The Condition of English Learners: Reluctance to learn English

I have been working as an English educator for more than ten years. The recently released SSC and HSC exam results have shown that most students have failed in English which is a cause of deep concern for all of us. The results of most students are truly disappointing and the deterioration in the quality of English subjects has reached alarming levels.

In most cases, the first thing that comes to our mind while examining the answer sheets is the students' meaningless and incoherent writing. There is no proper sentence structure and basic grammar. Every sentence has mistakes. It seems that secondary level students do not know about subject-verb agreement, tenses, prepositions and the use of parts of speech. The spelling mistakes are so many that our minds as examiners go crazy while reading them.

It has been found that most students do not know how to answer questions correctly. They cannot even write a complete sentence correctly. They have no idea about the basic rules of writing emails, letters, applications and paragraphs.

It seems that instead of understanding or mastering the English language, students are looking for ways to memorize certain topics to pass the exam.

One of the major reasons for not passing English is lack of preparation. Many students do not complete the textbook, or even know the content of the textbook. So they are not aware of the type of questions in the exam hall. Surprisingly, some students copy the entire question paper exactly and write it on the answer sheet, thinking that they will get some marks by writing it which is very scary. Students also have a terrible mindset when it comes to writing in English. They think that just writing something on the answer sheet will give them marks. In fact, they don't feel the need to write the correct answer on the answer sheet.

This is a serious warning for the entire education system in the case of the English language. If conscious and effective initiatives are not taken now, a large part of the next generation will be completely left behind in international communication, higher education and workplace competition. English is not just a subject; it is the key to opening the doors of knowledge worldwide. The ability to read, write and speak English is almost essential to achieve a good position in the domestic job market of the country. It is very difficult to survive without English skills in multinational organizations, foreign investment companies and even in the freelancing and online markets. English skills are also considered an undeniable qualification in higher education, scholarships, research or professional opportunities across the globe.

Unfortunately, a large number of students are completely ignorant of the importance of learning English. They do not understand that without a solid foundation in the English language, they will be severely disadvantaged in the future world, such as in the workplace and in life.

Nazir Sabri

Teaching & Learning Consultant, Writer & Traner