Right and Wrong Perceptions Regarding English Language Proficiency

 

A widespread fallacy about English language in our country’s academia is that using tough words and saying convoluted sentences are instances of lingual erudition. This is totally a mistaken idea because grammatical and spelling accuracy is the first and foremost thing when it comes to evaluation of people’s English language skills. Rather using difficult words or complicated expressions may lead to errors. A popular English idiom says, “Keep it short and simple”. So, those who have a leaning towards the use of abstruse words may take a look into this maxim. English language teachers should show easier ways to their pupils to grasp the right mode of applying English grammar and vocabulary in classrooms, in exams and more importantly in real situations at home and outside.

Many people in our country have vague and incorrect ideas about the right interpretation of the term “fluency” too. Fluency does not stand for speaking fast. Rather fluency means being able to continue speaking, according to English language experts and academic scholars in this field.

Due to extravagant attractions for social networks among youngsters, a lot of young people are getting habituated to use abbreviated words and sometimes half-constructed English phrases even in cases of formal writing and official interactions. In this way the correct usage of English language is getting heavily impeded by the onslaught of cellular technology and social networking sites. The academic approach to English language in our country lays a great deal of emphasis on grammatical rules and structural aspects, but very little attention is paid to materialize practical applications of English language, particularly in verbal and written forms beyond academic walls. Learning a language is like learning to drive. If we introduce a man to different parts of a vehicle but don’t teach him how to drive, it offers him no lesson to reach his destination by himself.

It's an undeniable piece of reality that in our country we need to heavily depend on English language at every step of our lives for education, job interviews, professional progress, international trade and for many other vital purposes. That's why it's a massive requirement to have a strong command over English in our country. Bengali is a wonderful and one of the richest languages on earth. We love and honor our mother language. At the same time, we should do a great deal of practice continuously to improve our English language skills. We should make the best of our efforts to build up an English-speaking environment at our schools and universities and I am sure it will be highly beneficial to our students because they will have to prove their expertise in English while they will be facing the corporate world after completing their education.

Expertise in English language is highly crucial for research work too, particularly for teachers, policymakers and analysts working under academic umbrellas. Language used in a piece of writing should be unequivocal, lucid, precise and foolproof. Words and phrases should be selected very carefully so that they match the theme of the written text and don’t appear to be out of place or irrelevant. On the other hand, the points stated in an essay or feature should be bolstered with the writer’s own explanatory statements to show that the points appear on equal terms with the chosen subject or title of the work. A comprehensive command over the usage of English is indispensable to ensure all these things. Unnecessary words or useless elongation of details should not be entertained. Tautology should be avoided as far as possible. Tautology happens while using a foreign language where writers may use the same word over and over again and thus make their papers cumbersome and lousy. So, a powerful English vocabulary is a very big obligation for writing English in an appreciable style.

The habit of continuous writing is deeply helpful to learners of English language. It should be remembered that, a person who doesn’t write or speak even a couple of English lines in an entire year, will certainly find it too difficult to express his/her ideas convincingly when it comes to a practical task involving English language. Writing or speaking pace and proficiency don’t come up all on a sudden. It’s a quality which can only be acquired through intensive and ceaseless practice. There is no detour to success. We have to run the full circle to achieve our aims. Patience, hard work, honesty and diligence are always needed for performing well in every task. Acquiring a language is no exception. Another necessary point is to attach importance to everything that comes our way while doing exercise on a second language because we never know what is helpful or what is ineffective unless the materials in hands are cautiously scrutinized. So, preconceived ideas about language acquisition without meticulous absorption may be harmful to one’s efforts to learn a foreign language.

Some universities run courses called Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and English Language Teaching (ELT) to offer broad ideas, theories and their applications to students as well as teachers on tested and proven ways to receive and deliver lessons on English language. Teaching a language through literature is also very helpful. Giving lessons on the use of words and phrases through perusal of English texts is highly interesting. For this reason, extracts from popular English novels and stories are often taught in classrooms across the world both in English-speaking and non English-speaking countries.

Students from non-English speaking countries who are willing to study in English speaking countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Canada, New Zealand etcetera have to sit for certain English language tests like International English Language Testing System (IELTS) and Test of English As a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and have to secure good scores in these tests to facilitate the procurement of visa from foreign embassies and to complete admission process in foreign universities or colleges.

Variations existing between American and British English should be noted too particularly while writing and speaking due to spelling and accentual differences between these two English types. Mixture of these two English types should be avoided. Generally, Commonwealth countries prefer British English at offices and institutions.


Mahfuz Ul Hasib Chowdhury is a
contributor to different English
newspapers and magazines.