I.

INTRODUCTION
Language which has been considered man’s most remarkable achievement, is so much a
part of our lives, like the air we breathe, that very often we take it for granted and as often are not
aware of its characteristic features. Language is a system. English has a status of associate
language, but in fact it is the most important language of India. After Hindi it is the most
commonly spoken language in India and probably the most read and written language in India.
English in India is used not only for communicating with the outside world, but also for inter-state
and intrastate communication. English symbolizes in Indians’ minds, better education, better
culture and higher intellect. Indians who know English often mingle it with Indian languages in
their conversation. It is also usual among Indians to abruptly move to speak fluent English in the
middle of their conversations. English also serves as the communicator among Indians who speak
different languages. English is very important in some systems – legal, financial, educational and
business in India.
II. ENGLISH IN INDIA
Officially English has a status of assistant language, but in fact it is the most important language
of India. After Hindi it is the most commonly spoken language in India and probably the most
read and written language in India. Indians who know English will always try to show that they
know English. English symbolizes in Indians minds, better education, better culture and higher
intellect. Indians who know English often mingle it with Indian languages in their conversations.
It is also usual among Indians to abruptly move to speak fluent English in the middle of their
conversations. English also serves as the communicator among Indians who speak different
language. English is very important in some systems – legal, financial, educational, business – in
India. Until the beginning of 1990s, foreign movies in India weren’t translated or dubbed in Indian
languages, but were broadcast in English and were meant for English speakers only. The reason
Indians give such importance to English is related to the fact that India was a British colony.
When the British started ruling India, they searched for Indian mediators who could help
them to administer India. The British turned to high caste Indians to work for them. Many high
caste Indians, especially the Brahmans worked for them. The British policy was to create an
Indian class who should think like the British, or as it was said then in Britain “Indians in blood
and colour but English in taste, in opinions and morals and intellect”. The British also established
in India universities based on British models with emphasis on English. These Indians also got
their education in British universities. The English Christian missionaries came to India from 1813
and they also built schools at primary level for Indians in which the language of instruction was
local language. Later on, the missionaries built high schools with English as the language of
instruction which obliged the Indians who wanted to study to have a good knowledge of English.
The British rulers began building their universities in India from 1857. English became the first
language in Indian education. The ‘modern’ leaders of that era in India also supported English
language and claimed it to be the main key towards success. Indians who knew good English were
seen as the new elite of India. Many new schools were established in which the language of
instruction was English. According to the British laws the language of instruction at university
level was English and therefore schools that emphasized English were preferred by ambitious
Indians. Even after India’s independence, English remained the main language of India. Officially
it was given a status of an assistant language and was supposed to terminate officially after 15
years of India’s independence, but it still remains the important language of India.
III. PRE-COLONIAL PERIOD
 The English language came to India in the 17th century with the East India Company. It
was formed to conduct trade with India and other countries in the east. Initially the Britishers tried
to learn Indian languages to communicate with Indians. They started special colleges for this
purpose. They also took the help of the translators. But when their political powers increased, they
created the British Indian provinces like Bengal, Madras and Bombay. So, the English traders
gave more importance to English rather than to Indian languages. Some missionary institutions
taught English to Indians.
The East India Company took the responsibility of the educations of the Indians. The
Indians were also realizing the importance of the English language. As A.P.R. Howatt notes:
“By the 1830s the Indian middle classes were becoming very demanding. They
realized that English was the language required for a secure future in a government
job, so why was English not taught in the secondary school? Private schools offering
this service were already doing good business, particularly in Calcutta. The state was
set for the first ‘big moment’ in the imperial history of English language teaching.”
Meanwhile some movements were started by Raja Ram Mohan Roy to introduce western
scientific education through English. He wanted to replace traditional Sanskrit and Persian
teaching. To take a decision on the issue, a committee was formed. Lord Macaulay was the
chairman of this committee. He advocated English as the medium of instruction in the place of
Sanskrit and Persian.
Lord Macaulay wanted to make the people Indian in blood and colour but English in taste
and opinion. He thought the members of this class would spread their knowledge through English.
Macaulay’s purposes were:
i) to create the dominance of British culture over the Indians and to have the control over
the minds of the Indian people through English.
ii) to train Indians and make them fit for the employment.
The British Government gave preference in jobs to the Indians who had the knowledge of English.
A number of Indian students found poetry, drama and other writings difficult to get their
degrees. Meanwhile many new colleges and universities were formed. The system of English
education founded on English literature continued till the independence.

IV. COLONIAL PERIOD

India got the independence and the Indian government had to decide its policy towards
English. They decided to make Hindi the official language. Regional languages were given the
status of national languages. Certain states insisted to make English the associate official
language. Universities and schools were increasing rapidly in India. Some of the people from the
neglected society also came forward to learn English. English was not limited to a few elite
schools and colleges. But there were complains about the standards of English. The government
appointed many commissions to improve the standard of English in schools and colleges. All these
would cut us off from the living stream of our growing knowledge.
 The Secondary Education Commission emphasized the same in a similar tone:
Commissions reaffirmed the importance of English. For instance, University Education
Commission says:
“English, however, must continue to be studied. It is a language which is rich in
literature – humanistic, scientific and technical. If under sentimental urges we should
give up English.”
The present position of India in the international sphere is partly due to the command that
educated Indians have acquired over English. Many eminent educationists and scientists have
therefore, expressed the opinion that under no circumstances should we sacrifice the many
advantages that we have gained by the study of English.
In 1958 The Central Institute of English was started in Hyderabad. Regional institutes were
established in Bangalore and Chandigarh. But nobody tried to change the literature-based system
of English. English was studied mainly for education and administration. But because of the
revolutionary developments in science, technology, travel, trade, communications and
entertainment, English got a new role as the international language of communication. Nowadays
it is necessary to learn all the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing English.
English teaching has remained unchanged for nearly 150 years, new developments are taking
place worldwide in the methods of teaching and learning English. These developments have
affected the English language teaching in India also. Previously, English was taught from fifth
standard in the non-English medium schools of Maharashtra. Now it is taught from the first
standard even in the non-English medium schools. In the past the syllabus was literature based but
now it is skill-based. Earlier the evaluation system centred on the written skill only, from the year
2006-07 the oral test is introduced in the secondary and higher secondary schools. People are
aware of the importance of English. They are interested in learning the spoken English.
As a result, various courses are developed for teaching spoken English. The use of
Language Laboratory and Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) has created new
changes in the teaching of English. The audio cassettes and CDs are being used on a large scale to
learn the spoken language. Various software of English teaching are developed and used by a
growing number of people. There are many private institutions that run the courses of spoken
English. Especially in big cities the language trainers are helping the learners to acquire the
required proficiency over the communicative skills in general and the spoken skills in particular.
Now Television channels are also working towards improving spoken English. NDTV Imagine is
running a programme ’Angrezi Mein Kehte Hain’. All of them cannot be termed as cheap. Dr.
Deepti Gupta rightly says:
“The irony of situation is that while academicians label these learning centres’ ‘shops’
or ‘commercial institutes’ it is these establishments that are a major influence behind
the changing face of the ELT paradigm in India.”
V. ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING IN POST COLONIAL PERIOD
Teaching English as a tool for communicating the story of Jesus has a long history.
Missionaries have vehemently differed from one another about its usefulness as a tool for this
purpose. Even as English contains excellent Christian literature, it also is home for secular
literature. Secular Humanism found its way in many lands through the learning of English
language and literature. Its “ennobling” characteristic as a tool and purveyor of culture, the
scientific knowledge it opens up for those who learn it, the ease with which one could transact
business using it, all have more or less overshadowed the deep Christian foundation upon which
the language, literature and culture is built.
Aided by the influence of secularism, many Christian teachers of English have more or less
abandoned the Christian program while teaching English. Ethics and morals portrayed in literature
were interpreted not as emerging from the Christian base but from universal humanism. English is
still pregnant with Christian metaphors, idioms and set phrases, which cannot be wholly
understood and used without a grasp of the underlying Christian message.
Perhaps because of the reason last mentioned, most nations have embarked upon a process
of textbook contextualization when it comes to teaching English. The original pieces of writing by
the native speakers of English are sought to be replaced by the writings of the nationals who are
masters of English prose and poetry. In their creative writing, metaphors, idioms, and set phrases
from the national languages, which imply local culture and religion, are more freely used.
Translations from the local tales are more frequently substituted for tales from Europe. In addition,
government-inspired documents on ideology become part of the textbook. Nations (and
individuals) want to appropriate English as a language minus the culture and religion it represents
and communicates.
Even as the goals of English teaching and learning are being continually redefined, you
should remember that English would not be taught solely by the native speakers of English in
many nations. Some countries like India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and several African nations
have provided for the teaching of English mainly through their nationals. Some countries like
Japan and China open their doors to a greater number of native speakers of English to teach
English.

VI. CONCLUSION
Therefore, English has been considered as a major foreign language in India since
independence. As the world is getting globalized, there has also been a sense of English as a
global language, not just a language of the USA or the UK. Although English was considered as a
major foreign language in India, Indians in different contexts are more likely to have witnessed, or
experienced benefits of having more competence than before. These changes in the functions and
benefits have brought about change in the status of English from that of a foreign language to a
global language. In the of field English language teaching is growing day by day in India because
of good and dedicated researchers have contributed something to English language teaching and
moreover number of linguists have made footprint in the field of applied linguistics.
Status of English language in India
Languages are important in the life of any nation. The members of a social group need
language to communicate with each other, for all social purposes, for public administration, for
commerce and industry, for education and so on.
Ours is a country with Multilingual, Multicultural, and pluralistic milieu. Social aspirations
can best be fulfilled when they are allowed to function through the mother tongue. Therefore, it is
natural to think of mother tongue for the purpose of education. But the necessity to have a
common language for interaction has led to the learning of English.
 The English language is a powerful force not just for economics, business, and trade, but
for mutual respect and progress. It is also becoming the common future of human commerce and
communication. English is the best tool to provide good opportunity for the learner to learn. This
is also the language of instruction in all the Universities and colleges across the country. The
scenario is such that one needs to polish the skills of English to obtain a job. Mere knowledge of
subjects is no more the only criteria to secure a job in today’s date. With the growing
globalization, one must definitely be able to communicate in English and should have a good
English vocabulary, if one wants to go across the country for educational or job purposes.
Thus, though a foreign language, English occupies a unique position in the Indian educational
system. Even after independence, it continues to be a major language having a prestigious position
in our society. This chapter attempts to focus attention on the role of the English language and the
changing needs of English Language Teaching and Learning in India. English speaking and
English listening are given a very high priority in the Indian educational system. The elite society
in India sends their children to English-medium schools and even the poorest of the poor aspire to
send their children to the same since English is seen as a language that provides upward economic
and social mobility.
Speaking is one of the most difficult skills language learners would face. In spite of this, it
has traditionally been forced into the background while teachers of English, have spent all the
classroom time trying to teach students how to write, to read and sometimes even to listen. English
speaking is generally thought to be the most important of the four skills. This skill is the most
complicated due to the fact that non-native speakers have to interpret not only the message that
other speakers try to express, but also take into account other possibilities.
Contrary to what everybody thinks about foreign language learning, listening competence
is wider than speaking competence. It has taken many years to give the listening skill the
importance it deserves in second and foreign language learning among the teaching profession.
This is the reason why recently; the language teaching profession has brought into focus
on English listening comprehension.
English is the only language which is understood by educated people all over the country.
English speaking and English listening are needed not just for operational purposes but also for
identifying oneself with those who use the language in India and abroad.
According to Dr. S. Radha Krishnan Commission on Education “English is the only means
of preventing our isolation from the world and we will act unwisely if we allow ourselves to be
enveloped in the folds of a dark curtain of ignorance”.