English for Higher Education

First published in the MIDWEEK REVIEW supplement of The Island on 1st April 2009. The following is an extract from the concluding part of a paper the author presented under the title ‘English for Academic Purposes in Sri Lankan Universities: Some Reflections’ representing the ELTU, University of Peradeniya at the 1^st Annual International Conference of the Sri Lanka English Language Teachers’ Association held at Hotel Galadari, Colombo in partnership with the British Council from 1^st to 3^rd September, 2000. It forms a short summary of the paper. In a very brief version of a long paper – removed from its original context – some oversimplification of the issues raised is inevitable. Also, naturally, the views expressed would sound out of date after a lapse of nearly a decade, and might even differ from the author’s own current perceptions. However, it could still retain some potential for stimulating constructive thinking among those interested. Hence the decision to offer it for The Island readers thus, at the beginning of 2009 ‘The Year of English and IT’.

…To summarize, the importance of English for education is today undisputed. The contemporary role of English is different from its historical one as an instrument of imperial sway. English education then was intended to produce the subordinate officers the British needed to run their administration and businesses. English never became a commonly used language among the majority of people. In Sri Lanka, like in India, it has always remained the language of the minority.

The supremacy of English was undermined by the changes that followed Independence. In the 60’s and 70’s the importance of English was effectively discounted. However, its indispensability, especially for education, is now widely recognized, and English is being restored to a dominant position again, this time though, not as a weapon of oppression, but as a means of educational and technological advancement. Today English is taught in Sri Lanka for a strictly utilitarian purpose The ESP (English for Special Purposes) aspect of ELT (English Language Teaching) receives attention at all levels of instruction, from the primary to the tertiary.

At the university, EAP (English for Academic Purposes) is a necessity. To argue that the subject knowledge and the competence in English that the students gain from their subject lecturers are adequate for higher education is untenable. In such a situation, the students will always fall short of their masters’ levels of attainment. Those who argue that we must teach general English to university students instead of EAP seem to ignore the fact that we cannot afford the luxury of time and resources that such a long course of language instruction (at the higher education stage) will entail.

EAP provides a shortcut to such proficiency in English as will enable the learners to pursue their academic studies in English by concentrating on the specialized grammar and specialist vocabulary relevant to the specific fields of study.

The school TESL (teaching of English as a second language) programme needs to be generally informed by an ESP element. In the final two years, the ESP component should be given prominence so that the school English teaching programme will provide a good foundation for the EAP courses at the university. The current proposal to introduce English as an optional medium of instruction in government schools and to teach at least some subjects in English as a beginning is a timely one.

In terms of methodology, EAP naturally implies a functional communicative approach. The EAP courses must be content-based and learner-centred. As adult learners with a high degree of motivation and also with a sense of language awareness and familiarity with communication gained through contact with their first language, our students must be encouraged to assume responsibility for their own learning.

The most important contribution that EAP makes is to initiate the students into a process of self-development in which they assimilate language through using it communicatively to gain subject knowledge.. This includes not merely competence in language, but the development of academic strategies, processes and concepts as well.

In the Sri Lankan EAP context proficiency in English is not limited to academic reading. It comprehends all four (major) language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing). The students are expected to develop the ability to listen to lectures in English, to verbally communicate with their peers and teachers, to read in the library, and to write acceptable and precise English within the context of their specific academic disciplines.

The success of any EAP programme will ultimately depend on the cooperative interaction between the students, the ELT instructors, and the subject specialists. The English instructor and the subject lecturer must respect each other’s academic autonomy and each should be careful not to encroach on the other’s territory.

Because most of our new university students lack the basic mastery of English that would qualify them for an exclusive EAP course, we have to remedy this by supplementing our ELT programme with a brief, initial ‘core English’ phase….

Rohana R. Wasala