Challenges and Necessity in Learning English as a Second Language: An Overview

According to Mahatma Gandhi, “English is the language of international commerce, diplomacy and it contains a rich literary treasure.” English is a language which is treated as a world language because of its great reach and influence all over the world. In the present world of globalization and industrialization the ratio of people communicating in English is increasing at a fast pace. In the education system of India English introduced from primary schools to learn this language requires constant practice and patience the kind of feelings that it arouses it is not possible for a non English speaker to achieve fluency or mastery. English occupies a place of prestige in India, even after more than six decades since the Britishers left us. No indigenous language however has come up to replace English, either as a medium of communication or as an official language. For many decades English has been taught in our school and colleges. It occupies the second language in the school curriculum and for the higher education. Teaching English to the Indian student is the biggest challenge. This is so because of the large population of the country, bleak economic conditions, the cultural and social diversities and insufficient men and material. One of the main reasons for the poor standard of English is lack of clear cut policy. There have been frequent changes in the policy of government towards the teaching and learning of English. Most of the Indian students do not get adequate opportunities either to listen to or speak in English. This naturally results in a poor competence in the language. This paper is attempt to trace an over view on English language learning and the challenges face by the Indian students and people and what are the necessities of English language in present world.