WHY ENGLISH…..

English is the world's leading international language. In different countries around the globe English is acquired by infants as a mother tongue, in others it is used as a second language. Some nations use English as an official language, like us, performing the function of administration; in others it is used as an international language for business, commerce and industry.

What factors and forces have led to the spread of English which, only 300 years ago, was limited to a small number of speakers in a tiny part of the world? Why is English now considered to be so prestigious that, across the globe, individuals and societies feel disadvantaged if they do not have competence in this language? What has been the effect of the spread of English on indigenous languages, cultures and communities? These are some of the questions that you investigate when you study English language.

In an arena of constant struggle between different languages, English has always held out a prime position, portraying itself as one of the most popular tool of communication. English is a widely used language today. In its spoken and written form people around the world use English to communicate with one another. English has thus structured itself as the working language in most countries. It was also the first language to be used on the internet. It is estimated that in the next few years 60% of the Internet websites will be English based.

In Pakistan, English language is not our national language but official language of our country yet it is far from being among the most popular ones. And it has always been so. Besides, not much has been done to improve upon that situation. However, it would not be very true to say that our English is so poor since so many of us obtain very good results at secondary level education.

Things have been changed. Today, mastering written English is not enough. Our economy is changing as the world’s economy imposes new constraints. There are more and more job prospects requiring mastery of spoken English. Present economic situation, more than ever, and in several sectors of the economy, demands good communicative skills, specially spoken in English as well as in other languages. Most of the information is available in English. Here are some examples of knowledge/information you can get/use if you know English:-

· Most pages on the Web. According to an estimation, over a billion pages of information are available in English. It's amazing that learning just one language gives you access to almost all knowledge on the Internet.

· Books — on any subject, from all over the world. Read books by British or American authors, and books translated from other languages. Whatever you're interested in, you can read about it in English.

· The Press. Only English-language magazines and newspapers can be bought in every part of the world. You don't have to search for Time, Newsweek, or the International Herald Tribune.

· Science. English is the key to the world of science. According to a survey, in 1997, 95% of the articles in the Science Citation Index were written in English. Only about 50% of them were from English-speaking countries like the USA or Britain.

· News reports. Watch international television networks, such as CNN International and BBC. They broadcast news much faster, and more professionally, than smaller, national networks. And you can watch them everywhere in the world.

English is the most spoken language in the world. According to an estimation:-

· About 1.5 Billion people in the world speak English. Another 1.00 Billion are learning it.

· 75% of the world's letters and postcards are written in English.

· Almost all international conferences and competitions are conducted in English. For example, the UN proceedings, world sports competitions and Olympics etc.

· Diplomats and politicians from different countries use English to communicate with each other. English is the main language of organizations like the United Nations, NATO, and the European Free Trade Association.

English is easy to learn:

English is not only the most used and useful language in the world it is also one of the easiest languages to learn and to use because of:

· Simple alphabet — no special symbols such as é or ä. Type in sweet, part, film on your computer. Now try süß (German), (Polish), (Russian). Which is easier?

· Easy plurals — simply add s to a word. One car, five cars; one telephone, two telephones... There are very few exceptions.

· Words are easy to learn. In French, it's la fille and le chien. In German, it's das Mädchen and der Hund. In English, they're just a girl and a dog. And that's all you need to know.

· Short words. Most of the basic words are short: run, work, big, go, man. Long words are often shortened: sitcom = situational comedy, fridge = refrigerator, OS = operating system. Speaking English saves you time.

· Words don't change. In many languages, one word has many forms:-

English: The man is blind.
German: Der Mann ist blind.
English: This is a blind man.
German: Das ist ein blinder Mann.
English: I see a blind man.
German: Ich sehe einen blinden Mann.

· Call everybody "you". You can say "Do you speak English?" to your friend or to your teacher. In other languages, you have to use the right word for the right person. In English, everybody is equal.

· English is everywhere. You can easily access English-language television, music, websites, magazines, etc. You don't have to learn from boring textbooks. You can learn and use your English at the same time. Using your English is especially important because it increases your desire to learn.


Thus learning to speak English well may be the best thing you can do to improve your life. English is to be rightly called “the Language of Communication”. Learn it now, you have the opportunity.