Bangalore, 20 March 2015: Red lorry, yellow lorry. It was simple enough to repeat for K. Madhavan and his friends when Neil Sarkar, Head, English Language Centre, South India, British Council, said it slowly. Then, Sarkar upped the ante and increased the speed. Now Madhavan and his friends at the AIM for Seva Free Student Home (FSH) in Tindivanam felt the pinch and dropped out of the race one by one. But they now have a new-found appreciation for the language, and many of the students promised him that they would improve their English language skills over a period of time as they begin to interact with British Council LearnEnglish for Schools DVD.
LearnEnglish for Schools programme provides a DVD with self-access English learning resources for children in age group 5 to 15 years. It is mapped to the National Curriculum Framework, India and provides a learning pathway from Class 1 to Class 10, making it ideal for contexts where the learners are situated in semi-urban or rural areas where access and internet connectivity is limited. Through the programme, students learn English in a fun and interactive way through songs, stories, grammar videos etc. As the programme is engaging and self-paced, it leads to better retention and understanding of concepts.
Inaugurating the programme, Sarkar explained the importance of learning English in today’s world, and the edge that it would give students in their lives. ‘’ With potentially millions of teachers and learners across the world aspiring to learn English, there is only one way that we can achieve that ambition and that is through the exploitation of digital platforms that can make English, and English learning opportunities, available to all”. He also explained about the British Council’s role in promoting English through development of a range of digital resources which provide an innovative and engaging way to learn English.
Meera Rajagopalan, Chief Manager of Programmes and Communications, AIM for Seva, explained the concept behind the Free Student Home. “The programme fits in neatly with AIM for Seva’s concept of all-round development,” she said. “Next year, I hope that the children will be up here on stage, conducting the programme in English.”
The pilot phase of LearnEnglish for Schools DVD is part of AIM for Seva’s commitment to provide children residing in the homes with access to learn English after school once they are back at their Student home. On successful implementation of the programme, it will be expanded to AIM for Seva’s 104 FSH across the country.
About AIM for Seva
AIM for Seva, in its 104 Free Student Homes (FSH) across the country, helps rural and tribal children receive nutritious food, accommodation and after-school support for free. In addition, children also receive value education, English language coaching, computer classes, creativity programmes and more for holistic development. More than 14,000 children have benefited from AIM for Seva FSH and have taken the first steps towards an empowered future.
About the British Council
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and build trust between them worldwide.
We work in more than 100 countries and our 7,000 staff – including 2,000 teachers – work with thousands of professionals and policy makers and millions of young people every year by teaching English, sharing the arts and delivering education and society programmes. The British Council is recognised across India for its network of 9 libraries and cultural centres. We offer a range of specialised projects in arts, education, exams, English language and society to audiences across India and more than 100,000 members. We also provide access to English language training and learning for both students and teachers, offer UK qualifications in India and enable opportunities to study in the UK.
We are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter. A core publically-funded grant provides less than 25 per cent of our turnover which last year was £781 million. The rest of our revenues are earned from services which customers around the world pay for, through education and development contracts and from partnerships with public and private organisations. All our work is in pursuit of our charitable purpose and supports prosperity and security for the UK and globally.