Triple Stream

Importance of English in the Present Globalised Scenario

Mother tongue is all important like one’s mother land. But in the present globalised scenario study of English is compulsory. The global dominance of English of which England was proud till yesterday is now challenged. English is no longer monopoly of that country. Two billion students in other countries are now speaking it with command. It is no longer taught as a foreign language. In South Korea, India, Russia and China it is being taught as a basic universal skill of communication required for the demands of Globalisation and economic liberalization. Today more people in India, China and Korea are speaking English more fluently than the people anywhere else. The Internet is a global revolution in communication. If a button is pressed e-mail is transmitted from computer to computer across the seven seas of the world.

Sri Aurobindo was once asked why he was writing poetry in English and not in Bengali which was his mother tongue. His reply was that English has certain features which suit the nuances of feeling and thought and very soon there will be a globalisation leading to the unification of all countries. His words proved to be prophetic today.

English with its estimated vocabulary of a million words has become a truly global and thoroughly serviceable language, more widely spoken and written than any other language. The secret of its success is not only its tolerance for change but its right royal borrowing and massive adoption of words from other languages. Each addition gave it subtlety and variety. Besides it has deeply rooted ideas of freedom and resistance to rigidity. It is a surprise that South Korean mothers go to the extent of removing tissue from the tongues of their children through surgery (which lasts for 20 to 30 mts) to improve their English pronunciation. They believe that good English pronunciation is necessary for the future of their children in view of Globalisation.

Mahatma Gandhi is not the monopoly of India. All countries belong to him. Similarly English is not the monopoly of England. It has no patent or copyright over it. As Rajagopalachary, the patriot said, English is a gift of the Goddess Saraswathy. Even in pre-Independence days introduction of English in education was supported by the people-oriented movement led by leaders and social reformers with a foresight like Raja Rammohan Roy. They felt that the reading of English classics would strengthen the spirit of nationalism and promote a critical temper and social conscience besides providing easy access to modern science and technology. The last facility connects us to the world. The needs of science and technology justified its continuance. The claims of commerce and the demands of the dynamics of world contact required the strengthening of its study. Justice Krishna Iyer, retired Supreme Court Judge called for a fuller utilisation of the English language. He said “English law is one of the blessings of the British rule. Indian law has its well springs, growth and development in the language of English, an instrument that served to unify and modernise our legal system.” All the wealth and variety of new knowledge which appear in thousands of books cannot be translated quickly into other languages. The rate of translation will be like the crawling of a paralytic centipede. By the time translation puts on its boots to go after the original, English hurtles round the world like a sputnik.

Russia, China and Japan which once believed in the efficacy and self­-sufficiency of their own languages, took a U-turn from their policy and started not only learning English but importing English teachers from abroad. This is in response to the demands of Globalisation. Some people make the mistake of thinking that computers are a substitute for reading! The computer can bring the material before us in a moment. But you have to read. Even Bill Gates says in his ‘ROAD AHEAD’ that reading of books is essential along with a college degree. Computer science has made English indispensable to meet the demands of this multi cultural world.

The U.S. has 170 different languages, Europe 364 and Africa 2390. In India, a nation with more than a billion people with more than 1000 languages, fortunately English still remains a strong communicative language that links the states. Above all English now gives us an international competitive edge which finds placements for our youth. Because of outsourcing, our students are getting jobs all over the world.

That is why our Government has been strengthening the teaching of English in schools and colleges. The Andhra Pradesh Government has shown its imagination by introducing it from 1st class because it gives global access to information, jobs and business opportunities. It is particularly a great benefit to our students in rural area.   

However, English should no longer be taught as a literature but only as a language and that too as a functional language. As Rabindranath Tagore said: “Teaching language as Literature is like using a sword for shaving the beard. It is bad for the sword and harmful to the chin”. Grammar is the soul of the language. Even when the structural method is followed by modern experts, teaching of grammar is inescapable. Verbs are the main springs of language, nouns are building blocks and adjectives and adverbs are the pigments which give colour to our sentences. Unfortunately many students who come out of the colleges and Universities are found to be weak in grammar. In addition to studying the main rules of grammar and common mistakes, it is necessary for students to read extensively. By studying good books they familiarize themselves with correctly structured sentences and word choice. By reading the works of erudite writers like Shakespeare and Milton one does not learn grammar and usage. For Shakespeare’s plays a special grammar book was produced by Abbot and a special dictionary by Cunliffe! What our boys and girls require is simple business like English but not literary English of the classics.

Mastery of spoken English is the key to success in life and the secret of leadership with special reference to H.R.D. We should be proud to know that India is the birth place of human speech. Mark Twain, the famous American writer said: “India is the cradle of human culture, the birth place of human speech”. But unfortunately today our students are lacking in communication skills. The University Commissions and Committees have commented that the students cannot speak, cannot write and cannot think. Even the heads of industries and business organizations have said that the present-day students lack the skills which are required for employment by them. Therefore, there should be a determined drive to improve their practical skills of communication and thinking. It is a challenge to our schools and colleges which have neglected these practical skills. We have to restructure the methods of teaching English which is now content-oriented.

Hither too English was only a window on the world. What is the use of providing a window on the world without providing a door? Today study of English is the door to any part of the world. Learning how to learn and learning how to think logically and creatively are the two essentials in today’s world in which the only constant is change. Luckily we have inherited English as a British legacy while other countries are learning it now. We are far ahead of them in the race. This enables us to score over those beginners and become a global player and acknowledged leader in the world, if we do not reject English on pseudo patriotic presumptions. However, we should not burden the children with three languages. They should study mother tongue compulsorily for keeping up the cultural heritage and moorings, and English for international intercourse in science, technology, business and industrial initiatives. We have no right to deny wider opportunities to our people by limiting their aspirations to a narrowly linguistic state.

Mother tongue should have the pride of place as the First language and the vehicle of our culture.

Triveni has been consistently supporting the role of English and its indispensable study, through its editorials right from 1948.
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‘What matters is not whether the cat is black or white but whether it can catch the rat’
–DENG ZIYAVO PING (the architect of modern China).