Teaching English as a language for engineers is not an easy task. Over the years, educators have evolved different methodologies, approaches and techniques.

A.J.Herbert considered an authority on 'Technical English' was once the guru for all teachers of technical English. It was then realised that in the purely technical context in which Herbert's exercises are based, young learners were finding it difficult to relate to the global demands for professionals strong in communication skills. Attention then moved on to 'Communicative English'.

Anna University, Chennai had a wonderful text from Oxford University Press which had a mix of all the four skills of communication - listening, speaking, reading and writing based on the context, the lessons and topics dealt with in the text. In the face of lack of adequate training to teachers of English who had to handle a fresh new challenge of teaching tasks that could not depend on examination oriented pattern of lessons or tasks, there has been dilution of standard in the handling of communicative tasks. Teachers began to depend on Dr.Sumant's exercise based worksheets in order to strengthen the students' grammar skills as they would help the student procure a pass, which seemed to be the only expectation of managements. If the syllabus was cleverly used to improve results, it seemed to be nobody's business. If the intention of the syllabus was to significantly improve the speaking or listening skills of students, that did not really happen.

Realising the need to improve the speaking skills of our engineering students, technology was then brought in. Language laboratories became the buzz word and language laboratories were established at immense costs in colleges. In the absence of adequate technical manpower and training from experts to teachers on how to scientifically and objectively use the technologies, there is no denying the fact that there have been searches for other methodologies.

Anna University, Coimbatore seems to have made a fresh attempt using the expertise of Cambridge University's proven record of ESOL training. Materials are specially developed for students of the Coimbatore zone of Anna University. For the past five days, training has been going on in Salem to orient the teachers to the teaching of the LSRW skills. The first session has focussed on the listening tasks. We have been taught how to use pre-listening and post-listening activities in order to move teaching towards a more student centric one. There is some clarity now in the minds of teachers as how the Cambridge materials ought to be completed in order to prepare students for a standardised ESOL examination to be conducted by Cambridge University.

Change is an indication of growth and language learning must constantly evolve and tailor itself to meet the global spurt in demand for technical manpower that is absolutely strong in communication skills.