English Language Teaching to Young Learners: Possible Pitfalls after Lowering the Age of Compulsory English in Pakistan

Muhammad Saboor Hussain

doi:10.7575/aiac.ijalel.v.2n.3p.95

Abstract

The young learners have an inbuilt and inborn capacity of absorbing the language inputs. With the growing age, their absorbing capacity reduces though it gets compensated by experience. The adult age can bring wisdom and knowledge but for acquisition, improvement and development of the skills, particularly the language skills, prime time is the young age. There has been a growing awareness about this in Pakistan where, in recent years, a major shift has taken place i.e., starting compulsory English from class-1 in all private and Government schools instead of class 6 th which had been the earlier practice since the independence of the country in 1947. There are many associated complex issues surrounding this new scenario which have emerged due to this major shift and need to be explored, meditated and researched from all the possible dimensions in order to enhance the advantages of the changed paradigm, reduce the risks to the bare minimum and train and fine tune the teachers and the schools to cope with this change in a professional and effective manner.

Highlights

1.1 Problem StatementWith the increase in population and the growing awareness of the need for learning English, the demand for teachers who can teach English to young learners is increasing all over the world in general and in Pakistan in particular
The educationists and the educational policy makers considered all these problems and issues, as a result of which the government of Pakistan decided to focus on the young learners to improve overall English teaching/learning scenario, and in 2009 it was decided that the English language must be taught from class-1 onward
Following should be the key considerations for English language teachers in Pakistan: Does the term "Young Learners" mean small kids going through the experience of acquiring L1 or this term should be referred to the beginners from any age group on their way to new experience of learning a new language? To our mind there is or should be no distinction except for some minor and procedural one

Summary

Problem Statement

With the increase in population and the growing awareness of the need for learning English, the demand for teachers who can teach English to young learners is increasing all over the world in general and in Pakistan in particular. In one of the interviews, the chairperson PU Department of English Language & Literature took the side of the other academicians on the claim that overall standard of the subject of English is deteriorating right from the primary level and expressed her views in these words, “This starts from school level and culminates in MA” She was of the opinion that the students who could make up till MA level were not well prepared; they could not perform well in the exams and failed. The educationists and the educational policy makers considered all these problems and issues, as a result of which the government of Pakistan decided to focus on the young learners to improve overall English teaching/learning scenario, and in 2009 it was decided that the English language must be taught from class-1 onward. They are required to be engaged in a variety of more meaningful group activities rather than being lectured in a traditional way

Literature Review

Methodology and Research

Findings

Conclusion and Discussion