history of english language teaching in India
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Some missionary institutions taught English to Indians. imperial history of English language teaching. Meanwhile some movements were started by Raja Ram Mohan Roy to introduce western scientific education through English. ... He advocated English as the medium of instruction in the place of Sanskrit and Persian.
English language has the status of associate official 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. Because of the great ethnic and linguistic diversity found within our nation, English acts as an indispensable ‘link’ language. English symbolizes in Indian minds better education, better culture and better intellect. English also serves as the communicator among Indians who speak different languages. English is very important in some systems like the legal, financial, educational and business in India. India has a history of two hundred and fifty (250) years of English teaching, beginning as early as 1759 by the East India Company. The growth of English can be traced back to the advent of formal education in India during the first half of the 19th century. In fact, before the oncoming of the British, priestly classes like ‘Moulavies’ and ‘Pandits’ were the custodians of education who imparted education to a fraction of the people in ‘Pathshalas’ and ‘Madarsas’. There was no instructional programme for the masses. But the state of education at present in India is better than the traditional one. The importance of English Language Teaching was realized from time to time, but it gained momentum after Macaulay’s Minutes of 1835, it was motivated more by a political administrative necessity than by an urge to bring about social transformation. Lord Macaulay, in his famous “Minutes”, recommended the use of English for educating the Indian masses. He felt that the English language was the only suitable medium to transfer technical knowledge and scientific bent of mind to Indians. His aim was to groom a small section of Indians who could later use English as medium of communication and bridge the gap between India and the western world. But the sole purpose was to create a body of clerks to assist in the administration of the country.