I am not afraid of English Initiative

English is considered as the third most spoken native language in the world, after Chinese and Spanish. It has become an essential language for all kinds of professional and individual goals. Clear understanding of the language will help people reach fluency and change their life in a competitive environment. For children studying in government primary schools, the Haryana School Education Department has launched an initiative named “I am not afraid of English” which is aimed at introducing English right from Class one.

Background

In March 2018 examination conducted by the Haryana’s Board of Secondary Education, 67% students passed in English. However, the result was below 60% in Palwal, Mewat and Yamuna Nagar. Therefore, a campaign has been launched to make students listen and speak English. The sentences which will be taught are the ones used in everyday life and this will help them to overcome the fear of language, apart from feeling confident that they can converse in English. The Haryana government aims to train teachers in almost 200 primary schools to ensure that students as young as class One are able to understand and speak at least 20 sentences in English every month.

Features of the Initiative

• Capacity building of teachers: The initiative aims to enable teachers to help the students to learn, read, write and speak English. A booklet containing 1,000 sentences/phrases has been prepared by National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT). It contains 200 sentences per grade for all the five grades at the primary level of schooling.
• Training: One Junior basic teacher and one Block Resource Person per block has been trained to make the students learn one sentence every day (minimum 20 per month for 10 months) in each class. A student who is in class One, will be able to learn (read/write and speak) at least 1,000 sentences till s/he graduates to the primary level.
• Language labs: Six language labs have been established in selected Model Sanskriti Schools across the state to facilitate digital learning and improve the listening and speaking skills of students.

A mere introduction of initiatives or schemes shall not help to achieve the desired goals and objectives, rather their proper implementation with adequate infrastructure in government schools is essential. However, it’s a praiseworthy effort from the government who has understood the real importance of learning English language among primary school students. In a globalized world, many companies need employees who can communicate with partners and clients all over the world. Even to pass tests like the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) and IELTS (International English Language Testing System) to study in universities across the globe, English proficiency is mandatory. Therefore, these types of initiatives or schemes may prepare students well in advance for their future development and be confident in their future endeavors.