LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 15:4 April 2015
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.
         C. Subburaman, Ph.D. (Economics)
         N. Nadaraja Pillai, Ph.D.
Assistant Managing Editor: Swarna Thirumalai, M.A.

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Copyright © 2015
M. S. Thirumalai
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Communicative Competency in English at Tertiary Level –
Need for an Updated Approach

V. David Arputha Raj and Dr. R. Saravana Selvan

Indian Students Lack Communicative Skills in English

Indian students are seen often complaining ‘I know what I mean but I do not know how to express it in English’. English is a second as well as a foreign language for them. To be a professional in any field, every learner must be well versed in both the form and the content. The form (grammar and vocabulary), the content (information and ideas) and their interdependence must be focused for the effective delivery. But the present learners are found giving importance to the content rather than the form. This lack of communicative competency results in losing job opportunities in homeland as well as in foreign countries, even though the candidates appear to be well qualified in their technical and professional part.

Importance of English as a Library Language

English is a ‘library language’, and this plays a very significant role in the learning process. More than 80% of the study materials for all the courses are available in English language only. Without competent knowledge in English, students cannot understand the ideas given in the library sources. Even after completing twelve years of learning English in schools and getting a degree in their field, graduates are unable to speak fluently in English, whereas the boys selling goods in tourist places speak English boldly and fluently in order to sell their products. As the maxim goes ‘Necessity is the mother of invention’, the boys in tourist places have the necessity to speak in English. But the learners of English as a Second Language (ESL) lack that kind of practice to develop their communicative skills.

Reasons Offered for the Lack of Communicative Skills

Over the years, many reasons have been adduced for the learners’ lack of communicative competence at tertiary institutions, even after they have undergone proficiency courses to develop their communicative ability. The institutions are sometimes accused of not designing a syllabus which meets the actual needs of the learners and also for not applying appropriate teaching pedagogy, which result in a gap between communicative competence and actual performance. The learners must be taught how to use the language effectively to inform, engage and influence others to change policies and practices for the better. Communicative competency emphasizes communication as both the means and the ultimate goal of learning a language. Learners must be taught the basic understanding of communicative competency that ‘it is not what you say that is important but the way you say it’.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

David Arputharaj

V. DAVID ARPUTHA RAJ
Ph.D. Research Scholar
Department of English & Foreign Languages
Bharathiar University
Coimbatore - 641046
Tamilnadu, India
dave476@gmail.com

Dr. R. SARAVANA SELVAN

Dr. R. SARAVANA SELVAN
Professor and Head
Department of English & Foreign Languages
Bharathiar University
Coimbatore – 641046
Tamilnadu, India
raja_saravanan@rediffmail.com

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