Problems and Solution of Communication Skills through English in Higher Studies in India

Meeta Kumawat (Research Scholar)

Dr. Shruti Tiwari (Principal, Gyan Vihar School of Education)

Suresh Gyan Vihar University

Mahal, Jagatpura

Jaipur
Rajasthan

Abstract: Communication is an essential part of a person’s life. God has gifted the human being with language which helps him to communicate with each other. If a person is skilled to communicate effectively then he will be able to get success in his profession. There are two types of communication. It may be verbal or non verbal. Today is the world of competition and it demands a good communication skill for an educated person. It is important for a student to develop communication skill. For this he needs a language. With the help of the language he is able to communicate his messages and emotions to others.

In the development of communication skill, language plays an important role for each person. A sophisticated language helps a student to develop his communication skill. Language is a source for humans to get knowledge. It makes the human different from other creatures of the earth. It is the human only who is gifted by the God to express his ideas verbally. He is the only creature on the earth who can speak. In the present era English is the most valuable language on the earth, which is spoken all over the world. But it is seen that in India in higher studies students face different kinds of problems in communication. According to A.K.Sharma in India teaching of language especially English has suffered very much because after graduation the students cannot speak or write English correctly, though they have read it as compulsory or optional subject. The main reason of this is that in Indian schools and college emphasis is given only on conceptual content while stylish content is very important for it but in Indian schools it is neglected.

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Keywords: widespread, sophisticated, communication.

Introduction:

Effective communication is a ladder of success in higher studies and English language is used as a medium of communication in most of the countries. With the help of communication students make good relation with others. They can share their ideas also. But in many countries like India, students do not have a good command on English language so they do not communicate effectively on higher studies. As a result they lack behind the students of other countries. The main reason for this is that in India in most of the schools, Hindi or other native language is used as a medium of instructions and English been taught as a second language at school level while in most of the institutions of higher learning it is used as a language of instruction.

Good knowledge of English makes the person stronger and confident. It makes a person’s communication skill effective and fills him with confidence. A confident person with good communication skill has more chances of job opportunity in his country as well as foreign country. In higher institutions in different types of courses English is used as a medium of instruction. Students also study English at this level, as it helps the students in communication.  A good communication in English helps the students to achieve their target and get success. This paper is an attempt to find out the problems of the students in communication in higher studies. It suggests some measures to help the students in improving their communication skill.

Importance of Communication Skill:

In today’s world everywhere competition can be seen so it is necessary for a student to have a good communication skill to get success and make a beautiful career. According to Sikti Communication is the way to receive and understand the messages. A good Communication skill ensures that you are able to manage with anybody at any place.

 

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Reasons of Problems faced by the students in Communication in India:

  1. Effect of mother tongue – India is a land of Villages. Here most of the students belong to villages, so effect of their regional language or mother tongue can be seen clearly on their communication skill. Not only students but on teachers also effect of mother tongue can be seen. Both the teachers and the students converse in their mother tongue even in higher classes also. As they become habitual of talking like this. While talking they use some English words in the midst of the sentence. This affects their way of pronouncing the word.
  2. Difference in English – In world English is of two types i.e. U.K. English and U.S. English. There is a difference of pronunciation in both. In India U.K. English is in practice, but now it is the age of Computer and on Computer U.S. English is used so students get confused.
  3. Translation Method – In India in most of the schools translation method is used from starting class. By this method the students only understand the content of the text but cannot learn anything from it. They get habitual of this method from starting but at higher level this method is not used so they face problems in higher studies due to this.
  4. Errors in English – Most of the students do errors ignorantly and when they become habitual of these errors. They do not know which types of errors are being done by them so they repeat the same error without realizing it.
  5. Learning Method – On Primary Level the main aim of English teacher is to develop the fundamental skill in students i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing. But this sequence is not be followed and we change it according to our convenience e. writing, reading, speaking and listening from difficult to easy one. So starting anything with difficulty increases the chances of failure.
  6. Translation Method – In India especially in rural area and in regional language and Hindi medium schools English is taught to the students as a second language by translation method. This method affects their thinking power. Before speaking, the y thinks anything in Hindi or their regional language and then translates it into English. They directly cannot think in English. So students get hesitated in communication and due to this they have great problem.

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  1. Students’ background – In schools teacher uses different methods to teach the students.

As the difficulty level of the students is different.  So each student cannot understand anything in English, then the teacher has to adopt bilingual method and he/she explains the matter in his/her mother tongue or regional language. This is a big hurdle in learning English.

  1. Effects of Mass-media – Students learn English language at school level for the purpose of passing only in the tests and examinations. They do not do adequate practice to learn a language. In college education the students follow different system from that of schools. From school time the students have their own imagination about college life due to the effect of movies and mass-media. They want to act upon those imaginations.

Remedial Measures:

  1. To be a good teacher, it is necessary for a teacher to handle all the students in the class. For this it is necessary for him when he enters in the class, he should have a smile on his face, this helps him to bond the students instantly. A good teacher pays his students individually. His attention will solve all kinds of problems of the students. There are different types of students in a class i.e. intelligent, average, below average, slow learner. A good teacher handles all kinds of students without any difficulty. To solve the problems of slow learners, they should be given counseling, they should be provided advices and counsel them related to their problems.
  2. An English teacher should encourage the students to communicate orally. He should pay more attention on those students who feel less confident. He should create such student friendly environment in the class. A teacher should motivate the students for participating in co-curricular activities. He should organize group activities so that the students learn to coordinate and cooperate with others. This will create confidence in them. A confident student learns more and participates more.
  3. In India most of the students have a thought that English is the most difficult language and it is unnecessary to learn it. It is the duty of a teacher that he should eradicate such types of problems of the students. For this he should motivate the students to actively take part in all activities during communication classes.

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  1. While teaching English, a teacher should use different methods of teaching English. For this language lab is more useful.
  2. It is important for a teacher that except teaching he should talk with them on some other topics. Try to make students to talk with him when students will talk with him they get encouraged and try to communicate with others without any hesitation.
  3. Above all this, it is necessary for a good teaching that teachers make the use of teaching aids. In college libraries good journals may enable them to know the latest development in the field of language and they will use it in their teaching.
  4. As per the norms of UGC, the number of lectures of English language has been decided per week. In these lectures the teacher should teach them the presentation, group discussion and conduct mock interview, so that the students can overcome their fear of communication with others. The teacher can provide them a platform to express their thought in front of their classmates. These classes should be made compulsory for each student to attend, for this some marks should be decided.
  5. A teacher should pay attention on oral communication as it is the first step of communication.

Current status of communication skills in students of higher studies:

Attitude towards communication skills among the students of higher studies is high. On higher studies communication skills can be developed easily through appropriate activities.  In higher institutions resources are easily available. So students can get benefit of these resources to improve their communication skills.  When students get positive environment for communication, they get more chances to improve their communication skill and they participate in active learning.

Conclusion:

As a conclusion it can be said that English can be taught by different methods as second language. Students can understand it very easily if a teacher teaches it in a right way.  It is necessary for a teacher that he should make his teaching interesting, for this he should use new techniques, as the main aim of his should be to improve the communication skill of the students so that they can make progress in making their career. With the help of communication skills students can take help from other students and teachers, it helps them to understand the others thought and they also become able to discuss the issue with others.

Reference:

Dr. Anita, Shukla, Dr. Timira, Singh: Communication /Skills in Management education – A Student Perspective.

Sharma, R. Problems & Solutions of teaching English, New Delhi, Janki Prakashan, 1999

Dr. Ram Krishna Thakur( 2013), Focus on the Problems in Teaching/Learning English in India. University of Muzaffarpur (Bihar)

www.educationinindia.net/download/research-abstract.pdf

Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) http//www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013

Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013

International Journal of English Language, Literature and Humanities Vol.III, IssueIV,June2015-ISSN 2321-7065

Kumawat, Meeta. Tiwari, Dr. Shruti. ; Errors of Vocabulary done by Upper Primary Level Students: A Study. ADALYA JOURNAL https://doi.org/10.37896/aj9.4/038 ISSN NO: 1301-2746

Kumawat, Meeta. Tiwari, Dr. Shruti. ; Errors of Vocabulary in English Language among the Students of English at Upper Primary Level

International Journal of Research in Social Sciences http://www.ijmra.us, Email: editorijmie@gmail.com