TIRUCHY: With a sizeable number of Tamil-medium students enrolling in English-medium undergraduate programmes every year, arts and science colleges in Tiruchy say the English-language component in the mandatory induction programme is often insufficient, prompting many institutions to conduct separate bridge courses to help students make a smoother transition.

Under the Higher Education Department’s standard operating procedure for first-year induction, colleges are required to include sessions aimed at improving English communication. However, faculty members say the time allotted for induction is not enough for many students to gain confidence in the language.

K Angammal, Principal of EVR Periyar Government Arts and Science College, said the institution conducts a special bridge course in English alongside the induction programme from the past 10 years for students from Tamil-medium schools. “Earlier, the English department faculty handled these sessions. Now we bring in experts in communication and soft skills so that students do not feel they are attending another routine class. The sessions are activity-based and aimed at building confidence,” she said.

At St Joseph’s College (Autonomous), a two-week bridge course is conducted before the start of regular classes. K Arockiam, Principal, said students from Tamil-medium schools generally adapt quickly to subject-specific concepts but face difficulties in understanding lectures, writing assignments in English. “The bridge course focuses on improving basic language skills and classroom confidence,” he said. Students say language barriers continue to affect academic performance during the initial semesters.

T Hema Priya, a second-year B.Sc. Computer Science student at Srirangam Government Arts and Science College, said students from Tamil-medium schools often struggle despite having a strong understanding of their subjects. “English sessions during induction help, but they are not enough. Many students take time to become comfortable with classroom communication,” she said. Another student, requesting anonymity, said many students begin focusing seriously on English only during placement training.

R Prabhakaran, Principal of Srirangam Government Arts and Science College, said it is unrealistic to expect students to become proficient in English within two weeks. “Students must continuously work on their language skills. Professional English has already been introduced as a paper in many UG courses during first four semesters. With AI tools helping students write and translate content, the real challenge now is effective communication,” he said.

A senior Higher Education Department official said the SOP only mandates few hours of English improvement sessions along with many other general sessions as part of the induction.

This story is reported by Vivanesh Parthiban