Teaching English to 54 depts of Karachi University
Teaching English as a second language to 54 depts
Karachi, May 14: We are teaching English to the entire university,
comments Prof. Kaleem Raza Khan, Professor and former Chairperson of
the Department of English, light heartedly. But the comments of the
worthy Professor are on the mark as indeed the department is teaching
English Compulsory and Communication Skills to 54 departments. The
department of English was established in 1955. Dr Muhammad Ahsan
Farooqui was the first head of the department, which was located in
Shivjee Murarji building in Nanakwara. In January 1960, when the
university moved to its present campus, the department was housed on
the first floor of the arts faculty building. The faculty currently
comprises of three professor, two associate professor, five assistant
professor and five lecturers. So far the faculty members have published
approximately 85 research papers, books and monographs. It has about
400 students in various classes. The department offers Masters
programme in both English literature and linguistics. So far, the
department has awarded M.Phil to two candidates. The department, in
association with the National Book Foundation (NBF), organised a
symposium on "Pakistani Literature in English "in May 1990. And, in
June 1997, the department of English and the Shakespeare Association of
Pakistan jointly hosted the first Pakistan International Conference on
Shakespeare. The theme of the conference was "Shakespeare around the
Globe". It was attended by delegates from all parts of the world. The
Keynote address was delivered by Prof. Stanley Wells, Chairman,
International Shakespeare Association, Stratford-upon-Avon. The
incumbent Chairman of the department is Prof Dr Munir Wasti, a
mild-mannered, whose major area of interest is history of English
Literature, is wary of the fading interest of the students in
literature. "It is sign of times. Students are more interested to get a
degree in linguists and land a good teaching job. It is the demise of
literary taste that brings pleasure to the life that is filled with
woes, selfishness and greed", he says. Back in the 1960s, Dr
Ashraf Chaudhary was the guiding force at the department. A product of
Dhaka University, he was a simple person but strict disciplinarian. One
of the most famous and charming personality was that of Prof. Maya
Jamil who excelled in teaching drama. "There was no aspect of drama
that she did not know," says Prof Kaleem Raza Khan, her student. "We
had drama from Christopher Marlowe to George Bernard Shaw and she would
only teach Marlowe. If we study the drama of Pre-Elizabethan period
that included Tudor Period, The English Renaissance, Middle English,
Old English, Roman and Greek Drama, then we had to read revenge tragedy
of Seneca and read some drama on Spanish Tragedy before she taught us
Hamlet. It was the height of the professionalism," Prof Khan recalls
fondly. Old students still remember Dr Kaleemur Rahman,
Professor and Chairman of the department in 70s and 80s. Dr Rahman
taught Fiction and Literary Criticism and enthralled the students with
his knowledge and the methodology. Many events were held during his
tenure. Prof Kaleem Raza Khan teaches Phonology, Text Analysis
and Social Linguistics. He has Masters in literature and linguistics
from KU and an MA in Linguistics for ELT from University of Lancaster,
UK. Prof Khan is known for his straight talk and integrity of character
besides being expert in his field. He has conducted workshops for
English Language teachers in different parts of the country. Dr
Iftikhar Shafi teaches Literary Criticism and he is one of the best in
the department with comprehensive knowledge of Persian and Urdu. He has
attended many international conferences. He once captured the
fascination and applause of the literati of the city in a conference on
Shakespeare when he read the Urdu translation in verse while Zia
Mohyuddin recited the Shakespeare works. Other teacher that
needs special mention is a young lecturer Shumaila Shafqat Ali, a
lecturer and coordinator at the department. She is, as many say, is the
'only angel in the department'. She teaches TESOL, Social Linguistics
and Psycho-Linguistics. Her hard work, polite manners and friendly
smile has endeared her to the teachers and students alike. Other
teachers of the department include Prof Ambreena Qazi (Literature) , Dr
Fauzia Shamim (Research) and assistant Professor Tayyab Zaidi
(Discourse Analysis) besides a large number of Cooperative Teachers,
often termed, albeit jokingly, the mules of the department. The news
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Two students hurt in clash at FUUAST
Karachi: Two students were injured in a clash between two student
organisations at the Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and
Technology (FUUAST) on Thursday. Aziz Bhatti police station DSP
Fakharul Islam said both groups attacked each other with sticks and
iron rods. The clash suspended educational activities at the campus for
two hours. Law enforcement agencies reached the spot and used
baton-charge and tear gas to disperse the fighting students. SHO
Aurangzaib Khattak said clash started at a flower exhibition was being
held at the university. He said two people Manzar and Saqib were
injured in the clash and police took them to the Abbasi Shaheed
Hospital and Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for treatment. No case
was registered till the filing of this report. Daily times
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'Technical education will not be privatised'
Hyderabad: Sindh Technical Education and Vocational Training
Authority's managing director Abdul Wahid Uqaili has rejected reports
about privatization of technical education and vocational training
institutions in the province and said the authority has plans either to
close down the non-performing institutions or privatizing them. Mr Uqaili said in a statement issued here on Wednesday that on the
contrary, the authority with collaboration of National Vocational and
Technical Education Commission was establishing vocational training
centres in 14 talukas where no such facility existed before the
establishment of authority. The move to expand the
authority's operational area would open new avenues of income and job
generation and bring prosperity to people, he said. His
organisation, he said, was at present managing over 230 technical
education and vocational training institutes, which would prove
instrumental in skill development and creation of job opportunities for
hundreds of youths every year. Mr Uqaili said that the
authority was established by the Sindh government to revamp and
effectively manage technical education and vocational training
institutions with a view to imparting market-oriented education to
youths and enhancing their skills. Dawn
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'Roshan Karachi, Roshan Pakistan' event at KPS
Karachi: The energy crisis cannot be solved without the help of common man,
specially those who will assume the reins of the country in future,
resolved participants of the second event of "Roshan Karachi, Roshan
Pakistan" on Tuesday at the Karachi Public School. The campaign, aiming
to spread awareness among students regarding the power crisis, was
attended by over 500 students of different grades. The news
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