Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh’s APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU) on Sunday welcomed a fresh batch of B.Tech students who, after their joining, all taught For 1st year in Hindi – For the convenience of the students who have chosen Hindi medium. While they can choose to write the exam in Hindi or in English, many prospective students, even those who come under the UP Board, are unhappy.
They say the move won’t help them in the long run, citing issues they face in placement interviews, limitations of overseas study and even ongoing issues within India. This is even after the university said it would provide special classes for those who are weak in English.
Professors have also said that the move is motivated by ideological reasons rather than practical ones.
The university, which has 798 colleges affiliated, will also offer engineering books in Hindi at its four constituent colleges – Institute of Engineering and Technology, Lucknow, Faculty of Architecture and Planning, AKTU, Center for Advanced Study (In-Institute). Campus Center for Engineering Studies), and UP Institute of Design, Noida.
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What do students want?
19-year-old Anshika Mishra, a Pilibhit native who skipped a year to prepare for JEE exam and enrolled in online classes at a coaching center in Lucknow, says she too would not opt for engineering studies in Hindi.
This is the demographic for which Hindi was the medium despite her being a student of UP board Claimed To be beneficial
“English is a language used abroad as well as in South India. English is also the method of teaching in most of the coaching centres. It is better to prepare for speaking in English from now on,” she says.
Anshika’s friend Manu – who is also a UP board student – however feels that it would have been beneficial if she had engineering books in Hindi.
Some coaching centres, especially in centers like Kota, train students exclusively in Hindi. They also get the option to write in JEE Main language.
But not many choose it and those who do, prefer to switch to English later, say the students.
Senior Kumar, an 18-year-old IIT candidate from Sitapur, told ThePrint that “99 percent of students” choose English as their medium of study in engineering.
“Most students will choose English as their medium of study simply because there are some engineering words which cannot be translated into Hindi. Also, students may face problems during placements if they do not develop a hold on the English language,” he said.
He said that even the students of his coaching center who are writing exams in Hindi will not take Hindi books after reaching the university. “English gives them the best chance for development,” he explained.
University students preparing for placements also said that this is one of the main reasons behind their preference for English medium.
“Most of the companies that come for placements look for someone with basic knowledge of English and consider proficiency in English as an edge. Also, a lot of companies, especially IT companies, keep students in South India. This is why books in Hindi are good for UP Board students in their initial year but not for the entire syllabus,” said Suraj Kumar, a fourth year B.Tech (Information Technology) student at IMS Engineering College, Ghaziabad. Told.
The owners of the coaching center say that while books in Hindi will be helpful for the students of the UP Board, there is a need for students to teach both the languages simultaneously.
Speaking to ThePrint, the manager of a premier coaching center with 118 branches across UP said that this move (instructions in Hindi) may initially help the UP Board students, but it could be harmful in the long run.
“Students need to be prepared for the professional world, where they will be dealing with businessmen and leaders who will communicate in English,” she said.
She points out that Hindi instruction initially allows UP Board students to grasp concepts and engage more freely in the classroom. “We also offer online engineering classes in Hindi for students in smaller towns who want to learn engineering concepts in Hindi. This is helpful because most of the technical terms are in English. It also prepares them to join English classes at the university,” she explained.
He said that while the online classes are in Hindi, the mode of teaching is bilingual in most of the centres.
Ideology vs. Pragmatism: Professor
While the university as a whole is ahead, professors say the move is more conceptual than practical.
“Will the children of politicians and those behind this move study engineering in Hindi,” remarked an assistant professor at a constituent college of AKTU, where the courses are about to be started.
“We understand that many students are from UP Board and keep the language of teaching bilingual so that all students can understand. But, the reality is that Hindi is not used in states other than Hindi speaking states,” he said.
He emphasized the importance of English in universities. “I studied in a UP board school and we were never in an environment where English is used to teach. College is the only place where we started conversing in English – that too, only a little bit,” he said.
Dr Neelam Srivastava, HOD, Electronics and Communication Engineering at Institute of Engineering and Technology, Lucknow, said that teachers are already using Hindi to teach.
“but I think [teaching in] English should not be compromised while sticking to its roots. If the student moves from a Hindi speaking area, he/she will have to use English as it is the language there. It is needed at the international level as well,” she said.
Some professors feel that books in Hindi can help students in initial years, they say that continuing all four years using Hindi is only good for students who want to stay in UP.
An engineering professor from UP University said, “If a student wants to stay in UP only after completing the course, they can opt to study in Hindi, but for one who wants to go global, it will not work. will do.”
Dr Shabana Uroj, a former professor at Gautam Buddha University, Noida, who is now an assistant professor at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Saudi Arabia, told ThePrint that books in Hindi are not useful for students who want to pursue higher studies abroad. want to go.
She also agreed that Hindi can be useful for those who want to continue their career in UP. “In countries like Italy and Saudi Arabia, natives use their own language even though their slides are in English,” she observed. ,
Also, he notes that most of the research papers by foreign researchers and even many Indian ones are in English, thus the knowledge of the language cannot be included.
Instead of teaching all first-year students in Hindi, he suggested individual schools to keep the language of instruction separate and entirely beneficial to those who choose the particular language.
“They can be divided into national schools” [where instruction takes place in the native language] and international school [where instruction takes place in English]”, she explained.
plan so far
AKTU Vice-Chancellor PK Mishra said that the approach so far has been to consider English as the primary language of teaching and “our own language” (Hindi) as the secondary.
“Now the approach should be that our language [Hindi] Must be elementary, but you should be able to communicate in English when needed,” he said.
When asked about the implementation in the current session, he said that the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) books available in Hindi would be first procured for the four universities mentioned earlier and then they would be procured for the rest of the affiliated colleges. At a later stage, on the basis of “demand and supply”. The use of translated versions is not mandatory, they are for the benefit of students who find Hindi a more comfortable medium.
AKTU is in touch with professors who have translated some engineering books into Hindi and will rely on 20 books translated into Hindi by Rajiv Gandhi Technological University in Madhya Pradesh, the VC confirmed.
He said that the university is planning to give an incentive of Rs 2 lakh to those teachers who are ready to translate an engineering book into Hindi. “The administration has approved it, it will be brought up in the next meeting of the financial committee, which will be held in a month or two. Once approved by them, it will be implemented,” said Mishra.
Hindi not Hinglish
While the UP government pushed To translate engineering books with great enthusiasm, the officials realized that complete translation of engineering books from English to Hindi is impossible.
“There are certain terms that will continue to be used in English. Teachers will use Hindi to explain to the students. The books will have a mix of English and Hindi,” an AKTU official informed ThePrint told ThePrint.
Mishra said that the teachers will identify the students who are very poor in English and teach them in Hindi.
Realizing that writing answer scripts in Hindi in engineering courses cannot find many buyers among students, the university has proposed to give students the option of writing certain words – especially technical ones in English.
“The student can write technical words in English and Hindi. It could also be a mix,” Mishra told ThePrint.
(Edited by Therese Sudeep)
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