is the best way to acquire the target language also.  

The creative ways that can be incorporated in curriculum to adapt to multilingualism is to use modern ICT at its great length. Apart from teachers capabilities, the administration need to look in to providing ICT tools.  A bilingual text book is one of these solutions. Providing QR Codes will also support learning English in a multilingual classroom. Allowing a child to access bilingual, trilingual dictionaries in the classroom also provides a good support in acquiring English. Multilingualism supports English learning   

The creative ways that can be incorporated in curriculum to adapt to multilingualism is to use modern ICT at its great length. Apart from teachers capabilities, the administration need to look in to providing ICT tools.  A bilingual text book is one of these solutions. Providing QR Codes will also support learning English in a multilingual classroom. Allowing a child to access bilingual, trilingual dictionaries in the classroom also provides a good support in acquiring English. Multilingualism supports English learning.   

 

Innovative methods should be integrated into English language teaching to bring synchronization between English and local languages. Teachers have to create an atmosphere that all the students should learn language skills equally but as per their mother tongue influence they understand differently. All the students shouldn’t be given same type of activities. Another feasible way to improve the learning output is to print the textbooks which are bilingual/ multilingual, which will facilitate positive outcomes and it will also be helpful for the teachers to interact with students otherwise teachers have to refer other books or go unanswered. The students can use their L1 proficiency to improve their English Language skills. What the learner brings to the class in the form of L1 can be used to trigger use of English Language and the L2 text need not be expected to be entirely monolingual but can also be a code switched text.    

[[Category:CELT in Kannada]]

[[Category:CELT in Kannada]]