CUK holds programme on redefining language learning through technology

Ganderbal: To celebrate Bhartiya Bhasha Utsav-2023, the departments of Urdu, Kashmiri and Information Technology of the Central University of Kashmir (CUK) jointly organised a panel discussion on “Redefining the Language Learning through Technology”, at varsity’s Tulmulla campus here on Monday.

Addressing the participants, Dean Academic Affairs, Prof Shahid Rasool, said the technological advancements are making language learning very easy, accessible and engaging. “India is a multilingual country with diverse cultures and the advancements in technology including the Artificial Intelligence and Chatgpt has opened up new possibilities for learners to engage with languages and cultures in ways that were previously unimaginable,” Prof Shahid said.

He said the internet has revolutionised the way languages are learnt and the meanings of words, phrases, idioms are just a click away.

Dean Academic Affairs, however, sounded a note of caution stating that the instant translators and correction tools may not always understand the contextual and nuances of the particular language. “This can result in translations or corrections that lack cultural sensitivity and may not capture the full meaning of the conversation,” he further said. Prof. Shahid underscored the need of digitizing the works done in regional languages and keeping them available online for the usage of masses. Prof. Shahid said that NEP-2020 has also laid stress on multi-lingual teaching-learning and asked the faculty members to implement it during classroom teaching.

Earlier, Dean Students Welfare and Head Departments of Urdu and Kashmiri, Dr. Irfan Alam in his welcome address, said the panel discussion will make the participants understand the importance of being tech savvy for language learning and to understand the usage of various open source tools and software’s available for learning different languages.

He said that on the directions of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. A Ravinder Nath, CUK is going to organise a series of events to celebrate the diversity in unity of Indian languages, encourage the building of deeper connections in the hearts and minds of youth and encourage multilingualism as envisaged in the NEP-2020.

Dr. Irfan said that in this age of information technology, every aspect of life, including the language, has been influenced.

During the panel discussion, the experts included Balendu Sharma, Prof. Adil Amin Kak, Dr. Afaq Alam, Dr. Majid Bashir, Dr. Muhammad Imtiyaz, Dr. Mushtaq Haider, Dr. Jauher Qudoosi and Dr. Muhammad Ahsan, said that numerous online language learning platforms and applications are available which offer a wide range of resources, from interactive lessons to video tutorials and language exchange forums. They said that language learning through technology is accessible to the people across the globe, cutting across the geographical boundaries. They further said, “the technology has made translation and interpretation more easy and accessible to people.”

Asst Profs. Dr. Samreen Geelani and Dr. Amir Bashir conducted the programme while as Asst Prof. Dr. Rashid Aziz proposed the vote of thanks.