We have seen Information Technology (IT) becoming all pervasive in the 21st Century. IT has invaded our homes and is widely used in our televisions, Notepads, and other household gadgets. IT is widely used in our offices with computers, Networks and security devices. In fact, IT is invading everybody’s lives through the palm held cellular phones. IT is in our cars and slowly and surely IT is invading our education, widely being used in schools, colleges and universities.
In fact for over 2 decades now, Information Technology is being widely used in European schools not only to teach young and eager minded students, Science, Mathematics and Humanities but you may be surprised even languages, more importantly the universal language English. With rapid globalization, English has become the business language not only for UK and USA but for Europe, and the populous countries of India and China. As English is the business language, jobs at all levels particularly for young aspirants, are closely associated with their fluency of English.
The parents and students in these European countries have not abandoned their own respective mother tongues, but European schools are equipped with computer-based digital English language labs.
For a majority of students in Goa, either Konkani, Marathi, Kannada, Hindi or any other regional language is the mother tongue. At a study done it was found that, English is not the mother tongue of over 50% of the students studying in the schools in Goa today. However a large majority of the schools in Goa are English medium schools and the enrolment of students to these English medium schools is on the rise.
With the new ‘No Detention Policy’, a majority of the students who are unable to cope up with English are unable to do well in the various subjects and hence suffer in the 8, 9 and 10 standard. Those with poor English skills, many also drop out and not continue to the 11th and 12th standard as well. It is found that almost 40% of undergraduate students studying in our colleges have poor to average English speaking, reading and writing skills.
In order to change this scenario for the better and enhance the English speaking, reading and writing skills of our students, it is recommended that every School, ITI, Polytechnic, College and University is equipped with proper computer-based digital English language labs. Besides the daily classroom curriculum, at least 30 minutes needs to be dedicated to English language lab study.
