From my other blog: English—Hindi Issues

http://theeducationalmattersthatmatter.blogspot.com/

My Letter to the President of India Written on 10 August, 2014.

secy.president@rb.nic.in

 mathew.thomas@rb.nic.in

Dear Hon. President of India

Since my letters to the HRD Minister over the years have never elicited any reply—except for the only one that was referred to the CBSE last year for action—I am writing to draw your kind attention to a few burning issues that concern me as an educator. Given your status of the ex-officio Visitor of all the Central Universities, I think I am doing the right thing by approaching you.

Although I have an abiding passion to serve society, my country, and humanity at large, I am aware that as a teacher of English and Hindi, I can only offer my expertise or advice for the desirable improvement in the use of these two languages in our country. If I have equal respect for both these languages, it is not because Hindi is my mother tongue and English my bread and butter. It is fundamentally because both these languages are the official languages of the Union of India. Thus, if I respect the Indian national anthem and the flag, I don’t see any reason why I shouldn’t have the same respect for the language or languages in which the government of my motherland works. However, I regret to say that both these languages seem to have fallen victim to neglect and abuse and are in a state of languishing. My article Use and Abuse of English in India: the Need for a Scrupulous Approach to Using English (http://eduspiritual.blogspot.com) amply illustrates this point—vis-à-vis the use of English across India.

 I get to read various circulars and notifications issued by the CBSE and I have rarely seen one that is fully grammatically correct. Please forgive me if I sound presumptuous, but in contemporary India, I dare say, few bureaucrats are capable of drafting a letter that is flawless in its content and is also correct in format and style. Kindly permit me to quote a rather recent example of a beautiful inspiring letter signed and issued by the present HRD Minister to very many CBSE school teachers including the writer of this letter. A knowledgeable person can easily see that the officer who drafted the HRD Minister’s letter is not fully familiar with the way today’s official and business letters are written. If he / she refers to Michael Swan’s book (Published by Oxford University Press) Practical English Usage, page numbers 123—125, these points would become clear to him/her. Alternatively, perusing the 32-page Oxford Writing Tutor section, which is part of the 8^th edition of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, can also teach one how to write a letter that is flawless in its style and format.

 One cannot deny that the content of an official letter or document is far more important than its format/style and language accuracy. However, in order that the modern generation Indians use English of international standard, on a par with their counterparts in the other parts of the world, it is imperative that the solution to the problem of the aforementioned kind is found and effective steps are taken.

What is the Solution?

·                  The copies of the above-mentioned two reference books or any such books published by preferably British publishers should be made available to all high-ranking government officers responsible for drafting/writing English letters in their respective ministries/departments.

·                  These two reference books—if not more—should complement the study material to be used during the training of all administrative recruits (IFS, IAS, IPS, Allied Services, etc).

Please permit me to reproduce my note sent to the Hon. HRD Minister on the 1^st of August, 2014, since it raises a very pertinent issue. I wonder if my humble suggestion was given due consideration:

 “Thanks for your congratulatory letter. However, please allow me to draw your kind attention to the anomalies in the evaluation system used by CBSE. As many as 17 of the examinees, who took English Core (Code 301) exam this year, were awarded full marks. As an English teacher, it makes my heart ache to see the extent to which CBSE has diluted and degraded marking and evaluation standards. To illustrate my point, please take a look at the model answer script of English Core of 2013 exam, marked and evaluated by CBSE and available on their public portal: http://cbse.nic.in/curric~1/Ansbook2013/XII/English.pdf

 I affirm that there are several errors in this so-called model answer paper warranting taking off marks and I suspect the same is true about the aforesaid this year’s 17 papers awarded 100 out of 100.

Please send these 18 papers to the English and Foreign Languages University in Hyderabad or to a great ELT expert, Prof Rama Mathew, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Delhi University to check the veracity of my perception.”

 Postscript added on 11 May 2015: Recently I took time out to identify as many as 17 errors in the above-mentioned model answer script and emailed them to the CBSE on the 4^th of May. Subsequently, I also brought it to the kind notice of the HRD Minister by emailing to her PS.]

Please permit me to offer my humble advice that may go a long way towards improving the level of English across India:

 

·                  In the universities, Bachelor’s and Master’s courses in English Literature should be replaced with courses in English Language & Literature—as is the case now in most British universities including Oxford. Alternatively, Mass Media can also be introduced to replace the traditional course in English literature, if some of the universities can afford to recruit competent faculty. If you throw a glance at the BA English Honours and MA English courses currently taught in Indian universities, most of the topics (such as Middle Ages, Elizabethan society, Victorian values, etc) are irrelevant in today’s India where demands of the job market expect different domain knowledge and more practical skill sets. I regret to say that our syllabi / curricula seem so outlandish-outdated and are hardly productive. Of course, in every state one premier university must have a course specializing in English literature so that those who have a true passion for English literature have the opportunity to study it. Careful perusal of some of the letters written by me to the CBSE and the HRD Minister available on my blog http://theeducationalmattersthatmatter.blogspot.com/ will reveal the truth that a master’s degree in English literature has done little good to those who draft CBSE circulars or set its English question papers.

·                  It is curious that the two greatest English Language Teaching (ELT) experts in India are not to be seen on the English curriculum committee of either CBSE or NCERT. One of them, Prof Paul Gunashekar, is not only the Dean of the School of English language Education at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad (directly under HRD) but has also been one of the nine advisers on World English for the renowned Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary—for decades. Another ELT expert, Prof Rama Mathew, is not only the Dean of the Faculty of Education, Delhi University but has been on the editorial panel of the ELT journal, published by the Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. I am intrigued enough to ask: Is neither CBSE nor NCERT aware of these internationally acclaimed gems in the ELT field available right in our own country? I think it is time these two authorities on the subject were put on the curriculum committees of the aforesaid educational bodies.

·                  We have a huge Rajbhasha department under the HRD ministry, which is understandably doing a good job to spread the use of Hindi in the country. But it doesn’t occur to anyone at the helm that India without a formal ‘national language’ has actually two Rajbhashas (official languages): English and Hindi. There is apparently a lack of coordination between the use of these two languages in India in spite of the existence of Rajbhasha Vibhag, Hindi Nideshalaya (Central Hindi Directorate), Kendriya Hindi Sansthan, Agra and last but not least Kendriya Hindi Samiti under the Prime Minister of India as its chairman. Even after decades of our independence we have not been able to decide whether to write the figure of one hundred thousand (1, 00,000) in the Roman alphabet as ‘lakh’ or ‘lac’. All right, let us say both ways are equally correct. The worst part is that in very many government documents one can see the numbers written in words, for instance ‘three lacs / lakhs fifteen thousand...’ instead of ‘three lac / lakh...’. Nobody questions if ‘thousand’ has to be written without the suffix‘s’, why ‘lac’ or ‘lakh’ should be written as lacs or lakhs. (One such error has been corrected by the CBSE in the year 2014 as a result of my initiative.)

·                  While it is heartening to note that you have given instructions to enhance the use of Hindi in official work, you must take note of the current situation. Please permit me to give a relatively recent example. The Ministry of Power issued circulars last year requesting schools to organize painting competition on the theme of ‘Energy Conservation’. One of the topics suggested writes the Hindi word ‘Ujjwal’ as ‘Ujjawal’ in Devanagari script. Apparently a lot needs to be done to teach even the adults how to spell Hindi words correctly.

·                  Central Hindi Directorate Published the booklet ‘Hindi Vartani ka manakikaran’ in 1968. In 1983, its modified and revised edition was published namely ‘Devanagari lipi tatha Hindi vartani ka manakikaran’. Now look at the claim made by the official website of this organization, i.e., (http://www.hindinideshalaya.nic.in/english/schemeofpublication/devanagari.html) which says “...this booklet was reprinted in 1989 and distributed free to different Hindi voluntary   organizations, offices, educational institutions so that the use of standard form of Hindi may be increased. In the context of official language, all ministries, state governments, educational institutions like NCERT etc., newspapers, journals etc officially adopted this standardized form of Hindi to bring uniformity in the language.”

I can, however, give numerous examples from govt. documents, CBSE documents, Doordarshan news sub-titles, etc where the standardized spellings and script (lipi) are not adhered to by the government agencies, let alone the private bodies. The basic problem is that there are numerous Devanagari word processing fonts in circulation today in our country. And they write conjunct letters differently. Thus the Central Hindi Directorate may want us all to write words like vidyalaya, uddeshya, Padya, etc in a particular way, but even the central govt departments still write these words in the traditional way creating confusion.    

What is the Solution?

 If the Hindi Directorate has made any Devanagari word processing font programme or at least is aware of any one that is available on the Net in the downloadable form, it should inform the public on the same aforementioned website. If it is true that the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), an autonomous Society under the Department of Information Technology (DeitY), Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MC&IT) has made a set of Hindi Software Tools and Fonts, then government bodies like Doordarshan, CBSE and NCERT—to start with—should be asked to use nothing else but this. The govt. of India should put it in its various public domains for free downloading.  

·                  Indian educational publications, including those of the CBSE and NCERT, usually invite suggestions and feedback on their books in their preface. However, they never give a definite email address to which the feedback can be sent by the discerning readers and critics. During my last five years of teaching in an overseas CBSE school I have made a long list of errors in the English textbooks with possible corrections. On a couple of occasions, I emailed both CBSE and NCERT informing them about it and offered to help them with corrections, but they never wrote back to me on the issue inviting me to discuss those errors with their English consultant and experts. The errors thus continue to appear in successive editions.

What is the Solution?

 There should be a legislation that no scholastic books should be published without giving a definite email address to which feedback and corrections can be sent—and acknowledged too. At least it should be obligatory for all government publications like those of the CBSE and NCERT. (In this electronic and digital age no one would choose to write their feedback on paper, enclose it in an envelope and walk all the way to the post office to mail it at their expense.)

·                  India is a country where books can be published and retailed without mentioning the year of publication. Look at the innumerable school and college study/exam guides flooding the markets. They all proclaim: ‘As per the latest syllabus of CBSE / ICSE,...’ The gullible students unwittingly buy these books only to discover later that the contents of the books are based on the syllabus that has already undergone on or two modifications and thus are rather obsolete.

What is the Solution?

It should be obligatory for all the publishers to mention the year of printing in all their publications. If they are referring to a syllabus, they should give the URL of the syllabus or name it by year so that the student can take his/her time to check the veracity of their claim before proceeding to but it. One doesn’t deny that all standard publications in India mention the year of their publications along with ISBN. However, here I am especially talking about the school and college study/exam guides that are omnipresent in India and millions of students, rightly or wrongly, depend on them.

Thank you for your valuable time.

With Pranams and regards

Yours faithfully

Hareshwar Prasad Singh

 

Use & Abuse of English in India: The Need for a Scrupulous Approach to Using English

There is no dearth of people in India who justify the wrong use of English in order to localize or indigenize the language which is today a national legacy left behind by the British. Their principal argument is: If there can be American, Australasian or South African English, then why not our own national brand of English! I am discussing only the lexical and grammatical aspects of English, not its phonological aspect. In any country, influence of native languages and dialects on its English is inevitable. However, I consider it insensitive and irresponsible on our part to legitimise a variety of English that does not conform to the standards of what is now variously known as International English, Global English, World English, Common English, Standard English or General English. Now, who will decide whether or not a particular English usage is appropriate and acceptable? For common people it is not possible to refer to one of the innumerable books written on English grammar every time they have a doubt. For them recourse to the usage approach is far better than trying to grasp the intricacies of English grammar. Thankfully, today we have a number of reliable usage dictionaries; and a quick reference to one of them can clear our doubts instantly. Before proceeding to illustrate and analyse some of the major errors that have crept into our English I must be allowed to start with the premise that any English usage which does not find a place in any of the major British or American usage dictionaries ought to be considered inappropriate and unacceptable. Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press and Pearson Longman have already brought out their dictionaries of American English. I am not aware of their dictionaries of Indian English. However, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (OALD), Macmillan Dictionary and Collins English Dictionary have all come forward to acknowledge certain examples of English usage which are purely Indian—without passing a judgement whether they are appropriate or inappropriate. Let me cite just a few examples by copying and pasting straight from the online versions of these world-renowned dictionaries:

1. incharge (http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/incharge)

noun

(Indian English)

the person who is officially responsible for a department, etc

• the incharge of the district hospital

Neither in British nor American English is there a word called ‘incharge’. Of course the word is ‘charge’ and the phrase is ‘in charge’. Thus the above-mentioned expression from the OALD (He is) the incharge of the district hospital will, in International English, be either He has charge of the district hospital OR He is in charge of the district hospital. We can also say: At the district hospital he is the person in charge. For the sake of further clarity, the above expressions can be converted into their equivalent questions as “Who has charge of the district hospital?”, “Who is in charge of the district hospital?” and “At the district hospital who is the person in charge?” However, “Who is the incharge of the district hospital?” will be peculiarly Indian.

When the context demands, as a teacher of English I try to impress up on my Indian students that it is as important to know that ‘incharge’ is Indian English as to know that ‘incharge’ has no place in International or Global English.

Now the second example from OALD: 

2. revert (http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/revert)

verb

[intransitive] (+ adverb/preposition) (Indian English, rather formal) to reply

▪ Excellent openings—kindly revert with your updated CV.

▪ We request you to kindly revert back if you have any further requirements.

There are indeed other senses in which ‘revert’ is used in Indian as well as General English, but the above usage is peculiar to Indian English. 

3. prepone (http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/prepone)

verb

prepone something (Indian English, informal)

to move something to an earlier time than was originally planned.

Macmillan Dictionary also labels ‘prepone’ as an Indian-English word: (http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/prepone)

verb [transitive] Indian English to change the date or time of something to an earlier date or time

In Standard English the appropriate word is advance, bring forward, etc.

4. join duty (http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/join-duty)

Indian to report for work after a period of leave or a strike

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition 2009 © Harper Collins Publishers

In Standard English you join a firm/company/department/club/organization, etc and you report for duty. However, as seen above, the usage join duty has been acknowledged to be part of Indian-English lexicon by at least one major dictionary.

Now let me discuss a few English expressions ubiquitous in India, which have not been acknowledged by any of the major dictionaries, and my humble proposition is that they should be discarded by the educated people. To my mind, any foreign learner or speaker of Hindi or Tamil outside India is most welcome to coin a new term or invent a new usage in the language but they cannot expect that their coinage will gain currency and legitimacy among the native speakers of that language in India. By the same token, we Indians cannot take liberties with English and expect that the global English-speaking community will welcome our innovations with open arms. English is not our native linguistic heritage, but an imposed inheritance 'bequeathed' to us by our colonial rulers. To use a cliché, we don’t own English; we have only borrowed it from ‘them’. So, let us use it for our utmost advantage but a little scrupulously. 

Classic examples of abuse of English in India

Please look up the words examination and test in any major usage dictionary to be sure which verbs these two nouns collocate with. Let me give some examples from the world’s most celebrated dictionaries, now available online:

1. http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/examination

• to sit an examination in mathematics

Help: Use take/do/sit an examination not write an examination.

• to take a test
• (British English) to do a test

2. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/test_1?q=test

· The class are doing/having a spelling test today.

· She had to take/do/sit an aptitude test before she got the job.

· How many pupils are taking the geography exam this term?

3. http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/examination

· sit/take an examination: Students will sit a two-hour examination at the end of the year.

· do/take/sit a test: You’re going to have to take the test again.

4. http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/examination (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English)

· He's already taken the entrance examination.

· At the end of each level, you take an exam.

· Applicants are required to take a written test.

5. http://www.learnersdictionay.com/search/examination (Merriam-Webster Learner’s Dictionary)

· I took an examination. = (Brit) I did/sat an examination.

· We took/had a test on European capitals. = (Brit) We did a test on European capitals.

It is amusing and intriguing to see while the whole world takes/sits/does an exam/test, Indians appear in or at or for an exam/test. You can pick up the prospectuses of numerous schools, colleges or universities of India and you will see rampant examples of appear in, appear at, appear for exam/test pervading their texts. Look at the following examples taken from the literature published by different ministries of the government of India or their various wings:

i) “A candidate can avail as many as nine chances to appear in public examinations…” (http://www.education.nic.in/secedu.asp)

ii) “Candidates exempted from one or more subjects of internal examination shall be eligible for appearing in external examination and…” (http://cbse.nic.in/examin~1/scheme06ex.htm)

iii) “Candidates appearing in NET (National Eligibility Test) should clearly specify…” (http://www.ugcnetonline.in/notification.php)

iv) “Candidates appearing at the final M.B.B.S. Examination…” (http://upsc.gov.in/exams/detprg_eng.pdf)

v) “. Every candidate appearing at the Examination, …” (http://envfor.nic.in/legis/ifs/exam.html)

vi) “…1000 scholarships will be awarded for each group of students appearing for Class VIII examinations.” (http://www.ncert.nic.in/new_ncert/ncert/programmes/talent_exam/pdf_files/ADNTSCL08_2011_ENGLISH.pdf)

While we are on the subject of ‘verbs with which examination and test collocate’ it is shocking to note that the expression give exam/test is also commonplace in ordinary conversation among my compatriots. The usage has already been immortalized in various written texts as well as on the Net:

i) “I will briefly guide here about the certifications available and the locations where you can give the exams.” (http://www.softwaretestinghelp.com/how-to-apply-for-software-testing-certification-exam/)

ii) “…I am done with my graduation and I want to give my ielts [IELTS] exam.” (http://www.wiziq.com/tutorial/14224-IELTS-India-British-IDP-Exam-Test-Date-And-Result)

iii) “…do I have to be in that specific country to give the exam?” (http://www.green-buildings.com/content/781095-igbc-ap-exam-what-material-do-i-start-become-leed-ap)

To be sure, it is teachers whose job is to give a test or exam to their students. Let me conclude the analysis of this particular wrong usage by quoting from a UK-based ESL website in which the language expert, in response to a question, clarifies:

“A teacher gives a test, and a student takes a test.” (http://www.usingenglish.com/forum/ask-teacher/103380-take-give-test.html)

Prepositional Errors:

Take a look at the following prepositional errors ubiquitous in Indian English:

1. Pass/fail exam vs. pass/fail in/at exam:

i) "A new phenomenon is lately being noticed and that is, the students who fail in an examination demand…" (http://www.education.nic.in/cd50years/q/3B/7C/3B7C0601.htm)

ii) “A candidate who does not appear or fails at one or all the chances of compartment shall be treated to have failed in the examination…” (http://cbse.nic.in/examin~1/scheme06ex.htm)

iii) “If a student fails in the pre Board examination conducted by the school,…” (http://india.gov.in/allimpfrms/alldocs/12285.pdf)

On looking up the words exam and test or by looking up the words pass and fail in any one of the above-mentioned usage dictionaries we discover that either one passes or one fails a test/exam. No preposition is required after pass or fail in the context of a test or examination.

2. At par with vs. on a par with

“…bring them at par with the rest of the students…”

(http://mea.gov.in/mystart.php?id=50052010englishdec)

Correction: “…bring them on a par with the rest of the students…” 

UNNECESSARY USE OF PREPOSITIONS

1. Stress on vs. stress

“Hon’ble Prime Minister stressed on the need for a Second Green Revolution…”

(http://mofpi.nic.in/images/minister_speech_061009.pdf)

Correction: “Hon’ble Prime Minister stressed the need for a Second Green Revolution…”

2. Comprise of vs. comprise

“The selection is made by a committee constituted by the ICCW, comprising of representatives …” (http://india.gov.in/myindia/myindia_frame.php?id=16)

Correction: “…by the ICCW, comprising representatives…”

OR “…by the ICCW, which is comprised of representatives…”

3. Call as vs. call

“The Garos prefer to call themselves as Achiks and the land they inhabit as the Achik-land.” (http://meghalaya.nic.in/culture/people.htm)

Correction: “The Garos prefer to call themselves Achiks and the land they inhabit the Achik-land.”

4. Cope up with vs. cope with

“…and also disaster managers to be able to cope up with disasters and…”

(http://www.cbse.nic.in/DM%20ENGLISH.pdf)

“…besides coping up with the traditional forestry…”

(http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp11/wg11_research.pdf)

Correction: In both the above examples the correct expressions will be “…able to cope
with disasters…” and “…besides coping with the…traditional forestry…”

Beyond Prepositional Errors:

As it turns out, Indian English has notoriously embraced a large number of embarrassing errors. The most unfortunate part is that these errors have percolated into formal written texts as we saw in the various examples cited above. In the year 2004 a major national daily, published from New Delhi, advertised for the post of sub-editor. They mentioned in their advert: “The candidates should have good command over English.” Since I was looking for a job at that time I applied for the post stating in my cover letter: Although my experience of editing is not long enough I seem to have a keen eye for detail and can spot errors. Please forgive me for pointing out that there is a glaring error in your very ad. You should have written “The candidates should have (a) good command of English rather than …over English”. Needless to say, my letter was never acknowledged.
In recent months one can see yet another wrong usage, now reaching epidemic proportions:

“New Delhi: The Lieutenant Governor has to take a call on the issue of government formation in Delhi and the Home Ministry has nothing to do with it...”

(http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-09-12/news/53850947_1_lg-najeeb-jung-bjp-mlas-new-govt)

Correction:

It is true that as an informal word ‘call’ means a decision, judgement, or prediction, but one cannot take a call; one can only take a decision. However, the verb ‘make’ collocates with the word ‘call’. Look at the following sentence examples:

a tough call to make (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/call)

that entrepreneurial instinct may account for his ability to make tough calls when profits are at stake (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/call)

Concerned vs. Concerned

It is interesting to note how the meaning of the word 'concerned' changes depending on whether it comes before a noun/pronoun or after them in a sentence.

Source: http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/concern_1

affect / involve

[often passive] concern somebody/something to affect somebody/something; to involve somebody/something

• The loss was a tragedy for all concerned (= all those affected by it).
• The individuals concerned have some explaining to do.

The first example sentence means: “The loss was a tragedy for all those who were concerned (affected)”.  The underlined words are hidden and implied in the above dictionary’s example sentence, which is in the passive voice, and the word ‘concerned’ is simply the past participle form of the verb (not noun) ‘concern’.

Similarly, the second example sentence can be rephrased as: “The individuals, who are concerned, have some explaining to do.” Again, the underlined words are hidden and implied in the dictionary’s example sentence in the passive voice, and ‘concerned’ is in its past participle form.  

Now look at the following two extracts taken from the same page of an Indian government’s portal: http://pgportal.gov.in/grm.aspx

First extract: "The grievances received by the Department are forwarded to the concerned Ministries/Departments/State Governments/UTs...This enables the Department to evaluate the effectiveness of the grievance redress machinery of the concerned government agency.

Second extract from the same page: "These problem areas are then subjected to studies and remedial measures are suggested to the department / Organisation concerned."

Now, if you reflect on what is extracted from the Oxford Dictionaries, you would clearly see that in the first example 'concerned' has been wrongly used as an adjective (and in the wrong place). Thankfully, the same writer corrects himself / herself when he/she writes in the very next paragraph: "These problem areas are then subjected to studies, and remedial measures are suggested to the Department/Organisation concerned."

Now the question is: Why are both the expressions in the first extract wrong and what is the shift in meaning when the word ‘concerned’ is used before a noun/pronoun (in which case it is an adjective). In order to grasp its full import, let’s go back to the same Oxford dictionary:

http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/concerned?q=concerned

1 worried and feeling concern about something

Concerned parents held a meeting.
Needless to say, we can maintain the semantics of the above sentence by rephrasing it as: The parents who were concerned (about their children) held a meeting.

I often come across job adverts reading: "we are looking for a competent English faculty." It appears as though in Indian English the word faculty has become a synonym for teacher, instructor, trainer, etc. All the teachers in a particular academic department of an institution can together be called faculty, e.g. the science faculty, arts faculty, etc. Someone can be a faculty member rather than a faculty. Please don't confuse 'science faculty' with 'faculty of science' which is department of science. In American English there are sentences with faculty that may sound a little odd to our ears. Look at these two sentences from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Many faculty were present. The school hired more faculty. However, in no case faculty will mean a lone faculty member.

In Indian scholastic parlance, the abbreviations LKG and UKG stand for Lower Kindergarten and Upper Kindergarten respectively. Since Kindergarten is one word, ‘LKG’ and ‘UKG’ cannot simply abbreviate ‘Lower Kindergarten’ and ‘Upper Kindergarten’. However, such errors in the Indian educational landscape have crystallized so deeply in the system that it seems too late to undo the damage. Yet another anomaly in the scholastic terminology in India is the term ‘standard’:

“Matriculation standard if passed with…” (http://www.educationindia4u.nic.in/structure.asp)

“Students who happen to be among the top 1% in 12th standard at their respective Board Examinations and are…” (http://www.inspire-dst.gov.in/scholarship.html)

Let alone this peculiar Indian coinage, it is interesting to note that in the other English speaking countries the term ‘class’ is no longer used in the same sense as used in India. Most of them use the term ‘grade’. In Britain, they use Year 1, Year 2, etc while the Americans and the majority of the English speaking world today use ‘grade’. The term class may at times be pretty misleading. Please look at this sentence from the OALD: We were in the same class at school. If you reflect on it, a number of students may be in the same grade but not necessarily in the same class, because in a big school each grade usually has several sections, each of which can be termed a ‘class’. So when the prospectus of a big school boasts: “We don’t have more than 20 students in each class”, they certainly don’t mean 20 students in each grade.

Let us take a couple of other examples of wrong usage in Indian English. What is known in the English speaking world as ‘paper’ (or exam paper or rarely answer paper), our national education board CBSE has coined not less than three terms, viz. ‘answer sheet’, ‘answer script’ and answer-book’. Examples:

“Write the incorrect word and the correction in your answer sheet as given below against the correct blank number.” (www.cbse.nic.in/curric~1/sql-englan-x.doc )

“The Board does not have the provision of re-evaluation of answer scripts…” (http://www.cbse.nic.in/examanxiety.htm)

“… students will read the question paper only and will not write any answer on the answer—book during this period” (http://www.cbse.nic.in/curric~1/qp2012/SamplePaperX11/Set1/ENGLISH%28ELECTIVE%291_X11_2012.pdf)

As is evident from the above-mentioned examples, we are equally arbitrary about the use of preposition for the above words. The first example uses in (rather than on) for answer sheet, the third example uses on (rather than in) for answer-book.

Unfortunately, a large number of compound nouns are wrongly written in India as a two-word phrase. Coursebook, textbook, workbook, copybook, storybook, songbook, yearbook, notebook, copycat, copyright, notepad, watermark, newsletter, storytelling, storyteller, caretaker, dropout, schoolhouse, schoolboy, schoolchild, schoolgirl, girlfriend, boyfriend, schoolwork, schoolyard, schoolmaster, schoolmistress, schoolteacher, teamwork, preschool, paperwork, artwork, woodwork, wristwatch, homework, homesick, handwriting, headmaster, headmistress, housemaster, housemistress, taskmaster, quizmaster, choirmaster, staffroom, classroom, classwork, classmate, daylong, daytime, lunchtime, bedtime, underweight, overweight, wrongdoing, worksheet, workload, printout, handout, blackboard, whiteboard, noticeboard, billboard, pinboard, signboard, midterm, timetable, paperback, bookstall, bookshop, bookshelf, bookmark, bookworm, eyesight, playgroup, playschool, playground, playmate, volleyball, football, basketball, baseball, softball, goodbye, goodnight, stepmother, stepfather, stepbrother, etc are examples of compound nouns that are relevant to school context. These nouns should be written accurately as a one-word compound.

Look at the following chronic errors that have become salient features of Indian English:

i) No decision has been taken till date (Correction: No decision has been taken to date.)

ii) He is good in English. (Correction: He is good at English. There are so many other ways to say this, but one is always good at something rather than good in.)

iii) I am writing a history project report. (Correction: I am doing a history project.) Note: In the context of a school, a subject curriculum often includes project work which may involve a lot of writing work/task but it doesn’t mean that the student is writing a project report; he/she is still doing a project and may be doing the writing part of the project at a given time. It is executives and professionals working for a company or a government department who submit their project reports but as far as students are concerned they do, complete and submit their projects to their teachers. So let our students do a project on pollution rather than write a project report on pollution.

iv) Please send a forwarding letter along with your CV. (Correction: Please send a cover [North American English] / covering [British English] letter…)

v) Please do the needful. (Correction: Please do whatever is necessary / whatever needs to be done.)

vi) I find it hard to cope up. (Correction: I find it hard to cope.)

vii) While introducing: She is Lata, my sister. (Correction: This is Lata, my sister.)

viii) What is your good name? (Correction: May I know your name, please?)

ix) On the phone: I am the principal speaking. (Correction: This is the principal speaking.)

x) The meeting will get over at 5 p.m. (Correction: The meeting will be over / will finish or end at 5 p.m.)

xi) This is not in our syllabus/ curriculum. (Correction: This is not on our syllabus / curriculum. Note: in syllabus/curriculum is essentially American English )

xii) Looking forward to receive your reply… (Correction: I look forward to receiving your reply…)

Apparently the list is endless.

At the time of the commencement of the Indian constitution English was made an official language of the Union of India for a period of 15 years. However, during the last more than six decades English has not only thrived in this country but it also continues to dominate the entire educational, political, bureaucratic and intellectual landscape. English is a major unifying factor for multilingual India where the overwhelming diversity of languages occasionally threatens the very fabric of society and national integration. I want to make a simple point, as long as we are using English, let us be a little scrupulous and use only the standard form of English.