Principal Edwardes College Peshawar Dr. Titus Presler Wednesday announced English Immersion and Session-long Programs for all new students at Edwardes College for the 2012-13 Session.
“These programs will help students acquire the facility in spoken and written English they need to perform well at the Intermediate, Degree and Post-Graduate levels,” Dr. Titus said in a statement here.
“Commentators all over Pakistan have calling for improvement in spoken and written English among students and graduates. Our new program will be the ‘Edwardes Edge’ in meeting that need.”
“Those admitted to our Intermediate course in July will spend 12 days, from 27 August to 8 September, in intensive drilling to improve their spoken and written English,” said Vice Principal Prof. Kalim Ullah, who is coordinating the initiative.
“It is a compulsory 8am-12 noon daily program.” He said students would be permitted to speak only English on the campus during those hours.
The 27 instructors recruited to teach the Immersion Program include all members of the College’s English Department, 8 other Edwardes faculty, and 9 instructors from beyond the College, according to Prof. Alwin Edwin, head of the English Department and supervisor of the program. He noted that instruction will also address study techniques, confidence building, proper behavior, and an introduction to Edwardes life and culture.
The syllabus has been designed by the College’s faculty.
The pre-session English Immersion Program will kick off a year-long special English Facility Program in which students across all courses in all years will work on English conversation and writing on a weekly basis.
The College timetable is being adjusted to accommodate the additional classes.
Families are being charged a fee for the Immersion Program to cover costs, but the Facility Program is included in the regular College fees.
Established in 1900, Edwardes is the oldest institution of higher education in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Its 2,700 students in 9 courses include over 300 women students.
