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| Monday, March 31, 2008
Bharathiar University to offer courses in Tamil, says Vice-Chancellor
- The proposal is aimed at mitigating the fear
of the English language
- To start training-oriented diploma programmes
COIMBATORE: Bharathiar University will work towards offering
its undergraduate and post-graduate courses in the Tamil medium
of instruction, its Vice-Chancellor G. Thiruvasagam said here
on Sunday.
Addressing presspersons, he said all courses of the university
and its affiliated colleges would be introduced in the vernacular
language. “It will run alongside those in English. This
proposal is basically aimed at mitigating the fear of the English
language that deters many students from pursuing higher education.”
His recent visit to the universities and colleges in China along
with a team of college secretaries and principals had the Vice-Chancellor
come up with such a proposal.
“The strength of the Chinese students lies in the fact
that they learn the subjects in their mother tongue. Language
is not a barrier for learning the subject. English is learnt
as a language.”
Justifying the introduction of Tamil as the medium of instruction,
he said, “When there are so many job opportunities in
our State, why should we insist on learning English to get better
jobs outside. We are cheating ourselves by believing that knowledge
of English is the only factor that determines good placements.”
Later speaking to The Hindu, he said the State Government was
already in the process of preparing certain textbooks in Tamil.
We will have to get all the textbooks ready for the proposal
to take off soon.
This is one of the efforts to increase access to higher education,
employable education and also enrichment of the local language.”
Referring to the statistics released by the State Government
that 78 per cent of students completing their Plus Two were
from the Tamil medium, he said the stimulus to study in Tamil
would urge such students to take up higher education.
In the coming academic year, the Vice-Chancellor proposed to
set up a committee comprising representatives – working
or retired – from various departments to bring out at
least 20 textbooks. “There is a misconception that only
conventional subjects can be offered in Tamil. This is a myth
that should be busted. All science subjects and even latest
specialised subjects like nanotechnology should be offered in
the vernacular language. Also, we will appeal to the Information
Technology organisations to help prepare computer language in
Tamil. Everything will be done to ensure that Tamil medium students
do not have any apprehensions in selecting any course,”
the Vice-Chancellor added.
The university would also start training-oriented diploma programmes
in its colleges. It would be offered both in English and Tamil.
“Skilled students should not be forced to extend their
study period to three years when they can do it with a six-month
or one-year diploma programme,” Mr. Thiruvasagam said.
Courtesy: The Hindu
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