The British Council India and Sri Lanka organised its English for Progress: Second Policy Dialogue, in Kolkata on November 17 – 18, 2008. This was in continuation of the conversation that started at the launch of Project English at the English for Progress: First Policy Dialogue held in Chennai in November 2007.
The conference objectives were to:
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provide an opportunity to address and explore the themes raised at the First Policy Dialogue in Chennai, 2007 |
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highlight progress that has been made in those areas |
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provide a platform for representatives from the government, academia and industry to raise new issues related to teaching and learning of English for employment and education |
The conference was inaugurated by Professor Suranjan Das, the Vice Chancellor of Calcutta University and was attended by over 100 speakers and delegates from India, Sri Lanka and the U.K. as well as British Council colleagues from around the globe. During the conference, there were 28 speeches and presentations on topics and themes that emerged at the First Policy Dialogue in 2007. These themes were as follows:
| Themes discussed at Second Policy Dialogue |
| Corporate Sector |
State Sector |
Testing and assessment Intercultural communication training Training corporate trainers Train the gap: Skills profiling for business processes Technology platforms for larger numbers |
Testing and assessment Technology platform for larger numbers Capacity building in teacher development and trainer training Sustainability and scalability: Planning and implementing large-scale projects Reaching and motivating larger numbers Empowering teachers |
The conference deliberations highlighted the need to delve the following issues and questions in the Third Policy Dialogue in 2009:
| Themes identified for Third Policy Dialogue in November 2009 |
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| Change Management |
What kind of change management strategies and infrastructure are required to support long-term educational policy changes? |
| Trainer/ teacher educator development |
‘Who trains the trainers? And who trains the trainer of the trainers? These are interesting questions to consider in India and Sri Lanka where trainer training is essential in order to reach large numbers. |
| The role of education |
Several presenters agreed that it is not the role of school educators to prepare students only for employment. This begs the question, ‘Whose responsibility is it?’ Is there a role for Public Private Partnerships (PPP) in language teacher education? Should literature be central to language teaching? |
| Access and equity |
A lack of English is one of the main barriers in the way of accessing opportunities. How can we ensure that all children, including the under-privileged, have access to quality English language education? |
| Language, identify and English as a Lingua Franca |
Many presenters agreed that non-native speakers are increasingly comfortable with the variety of English they speak Do Indian children need to speak an ELF variety of English? Is a native speaker variety of English still a valid standard/ benchmark in the state and corporate sectors? Should individuals be looking for native speaker models when they choose an English course? |
| Language pedagogy |
What is the best medium for language teaching? What works, what doesn’t? |
In 2009, as we enter into another Policy Dialogue, the emphasis on English’s new role as the language of commerce and education. Through Project English, the British Council will continue to forge partnerships and create conversations so that English language becomes accessible to diverse speech communities and is taught well to those who can truly benefit from it.
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Mr. David Graddol, Managing Director of The English Company (UK) Limited and Author of ‘The Future of English’ (1997) and ‘English Next’ (2006) 
Speaker Profile English in India: realising the potential Abstract/ Title of presentation
Most analysts agree that the availability of English-speaking workers has been a key ingredient in India's recent economic growth. But this conclusion raises many troubling questions, such as Does India have enough English speakers to support continued growth? Is English quite so important as the global economy is rocked by the recent banking crisis? And if not, what kind of English does India need? In this presentation I will examine these and other questions and describe how innovations in English teaching in vernacular-medium schools could transform the future of English in India. |
Mr. Ashok Sangwan, Additional Director & Deputy Secretary School Education, Government of Haryana, and Member Secretary, Utkarsh Society 
Speaker Profile Abstract/ Title of presentation
Edusat as an Effective Technology Platform For Delivering Uniform, Quality Education To The Largest Numbers With liberalisation and globalisation, the service industry has spurred the demand for qualified and suitably equipped manpower. Therefore, besides General Education, it has become imperative to offer opportunities for improvement of vocational knowledge and skills to enhance students’ employability. Quality education is still the domain of a limited number of institutions across the country. Delivering universal, quality education remains one of the most important issues for the government. The need is to reach out to the largest numbers with the best inputs. One viable alternative is to use Information and Communication Technology. EDUSAT has provided a platform to the States to carry out this task effectively and efficiently. My presentation will be about the use of EDUSAT in providing distance education and teacher training/ capacity building. It will have a brief presentation on the Haryana EDUSAT project and the need for English language training for education and employment: how EDUSAT can help bridge the gap? |
Mr. Gavin Dudeney, Project Director for the Consultants-E and author of ‘The Internet & The Language Classroom’ 
Speaker Profile Abstract/ Title of presentation
Continuous Professional Development and Self Access. This session looks at the use of language laboratories and self-access centres in continuous professional development for teachers, and covers a number of issues from software and hardware considerations through implementation and upkeep. We will also consider how the development and nurturing of 'champions', mentors and online support communities are key to the success of large-scale teacher development projects of this nature. Presentation Title: Communities that learn |
Ms. Thelma Umeh, English Language teaching (ELT) Manager for Nigeria 
Speaker Profile Abstract/ Title of presentation
This paper is an overview of technology - based professional (teacher) training programmes in Nigeria. It selects as case studies, the Continuing Professional Development course for teachers of English and the Teacher Development by Radio Programme of the British Council in Nigeria and attempts to ascertain what needs assessment results led to the initiation of both projects. The impact of the two projects, both on teachers and the students, is then analysed. Finally, the paper highlights the benefits of using radio as a medium for teachers’ professional development and recommendations are made as to what pre-requisites are required for embarking on a project of this nature and magnitude. An analysis of the risk factors involved is made and suggestions proffered, on how these can be overcome. |
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