English Language Proficiency
- English is a global language
- It serves as an inter-province connect
- It is a language of trade and commerce
- It helps us acquire knowledge and skills
- It’s the language of most online tools
- It’s the subsidiary official language in India
- listen to English and understand it (Listening Skills).
- speak English with working command (Speaking Skills).
- read and understand English: reading aloud at the primary level and then gradually moving towards silent reading (Reading Skills).
- write English on their own with relevance and clarity (Writing Skills).
- understand, enjoy and appreciate English poems (Literary Skills).
- have a working command of grammar, and use vocabulary (words) appropriately.
- become self-dependent in learning English (Study Skills).
- Watch/listen to English news (NDTV, BBC).
- Try reading English newspaper (Times of India, The Hindu etc.). You can get e-papers online on your phone also.
- Try watching English movies/shows.
- Read English books/novels/comics/articles/magazines.
- Practice writing paragraphs, daily diary, articles, journals in English. Choose the topic of your choice like expressing your emotions, feelings, about your family, friends, movies, actors, food etc.
- Try speaking short sentences in English like -
- Hello!
- Good morning!
- How are you?
- I want this.
- Can I do this?
- Let's go.
- I don't know.
- Let's do this etc.
- Verbal or oral communication means transmitting or sharing information through speaking, e.g., conversations between friends, group discussions, debates, communication in the marketplace etc.
- Written communication means sharing or transmitting information through written modes, e.g., letters, applications, emails, postcards, etc.
- Non-verbal communication refers to transmitting or sharing information with each other through gestures, facial expressions, body language, posture and tone of voice etc.
- Making classroom environment print-rich
- Name/label things/objects available inside the classroom in English
- Use common phrases or sentences like; Come in, Sit down, May I come in, look at this, Thank you, Please, What is the day today? What is your name? My name is........., I have .......... and etc. and give them an opportunity to use them and practice daily.
- Teach months of the year, names of days of the week, colors, and numbers in English.
- Supporting video resource: https://youtu.be/FinDN5Chgmo
- First of all, create a fear free environment where students can express themselves, they can make mistakes and learn from their mistakes.
- Include lots of stories and poems in the class. This will give them exposure to the language.
- Use actions and props to narrate these stories and recite the poem using actions and gestures. This will help them to pay attention and make meaning.
- Use simple phrases and instructions in the classroom so that they start speaking in English. Example: Hello, everyone. How are you? Sujata, can you please give me the textbook? Let’s play a game, Hold your hands and make a circle.
- Try to provide visual clues using pictures, videos, objects etc. You can also use audio-visual resources like videos, games, apps, music etc.
- Engage students in group activities. Play different games related to listening and speaking, vocabulary, reading and writing.
- Take up activities that involve discussion and expressing views and thoughts. Even if students speak in their native language, encourage them and gradually they will start using a few words of English.
- Use Mind map/Word web activity for brainstorming and increasing vocabulary.
- Practice different sentence structures in the classroom. Try to practice 1 type of structure until students learn it and then introduce a new structure.
Language has many functions, but preparing an exhaustive list is never possible. However, the following can be considered as the functions:
a. Greeting or Taking Leave: It is important to know how to use English to greet people politely when we meet them and how to end the conversation when we take leave of them. Some phrases to greet people are: Hello! good morning, good afternoon etc. While taking leave after a conversation we can use phrases like: goodbye, thanks, have a nice day, take care, see you etc.
b. Enquiring and Giving Information: It is important to know how to ask for information politely and to thank people for it afterwards. 'Excuse me ....................' and 'please' are the two most important phrases in this unit. In formal language a longer ‘preamble’ to the question used: “I was wondering if you could tell me ..................' or 'I hope you don't mind my asking ........”
c. Apologising or responding to an apology: When we apologise to someone, we use certain phrases and expressions to say sorry. For example, “I realized that I won’t do it again.”, “Excuse me for being late.” etc.
d. Appreciating: One of the functions of language is to make others around us feel good about themselves by praising them, or saying something nice about them such as, for sample, that somebody looks good we can say “You’re looking lovely.” or that he/she does something well we can appreciate them saying “You have done a good/excelling job”.
e. Asking for directions or giving directions: If you do not know the way to a place, you usually ask someone how to get there. You also have to explain how to reach a place if someone asks you the way. Here is an example of conversation between two people:
(Ratan is a new student in the college. He asks Varun for directions to the library)
Ratan: Excuse me, could you tell me the way to the library?
Varun: Sure. Go straight down this part and you'll reach the new block. To the left of the reception desk is a staircase. Go up the stairs to the second floor and turn right. You will find the library at the end of the floor.
Ratan: Thanks a lot.
Varun: You're welcome