ELITE: English Language, IT and Economy

ELITE: English Language Teaching, Information Technology & Economy


Backdrop
Society expects a lot from its educational system. Educational institutions are expected to train the work force, prepare the citizenry for active participation in the democratic process, preserve and enrich the cultural environment, develop the full potential of each student, provide opportunity for individual advancement, produce some level of social integration and equity across the population, and create a society that addresses some of the pressing problems of the time such as persistent poverty, health, security, energy shortage, environmental degradation, to name a few. And, all this must happen within budgetary constraints.

Weaving policies and programmes to foster economic growth is absolutely necessary. There, certainly, is a direct correlation between education and economic prosperity. The index of literacy of a community or a country can be decided by its economic index. This paper presents a bird’s eye view of the correlation between proficiency in the use of the English language as well as ICT skills and growth in economy in India.

ELITE in India
Over the past four decades, the global economy has been shifting from manufacturing economy to service economy. In every one of the world’s largest economies, services either account for more than 50% of the GNP or they are the largest sector in the economy (Apte, Kamarkar & Nath). Within the service sector, the highest growth in the recent decade has come from information services, such as financial services, broadcast services, education, rather than material services such as transportation, construction and retailing. Indeed, between information services and information products (computers, books, television, software). Most developed countries have what economists call an information economy.

The following table shows how stages of development in terms of proficiency in the English language as well as IT and economy are related: the higher the proficiency in the former two the higher the stage of economy.

Stage 1
ELT: (Pre-independence era)
Anti-English feelings among the masses
until almost 1960’s
English studies for survival purposes, basic requirement in higher posts

ICT: Almost non – existent
Poor transport facilities, telephone connectivity mainly for official purposes, STD calls difficult

West-East divide based on poverty/ affluence (even basic amenities, infrastructure non –existent) Higher education a luxury for most
Subsistence Economy

Survival issues addressed: Joblessness and poverty prevail.

Stage 2
ELT :Late 1970’s
Resistance to English continued. But the need for English was felt by a few: role of some ELTIs recognised.
ICT: At nascent stage. Huge computers: difficult to afford and cumbersome to operate. Used mainly for data entry.

Transportation improved.
More people travel abroad for education and employment
STD calls easier, ISD almost unthinkable for the masses
Radio, a major means of entertainment for the masses
Commercial Economy

People in cities and villages enter work force, earn, save on a small scale and pay taxes
Stage 3
ELT: 1980’s English recognized as a necessity for upward social mobility UGC introduced Functional English courses Need for English medium education felt strongly More students go for higher education
ICT: numerous institutions offering ICT courses, computer education an in-thing (confined to technical know-how), STD calls become part of life, ISD calls easier, by the year 2000 the mobile phone enters public life breaking down numerous barriers of time and space. Indian IT acumen makes an entry into the global market. Funds flow into the country.
Emerging Economy

Nearly complete coverage of basic education, infrastructure, health services, safe drinking water, sanitation.
Economy becomes an exporter of manufactured goods and perhaps some construction and information-based services.
Capital accumulation continues to play a role in growth but increasingly productivity becomes the source of sustained growth.

Singapore and many other Southeastern countriesare some of the examples.
Stage 4
ELT: Pervasive use of English
Expenses on education seen as an investment and a global link, increased demand for proficiency in English, more jobs linked to proficiency in English irrespective of formal degrees (call centres, promotions in jobs, international placements), IT sector, a basic necessity for higher quality of education, exposure and life style.

Improved transport and other channels of communication, ISD calls easier, cheaper, mobiles omnipresent breaking the barriers of time and space
Exporting expertise through on-line consultancies, courses, commerce, business, banking
Technology has seeped deep into varying kinds of societal interaction

The young generation in the metros almost born tech-savvy
Indian IT talent has carved a niche in the international market. Indian economy grows.

Information/ Knowledge Economy

This is where the knowledge ladder comes into play. Foreign investment brings in know-how, technology and linkages to global production and distribution systems. Products and services become more sophisticated and move up the value chain. This leads to more indigenous economic growth. From emerging to an information technology: transition to full-fledged science-based innovative activities, ie technology-based economy. That is the information economy and knowledge society. This stage is characterized by wide spread tertiary education, extensive public funding of scientific studies, extensive private-sector led research and development, techno-based economy and a sophisticated information-based society. The economy continues to import technologies from abroad but now foreign exchange is also earned by exporting knowledge and technological advances.


Thus, as the populace of a country climbs higher on the ladder of education, their circle of interaction expands, which in turn, further sharpens their skills, deepens their knowledge-base, equipping them once again for a higher rung on the ladder. ICT is a unique opportunity for access to remote experts and resources. It can provide media-rich simulated environment for learning, support teacher’s work in the classroom, reinforce learning, increase efficacy of the educational system. In the long run, it reduces the cost of education, too. Proficiency in the use of English as well as IT has been a major reason for upward socioeconomic mobility not only in India but the world over.

Conclusion
In reality there are no clear cut stages. Or, even within the same country/ geographical region, different stages of each of these three might co-exist. Nevertheless, some positive relationship is noticed between education and economy. All those rich and famous Indians are found to be fluent in the use of English, perhaps with a few exceptions. All those with IT skills are in demand, either in the same sector or in other careers. Literacy and economic development are, thus, correlated. As education improves, economies develop. Thus, the size of the middle class of a country is in equal proportion to the degree of literacy. From sheer subsistence, education places people on a higher ladder. If India is to enter in the community of knowledge society, the growth will have to be shift from physical capital to the one that increasingly depends on the development of human capital----- development of their skills, knowledge, creativity and innovation of its people. The need of the hour, therefore, is to strengthen the teaching of English and IT skills at all the stages of education: primary, secondary and tertiary.