By Ms Michelle Pereira for BIS Mumbai

Project English aims at teaching Spoken English to the members of the marginalized community. On the 8 May 2024 a meeting was held between Fr Barnabe D’souza – Director DBA, Mrs Assumption George – Incharge Evening Oratory, Mr Mathew George - Coordinator Don Bosco Development Services (DBDS) and Br Alan D’silva – CEO for Project English. The project is the brainchild of Fr Savio Silvera – Provincial, Mumbai Province. He believes that 70 – 80 % of people should develop the habit of speaking in English, while also helping them develop personally and professionally.

English is the most widely spoken language in the world, making it a common medium for international communication. Proficiency in English will help them interact with people across cultures. It will help the marginalized persons face job interviews, giving them an edge over others. It will make it easier for them to communicate and convey themselves in an effective way. This will open career opportunities for them in the global job market as multinational companies seek people with a fluency in English.

On the 5  July2024 the course book was unveiled by Fr D’souza, Fr Shekhar Mariadas – Administrator DB Nerul, Fr Misquitta, our Spiritual Director and Br. D’silva. The syllabus for this course has been prepared by Br D’silva. The book titled ‘Your Key to Success’ has been printed with the course notes. The course covers basics like alphabets, vowels, consonants and phonics. It also teaches the use of the dictionary. It covers grammar topics like tenses, pronunciation and conversation skills. In a combined effort of the Social Development team, National Institute of Open schooling (NIOS) team, Oratory, DB Academy and the NMMC schools in our area, we plan to train the trainers who in turn will teach Spoken English to the community members. The course will be replicated in the many communities we serve. The course is running on a pilot basis in the communities at Belapur, Panvel and Turbhe in Navi Mumbai.

Speaking on this occasion Fr. D’souza said that when he visited the community, he felt the need for this course. Under his guidance Br. D’silva was assigned this task and he took the initiative towards developing the course contents.