Government schools in Karnataka to have spoken English classes from this year
Bengaluru: In a renewed attempt at conducting spoken English classes for students of government schools in Karnataka, the Education Department has come up with a comprehensive plan equipped with better resources this year.
The government had planned a project for such classes during the weekends in select government schools last year. The Regional Institute of English had also conducted state-level training for the teachers, but the programme was held back.
According to a report in Times of India, the Education Department is contemplating a project for 180 hours of such classes in an academic year for around 1,000 schools, based on the student strength. The Department plans to recruit one guest teacher per school to handle the spoken English classes. Kannada Public Schools too are to be covered under the project.
Speaking on the project, an academician said that teaching in the regular English classes gets restricted to the prescribed content as there is undue focus on exams and completing the syllabus. The classes lack the environment for the students to speak in English, the academician added and suggested teachers to speak in English for at least 40 minutes in the classes to give the students exposure to English speaking and lead to a natural conversation in the language.
The academician further said that teachers need to design activities in the classroom and have language functions like methods of introducing oneself and asking questions.
AI-powered language is also being launched under the ‘Ek Step’ project announced in the budget this year.
As English medium in government schools is gaining popularity among the masses, the government has announced more such sections. Currently, around 4,190 schools have English medium sections and the government has announced an additional 4,000 schools in the previous budget.
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Vartha Bharati launches Kalyana Karnataka edition, releases 23rd annual special issue in Kalaburagi
Kalaburagi: The Kalyana Karnataka edition of the Kannada daily Vartha Bharati was formally launched on Saturday at a programme held at Dr S M Pandit Rangamandir in Kalaburagi. The event also marked the release of the newspaper’s twenty-third annual special issue, a compilation of selected editorials, and the Kalyana Karnataka special supplement.
The programme was inaugurated by Karnataka Legislative Assembly Speaker U T Khader. The Kalyana Karnataka edition of Vartha Bharati was unveiled by Siddharth Varadarajan, Editor-in-Chief of The Wire.
The twenty-third annual special issue was released by multilingual actor Prakash Raj. The book compiling selected editorials of Vartha Bharati was released by B R Patil, Vice-Chairperson of the State Policy and Planning Commission and MLA from Aland. The Kalyana Karnataka special supplement was released by Rahim Khan, Minister for Municipal Administration and Haj.
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Chairperson of the State Waqf Board and Sajjada Nashin of the Khwaja Bande Nawaz Dargah, Hazrat Syed Mohammed Ali Al Husseini, and Kalaburagi South MLA Allamaprabhu Patil were present as chief guests.
Among the special invitees on the dais were Koraneshwara Mahaswamiji of the Tontadarya Anubhava Mantapa, Aland; Bishop Rev Fr Robert Miranda of Kalaburagi; Bhante Varajyothi of Anandur; social activist K Neela; farmers’ leader Chamarasa Mali Patil; DSS state convenor D G Sagar; and activist and singer Ambanna Arolikar.
Speaking on the occasion, Assembly Speaker U T Khader said Vartha Bharati had emerged as the voice of the weak and the voiceless in society and had earned the love, trust and confidence of people across the state. He said the newspaper had carved out a distinct identity in the media landscape and expressed happiness that it was now reaching the Kalyana Karnataka region. He added that Vartha Bharati had remained free from political pressures and inducements and expressed hope that it would continue to stand as a support system for the distressed.
B R Patil said running a newspaper in the present times was not easy, as the media sector had increasingly turned into an industry driven by profit. Amidst such challenges, he said, Vartha Bharati had maintained integrity, honesty and commitment throughout its twenty-three-year journey. He expressed confidence that the newspaper would continue on the same path. Referring to Kalaburagi, he noted that the region frequently witnessed agitations due to the large number of unresolved issues, and said Vartha Bharati should continue to bring the problems and suffering of the people to the attention of the government and contribute to finding solutions.
