While being an indispensable tool for professional journalists, Roget’s Thesaurus can help students build up their vocabulary. It can enable them to avoid repeating any word already used. For ease of reference, a Thesaurus in A- Z form will be better. Phrasal verbs - a phrasal verb is used together with an adverb or a preposition or sometimes both to give new meaning. As a student of the lower forms, I was once intrigued while reading a book by W. Somerset Maugham on coming across the expression ‘look in’ for the first time. I thought it was a mistake : there must be ‘look into’ instead. But I was wrong. The use of phrasal verbs is quite common among modern prose writers. In simplicity, phrasal verbs invest the language with depth and elegance. Prepositions, adjectives, verbs, etc. followed by appropriate prepositions are highly commended by examiners.

<B>Sentence Construction </B>

Modern English grammar is essentially a matter of sentence construction, writes a language expert. Students must learn to be sentence-conscious. Intensive practice in the use of a variety of sentence patterns largely contributes towards creating harmony in the paragraph.

<B>For teachers </B>

In addition to what trainee teachers get from their academic / professional training, it is vital that they have a certain knowledge of journalism to get acquainted with the basic technicalities of writing, particularly in reporting, writing and editing. How to launch an idea in the introduction, the concept of paragraphing and the art of conclusion among others must be there.

It is hoped that these points will be carefully considered by the student population and those committed to the teaching of English. Whether you call it an accident of history or whatever you like, the English language together with French and the existing Asian languages holds up our island home as a bridge connecting us with the rest of the world. It indeed helps us in our attempt at attaining our goals of development and cooperation.

<B>Kaviraj SOHUR</B>