The Forms and Functions of English for Army Personnel in Pakistan with a Specific Reference to Pakistan Military Academy, Kakul

Abstract

Most of the ESL programmes in Pakistan do not cater to the potential needs of the learners, both in their academic as well as professional settings. This is due to the fact that the prescribed English syllabi are not in accordance with the specific needs of the learners. The professional institutions as such fail to equip the learners with the required linguistic and communicative competence. The Pakistan Military Academy (PMA), Kakul, the target research site of the project, one of the multiple cases in point, is also facing the same problem. The present study chooses to focus on the evaluation of the English Teaching Programme (ETP) of the PMA, Kakul, to discover those factors, which may have decreased the efficiency of the syllabus and attempts to find out as to why it does not achieve the desired goals. This research is also a thorough investigation to measure the level of existing linguistic adequacy of the PMA cadets with reference to the specific roles they are required to perform so that their problem areas could be systematically identified and subsequently reported with recommendations. A mixed methods approach has been followed to investigate the academic and professional language needs of the learners. In this regard, information was obtained through questionnaire and interviews from three population groups of the discourse community of army: cadets, ex-cadets and instructors. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 13) was used for analyzing the quantitative data and thematic analysis was used for analyzing the qualitative data. In addition, an eclectic checklist based on the criteria suggested by various scholars was prepared to evaluate the textbooks taught at the PMA. The findings indicate that knowledge of English is a decisive factor for success in Pakistan Army. However, the results revealed that there is plenty of scope for improvement in the present courses that are being taught at the PMA and that a literature oriented general English course does not help the cadets achieve the required proficiency in English language. In identifying the language needs of cadets, a vast majority of all the population groups have ranked writing and speaking skills as the most important language skills required, followed by reading and listening. The results also provided a clear picture of the learners’ level of inadequacy in the skills required for performing academic and professional roles in military settings. It was also found that some changes need to be made in teaching style in order for courses to be more effective. Based on the findings of this study, a needs-based course has been proposed for implementation at the PMA. The study concludes with various recommendations that may help improve the English language teaching and learning at the PMA.