TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE IN INDIA: A STUDY

* Dr. Y. Rajasekhar 1 and V. Krishna Murthy 2 . 1. Asst. Professor of English, Govt. Degree College for Men, Kurnool. 2. Lecturer in English, S.A.R.M. Degree College, Allagadda. ...................................................................................................................... Manuscript Info Abstract ......................... ........................................................................ Manuscript History

It is to note that today's world considers English as a global language because there has never been a language so widely spread or spoken by many people as English .English is one of the primary languages that is taught almost everywhere in the world .It has a lot of extended reach and influence around the world .The India has a tremendous amount of need to learn English as a second language .Every educational system has certain objectives which aim at bringing about desirable changes in pupil .In order to bring about those changes, the institutions arrange learning experience .The success of learning can be judged only in terms of the changes brought about by this experience and evaluation.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………….... Introduction:-
It is significant to note that English has become a world language rather than the language of only the English speaking countries such as the UK and the USA because the number of the people who use English as a means of communication exceeds much more than the number of the people who speak it as their mother tongue. In the case of English in India, more than two centuries, India has been directly and indirectly had influence of the language , English on all the fields, such as Education, Medical Science, etc. It examines the present status of English as a second language in India. This article lists different phases of learning English, defines language and identifies the factors that affect second language learning. It also asserts that it is essential for a language teacher to understand what a student is intending to say or communicate. This understanding forms the basis for a teacher to select a proper approach, method and technique that would be useful to his or her students. This paper also discusses different problems faced by teacher and learners of English in India. It also explains the need for a teacher to be resourceful and knowledgeable to meet the grave situation and promote better standards of achievement.

Teaching English As A Second Language:-
The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), U.S., defines English language proficiency in this way: A fully English proficient student is able to use English to ask questions, to understand teachers, and reading materials, to test ideas, and to challenge what is being asked in the classroom. Four language skills contribute to proficiency as follows: 1. Reading -the ability to comprehend and interpret text at the age and grade appropriate level. 2. Listening -the ability to understand the language of the teacher and instruction, comprehend and extract information, and follow the instructional discourse through which teachers provide information. 3. Writing -the ability to produce written text with content and format fulfilling classroom assignments at the age and grade-appropriate level.
Corresponding Author:-Y. Rajasekhar. Address:-Asst. Professor of English, Govt. Degree College for Men, Kurnool. 2356 4. Speaking -the ability to use oral language appropriately and effectively in learning activities (such as peer tutoring, collaborative learning activities, and question/answer sessions) within the classroom and in social interactions within the school. Hence, the teacher should keep in mind while teaching English as a second language to the students.

English As A Second Language In India:-
English in India is a question of linguistic centralism while the other Indian languages lead to linguistic regionalism…A foreign languages existing so firmly and distinctly has posed a problem to the country .Yet the language problem became more complicated without any practical solution .In the process of teaching-learning ,the teacher should try to understand the student first .Then only he/she can enable the students to understand his/her teaching .Theory with practice on some of the teaching topics ,may enable the students to understand the concept easily. The growing modernization and internationalism in the world prevented us from doing away with the English language .Besides ,Indian languages are associated with tradition and are understood to be anti-modern .Therefore , a complete switchover to the Indian languages would lead to educational chaos and complete isolation from the developments on the international arena .We could not risk this because of the cultural ,social ,political and economic reasons .Hence ,this situation requires an urgent solution .
The only resolution that could be thought of was a need for coexistence of English with Indian languages .As a result, we had to define the role of English in India and its relationship with Indian languages .As a result, we had to define the role of English in India and its relationship with Indian languages .Further, the role of English was strengthened and consolidated as English was recognized and perceived as:  The language of knowledge(science and technology)  The language of liberal, modern thinking  A window on the world  The language of library Thus, the three language formula came in to existence. This policy was proposed in 1956 by the central advisory board on education and was adopted at the Chief Ministers conference in1961. The policy aimed at making English an integral part of the school education in India .this naturally restricted the learning and use of Hindi and the students started learning English as second language.
Common problems affecting teaching / learning english as a second language in india:-There are so many factors that affect the teaching-learning process in India. The students in India can be categorized into two; the one is having the regional language as medium of study from the primary level and the other is having English as the medium of study. Hence, the problem of teaching English as a second language, to the Indian students starts from the pre schooling. Teaching of English in India has always been in difficult circumstances .This is so because of the large population of the country, bleak economic conditions, the cultural diversities, etc Excess strength in class:-With our large population we do not find any class where students number is less than 60.As the student in the class are always heterogeneous, there is hardly any time to pay attention to the weak or creative child .Even the average child do not get enough experience in the use of language .There is no scope for individual attention. This certainly, hinders the intellectual growth.

Lack of exposure:-
Most of the Indian students are exposed to their mother tongues .They do not get adequate opportunities either to listen to or speak in English .Because of the poor social and economic backgrounds ,they neither get enough exposure to English outside the classroom to improve themselves.

Lack of motivation:-
As students do not find any immediate need for English, their interest naturally lacks .Similarly, as there is no immediate reward for their achievement, the interest decreases. The poverty and the insecure sociological conditions also force them to neglect the language. Learning a foreign language is not an easy task and the much needed exposure and practice are not available to achieve fluency in the use of the language.
Lack of expert teacher:-Good teachers of English are found in small number in India. Hence, not having a good teacher of English is common experience of all the students of English. The teachers of ENGLISH are either not trained by the teachers of English in India but not by the native speakers. Even the materials and methodology used in these training programs are outdated. As such, it is the same limited experience that is shared. There is hardly any scope to improve intuitive and spontaneous knowledge of the language. With all problems, discussed above, the standard of English in our country is deplorably low. Hence, a lot of responsibility is thrown on the shoulders of the teachers to make their classes interesting and learning of English fruitful. They have to gear up to meet the demands of the situation and successfully perform their duties.

Conclusion:-
This paper intends to bring facts that in our country about 75% of the students are from rural areas and they are coming through regional language medium schools. Keeping in mind the standards of the students and based on their background, we have to design the syllabus and adopt methods to test their English language proficiency. Therefore, it is necessary to go for a detailed discussion as to whether the existing curriculum is fulfilling the need of the hour and suitable to the students in achieving their goals. Taking into consideration of all the above points and undergoing a detailed analysis, a real solution may be found out for the betterment of the students as well as society.