English language in Bangladesh

In compliance with the need, students, businessmen, servicemen and people in common have consciously been learning English to meet the challenges of this century as well as to ensure their place in a competitive world. To meet the demand of this situation many English medium schools have been set up throughout the country and many others will be coming.

Provided this, a good number of English language teaching centres or institutes have grown up with an eye to achieve the objectives of the people in general. However, the feedback of all these endeavours does not commonly reflect the expectation as far as the country's demand is concerned. In fact, the target of learning English will hardly be achieved unless English is at a wider range implicated in the Bengali medium schools also. Below are some points of view to discuss the methods and approaches to teaching and learning of English language as well as to discuss how the prospect of the target language can be achieved more effectively and efficiently.

English is apparently a foreign language in our country rather than a second language although it is being used to some extent like a second language especially in English medium schools, where English is used as a language of instruction, examination, and evaluation. On the other hand, this language has not yet been geared up in an effective way in our mainstream schools and colleges despite experiments every now and then by the National Curriculum Board and others for the students' skill development with special emphasis on speaking skill, but the scale of learning the target language is not yet satisfactory partly because of the lack of favourable ambience where students or learners have to use the TL (Target Language) and partly because of the lack of skilled teachers who are to manipulate the TL among the students.

In the long search for the best way of teaching a foreign language, hundreds of different approaches or methods have been devised. Each method is based on a particular view of language learning and usually recommends the use of the specific set of techniques and materials which may have to be implemented in a fixed sequence. Ambitious claims are often made for a new teaching method, but none has yet been shown to be intrinsically superior. It is recognized that there are several ways of reaching the goal of FL (Foreign Language) competence and the teachers need to be aware of a range of methods. So it is frequently necessary to introduce an eclectic approach in which aspects of different methods are selected to meet the demands of the learners in particular teaching situations.

As has already been mentioned, many approaches or methods have been devised for teaching a foreign language, we will now see at a glance some methods and approaches to teaching and learning a foreign or a second language.

The Grammar Translation Method: This method was particularly influential in the 19th century. It is based on the meticulous analysis of the written language in which translation, exercises, reading comprehension and the written imitation of texts play a primary role. Learning mainly involves the mastery of grammatical rules and memorization of a long list of literary vocabulary. There is little emphasis laid on the activities of listening and speaking.

The Direct Method, on the other hand, is an approach which is based on the active involvement of the learners in speaking and listening to the foreign language in realistic everyday situation. This is also known as the oral or natural method. No use of the learners' mother tongue is made, rather they are encouraged to think in the foreign language and not to translate into or out of it. A great deal of emphasis is placed on good pronunciation, often introducing students to phonetic transcription. Formal grammatical rules and terminology are avoided. Though this method attracts interest and enthusiasm it is not an easy approach to use in school. In the artificial environment of the class room, it is difficult to generate natural learning situations and to provide everyone with sufficient practice.

The Audio-lingual Method, also known as aural-oral method, is an approach which derives from the intensive training in spoken language given to American military personnel during the Second World War, which resulted a high degree of listening and speaking skill being achieved in a relatively short span of time. The emphasis is an everyday spoken conversation with particular attention being paid to natural pronunciation. Languages is seen as a process of habit formation. Structural patterns in dialogues about everyday situations are imitated and drilled (first in choral speech, then individually) until the learners' responses become automatic.

The origins of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) are to be found in the changes of the British language teaching tradition dating from the late 1960s. Since the mid 1970s the scope of communicative language teaching has expanded. Both American and British proponents now see this method as an approach that aims to make communicative competence as the goal of language teaching and to develop procedure for the teaching of the four language skills that acknowledge the interdependence of language and communication. This approach has been developed as a reaction away from grammar based approaches such as aural-oral approach in Audio-lingual Method. Teaching materials in communicative approach emphasize the process of communication such as using language appropriately in different types of situation, using language to perform different kinds of task e.g. to solve puzzle, to get information, to ask question etc., using language for social interaction with other people. Although the grammatical rules are taught to form grammatically correct sentences, the emphasis is rigorously laid on how, when and where to use these sentences and to whom. As a matter of fact, this approach rather than reading and writing primarily focuses on the knowledge of rules of speaking that is, knowing how to begin and end conversations, knowing what topics may be talked about in different types of speech events, knowing which Address Forms would be used with different persons one speaks to and in different situations. It also lays stress on knowing how to use and respond to different types of SPEECH ACTS such as request, apologies, thanks and invitation.

I have been working in an English medium school for considerably a long period of time and have experienced how the beginners start manipulating language through listening, speaking, reading, and writing. They are able to pick up the commonly used words, phrases and sentence structures when listening and speaking to teachers and when reading and writing the text. Primarily the mistakes are committed as in the process of learning, but the errors gradually decrease as their maturity increases. Ultimately, they become fluent English speakers among whom some turn into outstanding speakers.

The Parliamentary Debate Competition on BTV may be a substantial example of this fact. It will not be impertinent here to mention about the Language Acquisition Device (LAD) advocated by American Linguist Noam Chomsky and others. According to this device, a child is born with an innate capacity for language development that in the human being is in some way restructured towards the development of language, so that when the child is exposed to language, certain language structuring principles automatically commence to operate. This model of language learning is regarded as Language Actuation Device (LAD) in which children learn language by being exposed to it.

With enlightenment of the empirical experiences I would like to put forward some proposals with a view to expediting the teaching and learning of English language in Bengali medium schools and colleges. The primary emphasis should be paid on reading and writing skills, as English is a foreign language here to the students. This will rather help them to prepare for listening and speaking skills at the next phase. In fact, all the four skills after a certain level of teaching will commence operating in combination among the students under the theory from simple to complex. For reading skill development, both skimming and scanning techniques should be introduced to students for eliminating general as well as specific information in the form of reading comprehension. Writing should be much more creative than mimicry memorization. No topics should be given to students beforehand for premeditation or memorization prior to the test. However, these can be given for practice in developing their ideas, skills of organization and elaboration of thoughts. Evaluation of a composition should be based not only on structure of sentences and vocabulary (accuracy of language) but also on information and ideas and how they are organised. This kind of practice will certainly help them integrate their ideas as well as the language which ultimately will result in them a satisfactory level of writing skill. This sort of evaluation in composition for instance, is followed at O Levels and widely practised in English medium schools. Additionally, the students should be taught certain standard words and phrases that are used in English when we make a request, suggestion, apology, information, complaint, etc formally and informally.

For the development of listening and speaking skills, the students or learners should be taught common words, phrases and sentence structures in aural-oral form with special emphasis on natural pronunciation as far as possible. Structural patterns in dialogue should be exposed to the students until their responses become habituated. Till this time they will be guided by a set of necessary words, phrases and dialogues and of course, by the teachers. At the later stage, they will be given opportunities to build up their communicative competence in relatively a free association where they will manipulate the language more on their own choice. Listening skill on the other hand, can be upgraded by providing audio-visual facilities if possible. At least a cassette player can be furnished in the class room for the development of listening skill connected with the sound system (phonetics) of English language especially at the elementary level in schools. This is the best way to ensure the learning of natural pronunciation and stress patterns of English among the students. Besides the teachers can also play important roles in the respect of this particular aspect of the language. Apart from all these steps, a separate examination paper can be introduced to students of schools and colleges, which will be based on aspects of spoken English and the students, like other subjects, have to pass this subject too. This sort of subject will mentally help them achieve a positive attitude toward something which is till now the weakest part of their education, that is speaking skill. This subject at a later period can gradually be included in the board examination depending upon the success of it at school and college levels.

The above stated proposal for the development of English language in our country, however, depends on the implementation level to a fair degree. It will also need intensive training for the teachers with a view to assuring maximum feedback by implicating the inputs and necessary variables. And this needs a concerted effort undertaken by the government as well as by other concerned organizations for achieving the target which can be made possible under a certain education policy designed to practise throughout the country. Only then we ensure the optimal scale of learning English and using it more efficiently in a wider range of interaction with people at home and abroad. What has been possible in a neighbouring country of ours can also be made possible in our country, provided a long-term policy is premeditated and properly guided thereafter.

To sum up, I feel that all measures and endeavours we take up today, in terms of building the foundation of English language, will bring forth a tremendously positive result as far as our whole nation is concerned when the whole world will turn into a global village sooner or later in the current century.

Md Ikbal Azam is an English teacher at an English medium school in Dhaka.