Decolonizing and Restructuring English Education in India.
Abstract
We have, in this paper, tried to discuss how colonization, thanks to Macaulay’s Minute has impacted the educational system in India over the past few centuries and the need to restructure the English education in India. It has been observed that introduction of Indian writings in English in addition to the original English writings to a large extent can help us learn English well.
Key Words: Decolonization, English language, Indian education system, Macaulay’s Minute, teachers, Indian writings in English
Introduction
India is a country with a long history in English speaking. But, the story of how English came to India is still contested a issue and an ideological debate in
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Globalization has re defined the country’s outlook. It gas turned its cities into hubs of various cultures and the common thread that holds them together is English. The language studies should help in developing broad, outward approach and the indication of global literature is a move towards this goal. The framework should ensure proper financial and technological assistance to schools and colleges as well as innovative teaching methodologies and techniques.
Role of Language in inculcating values
A careful section of texts and modes of instructions must be ensured so as to meet each age group’s requirements, be it the four aspects of language, i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing, or creative and imaginative aspects as well. The role of teachers, technology and infrastructure is quite important in this regard. Also, languages are considered to be the means to inculcate values and ethics into the young minds. Already, some of the books from NCERT and CBSE have altered their policies and framework in favor of these ideas. The progress, however, seems to be slow especially in the higher rungs.
Malkani, Gautam. Londonstani. Rotten English: a literary anthology. By Dohra Ahmad New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2007.
The author, Bill Bryson, briefly introduces and describes the history of English. In this book, The Mother Tongue, Bryson uses an interesting way and scholarly manner to guide readers through the various linguistic and social movements in the English language, the center of the world language as well as the export of manufactured goods. He gives different kinds of instances by comparing with various languages to present how the language merged together of interacting.
One of the most important factors in the British loss of control over India was the establishment of English as a unifying language. Prior to British colonisation, India was fragmented and multi-lingual, with 15 major languages and around 720 dialects. English served as a common ground for Indians, and allowed separate cultural and ethnic groups to identify with each other, something which had rarely if ever occurred before on a grand scale. Although it was mainly educated Indians of a privileged caste who spoke English, these were the most influential people in terms of acting as facilitators for nationalist ideas to be communicated throughout the populace. The publication of magazines and journals in English was also a great influence on the rise of Indian nationalism. Although most Indians received nationalist ideas orally, these journals allowed Indians who were literate in English to come into contact with the ideas of social and political reformers.
English is a foreign language but since the British came to India the language has an impact on several fields in education, literary effort and as a medium of communication. Indian English Literature refers to that body of work by writers from India, who writes in the English language and whose native or co-native language could be one of the numerous regional and indigenous languages of India. English literature in India is also linked with the works of writers of the Indian Diaspora born in India but residing elsewhere. A pioneer of this literature was Raja Ram Mohan Roy whose prose works is note worthy. There were poets who are considered the first of the Indian English
This purpose behind Kachru writing this article was to show how the views towards so-called ‘Third World Englishes’ were overly critical at the time this was written. He gives concrete examples of how there is a conflict in linguistics between those who saw those Englishes as being deficient, and the users of the language whom had adapted it for their own use. Furthermore, and I feel most important in the article, he offers seven ‘attitudinal sins’ against one of these linguistic experts, Prator, that used his writing to malign English spoken in India. By doing so Kachru turned the tables on those who had been trying to maintain the status quo. The first sin, ethnocentrism, shows that English is not something that is stable or even the same in the ‘first world’ countries. This could be used to show that English in other countries should not be seen as ‘lower’, but as a legitimate form of English. Second, wrong perceptions of British and America English, shows that there is no evidence for how American’s and Englishman view each other’s use of English. Third, not recognizing ‘Third World’ Englishes as culturally-bound, shows how Prator completely ignored how English was used culturally in the third world. Fourth, ignoring the systems of ‘Third World’ Englishes shows how Prator once again ignores all of the different variet...
Indian English writers have always been responsive to the changes in material reality and theoretical perspectives that have influenced and governed its study from the very beginning. At the earlier stage the fictional works of Mulk Raj Anand, R.K.Narayan and Raja Rao were mainly concerned with the down-trodden of the society, the middle class life and the expression of traditional cultural ethos of India. The writings of Bharati Mukherjee, Jhumpa Lahiri, Anita Desai, Kavita Dasvani, M.G. Vassanjee, V.S.Naipaul and Hari Kunjru, to name a few, provide an insight of the problems faced by the dislocated people in their adopted homes in a way that questions the traditional understanding of the concepts like home, nation, native and alien. Contemporary writers hailing from the previously colonized nations, particularly India, explore the forms of life that existed during the British rule and expose the subtle strategies employed to make the colonized
The unprecedented global spread English has experienced in the last years has paved the way for changes in the sociolinguistic profile of the language. In addition to the fact that new varieties have emerged, the number of functional domains in which English plays a role has increased significantly (Sharma, 2008). Currently, English is not only a tool serving national purposes, but also a language institutionalised in several former British and American colonies, and a lingua franca used worldwide. This phenomenon has raised concern about the classification of World Englishes, as well as, about the need to adapt English Language Teaching (ELT) to the new reality. Assuming Kachru’s Concentric Circles Model, this paper will argue that pedagogies based on English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) would be more consistent with the functions of English in Expanding-circle countries than native-centered teaching methods. With this objective, this essay will first give an overview of Kachru’s model, secondly, it will consider the implications ELF methodologies have for classroom practices, and, finally, the advantages and drawbacks of such a pedagogy will be evaluated.
Iyengar, K. R. S. ‘Indian Writing in English’ , New Delhi : Sterling Publication, 1985.
Iyengar, K. R. S. ‘Indian Writing in English’ , New Delhi : Sterling Publication, 1985.
According to Lionel Trilling, novel is a perpetual quest for reality and one of the most effective agents of our imagination. The Indian novel in English has now become an integral part of Indian English. In between 1920 and 1950’s the themes in Indian English Novels were mostly depicted on national movements for political independence. After Independence most of the Indian English Novelists shifted their focus from nationalistic zeal to find new themes and portray them. They began to delineate from their works and set about for the individual’s quest for the ‘self’.
The role and importance of English Language was also felt after the British people left India. English has been the medium of instruction in colleges, universities and many schools. The growing influence of English language and the difficulty in finding an alternative language acceptable to all Indians were the main reasons for the arrival of English Language. The University Education Commission (UGC), under the chairmanship of Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, was of the opinion that learning English would help Indians to update themselves with the developments happening in other parts of the world. English will promote national unity and nationalism. On the other hand, a language was needed for intra-national and international communication and thus, English was the best preference. Observing the need of English language, the report of the University Education Commission (1950) suggested that the teaching of English should be continued for higher education purposes. The views expressed at the UGC national workshop on syllabus reform in English (1977) states
Singh, G., & Kumari, D., 2011 History Revisited in Oral History by Nadine Gordimer, Language in India, February, Vol. 11 Issue 2, p 296-303, 8 p.
The measured dialogue between Reader and Editor serves as the framework through which Gandhi seeks to discredit accepted terms of civilization and denounce the English. These principle characters amply assist in the development o...
Since the establishment of the British Empire, the spread of English language has been experienced in many parts of the globe. The success can be attributed significantly to the colonization activities that the empire had embarked on. They would train the indigenous community English language as they suppressed the local dialect. This massive spread is termed as lingual imperialism (Osterhammel 2005, pp. 14). The English language has become the first and second language of many nations across the world, and this makes it an international language. The native’s proportion to the non-native who speaks English cannot be compared with nations in the isle of Britain and far are speaking the language .considering that more than 70%
It can be seen that English has become a global language, which is determined by lots of factors like history, culture and daily usefulness. Because of these factors, the number of people who speak English is still increasing now. English, as a significant part of social life gradually exerted profound impacts on education, job hunting and international communication. Also, it provides the whole world with a chance to share ideas and communicate freely. We are quite curious to see the further development of English as a lingua franca in the