In November 2009, representatives from the Government, industry and academia will come together to chart a way forward for English in the commercial and academic arena.

The Policy Dialogue was inaugurated by Nandan M Nilekani, Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and Author of Imagining India Ideas for the New Century. In his inaugural address, Nandan drew a parallel between limited access to English language education and lack of identity of people living on the margin in India. He expressed hope that ‘English will give Indians more degrees of freedom to participate in the society, economy and the world at large’. Earlier in the evening, Martin Davidson, Chief Executive, British Council, highlighted the importance of English language among youngsters and its role in the Indian and Sri Lankan society and a multilingual world. He re-affirmed the commitment of the British Council in providing every teacher and learner of English with the skills, ideas and materials they need from the UK. He, then, introduced the audience to English Next India, the seminal research of David Graddol, UK writer, broadcaster and author. This research highlights the status, issues and evolution of English language education in India and is a sequel to David’s books Future of English and English Next (2006).

The inaugural established the context for discussions at the Policy Dialogue. Over the next two days of the Policy Dialogue, representatives from the Government, industry, NGOs, CSR foundations, multilateral/ bilateral agencies and academia came together to discuss a range of issues on the future of English in India and Sri Lanka and the implications for English language teaching and learning policies and practices.

The policy issues and discussion points that were raised at the Third Policy Dialogue were compiled in the form of a Conference Report and circulated among key stakeholders. We aim to continue the dialogue with decision makers and, so, are organising a series of English Policy Think Tanks. The first Think Tank on Continuous Professional Development is being organised in November 2010.

For additional information on the book and the Policy Dialogue, please contact: Alison Barrett, Head State Partnerships, Project English, on alison.barrett@in.britishcouncil.org

English for Progress online

The unique feature of the Third Policy Dialogue was that we simultaneously hosted a virtual conference. Sessions and interviews were live-streamed and recorded. In addition, viewers from around the world could access photos and blog on conference topics. To access English for Progress online, please follow the link: www.britishcouncil.org.in/EfPonline.