English language needs special attention: Atta
By Bushra Rafique

ISLAMABAD—The importance of English language in higher education is increasing rapidly as about 95 per cent of world’s literature comes out in this language.
This was stated by Prof. Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman, FRS, Federal Minister and Chairman, Higher Education Commission (HEC) and Adviser to Prime Minister on Science and Technology while the inaugural session of three-day ‘International Conference on English Language Teaching’ at National University of Modern Languages (NUML) here on Wednesday. The purpose of the Conference, jointly organized by NUML and HEC, is to provide a platform to national and international professionals to share ideas and explore new strategies for improving English language teaching in Pakistan.
The Chairman stressed that the significance of English language in education must be realized otherwise our faculty members and students will not be able to compete at the international level. “Cognizant of this fact, the HEC launched English Language Teaching Reforms (ELTR) Programme two years ago so as to bring qualitative improvement in teaching of this global language and to build the capacity for sustainable development of English Language teachers in higher education in Pakistan”, he said.
He said that this Conference will be an intellectually stimulating event for the participants. “I appreciate NUML for taking a lead in the teaching of local and foreign languages and a special interest that they have shown for improving the ELT scenario in the country”, he added. Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman said that there was no distinction of subjects as far as learning of English language is concerned. “The faculty members and students have to be good in written and spoken English and there is no division in this regard. Whether you belong to social sciences, natural sciences or any subject, you need to be proficient in English”, he emphasized. He advised teachers and students to read English literature to get a strong base in English language. “You can not learn any language without practice. Read more and more English literature that will not only improve your spoken and written skills but it will also have a direct impact on your thinking abilities”.
The Chairman also elaborated different initiatives of HEC for improving higher education sector in the country. He negated the impression that the Commission is only focusing on science and technology areas. “We have adopted a holistic approach. About 30 per cent of scholarships have been reserved for social sciences and humanities”, he said.
To a question, he said that the video-conferencing facility is being provided to various universities. “Eighteen universities will have this facility within a few weeks and another 20 will be capable of video-conferencing in the next few months”.
He said that the Commission is laying special emphasis to ensure the quality of education in the institutions of higher learning. “Substandard universities will be closed and converted to colleges on June 30, 2008 as per decisions of the Chancellor’s Committee”, he said. Earlier, in his welcome address, Dr. Aziz Ahmad Khan, Rector NUML thanked HEC for its collaboration to organize the Conference. He said that this event is a big step towards improvement of ELT situation in the country. “This is the time to realize the importance of English language especially in the education sector. If we have to compete with other nations of the world, we need to improve the skills of English language otherwise we shall lag far behind among the comity of nations”. Dr. Sherry Steeley from George Mason University, USA delivered her keynote address on the occasion.
The Conference will continue till Friday and will have two sessions every day. The presenters in these sessions include scholars from within and outside the country.