*Doctoral Research Scholar, Dept. Of Humanities and Social Sciences, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Odisha, Bhubaneswar, India, Email id: ldthomas@gita.edu.in
**Associate Professor, Dept. of Humanities and Social Sciences, SOA University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India, Email id: sthitaprajna@soa.ac.in
Online Published on 05 August, 2022.
Purpose- This paper aims to investigate the effectiveness of the teacher and the design of modules of the English Lab in the teaching of English communication skills to undergraduate engineering students.
Design/methodology/approach- The study used a questionnaire with 68 participants who had completed their undergraduate courses from the university and then enrolled in the management programs of another university.
Findings- The lab classes are not standardised, the activities and exercises do no develop communication, and a significant number find the classes boring. A high number of respondents neither agree nor disagree that the facilitator provided regular feedback and guidance or provided support by demonstration.
Originality/Value- It provides one of the first empirical studies in India and eastern India using the construct of lab module design and facilitator effectiveness.
Social Implication- There is a skill gap between engineering students who come from vernacular mediums of instruction and their classmates who have studied from English medium schools. When these students are unable to communicate in English or complete the tasks in the Lab, they are demotivated and stop making attempts to learn the language.
Communication, Engineering, English Lab Design, Facilitator Effectiveness, Communicative English
