Since every language is personal in theory, it is to be objective in social use and context and hence the presentation by students is very much subjective as he has learnt it through the subjective perception of his teacher.(pg 72); Face validity - concerns what learners and teachers to think of the text. (pg 75) - chapter titled Testing and Evaluation by member-board of studies, G V Kulkarni.

The ten day college teachers' refresher course held last month may have given the teachers some new insights into their vocation. But the course also seems to have considerably boosted their knowledge of the twists and turns of the English language. The manual used for the course was a blend of grammatical gaffes, ambiguous expressions and convoluted sentence constructionswhich sent the hapless teachers diving for their Wren and Martins.

All junior college teachers who had completed 12 years and were eligible for the senior scale had to attend a refresher course organised by the State Board at Mulund and Thane. ``The idea was that teachers were participating in learning,'' recalled Jennifer D'Souza from Jhunjhunwala college, Ghatkopar.

The Forum for English Language Teachers (FELT) had petitioned the state government asking it to direct the board to update the English textbook used in the Arts, Commerce and Science faculties in junior colleges across the state. FELT has also submitted a copy of the manual used at the refresher course to the minister of state for Education, Anil Deshmukh.

Said D'Souza, a FELT member, the resource persons at the course were themselves not up to the mark. Appointed by the board from colleges all over the state, several of them had equal experience to the teachers who were participating in the course. Many of them were unable to expressthemselves adequately or even pronounce the language at times. Some were even unfamiliar with the content of the course, said the teachers.

The manual book itself was rife with gaffes. For instance, none of the paragraphs in the Preface (book II) supposedly penned by Vijay patil, chairperson of the State Board and Additional Director of Education, Maharashtra State, Pune, are grammatically correct or an easy read, revealed D'Souza.

Members of the Board of Studies prepared two boks for training: the Teachers' Handbook I, in Marathi, was common to teachers of all subjects and contained information on the National Educational Policy, Value Education etc. Teachers Book II was devoted to different areas of teaching in the respective subjects, and contained information on the changing scenario of English teaching in the state.

It was the manual that proved to be a nightmare for the teachers. Professor Nagesh Havanur from Hinduja college, Charni Road, offered some examples: *What objectives did we set beforeembarking upon this kind of voyage? Let us not lose the sight of. (pg 9) from `Changing scenario': by the Convenor, Board of Studies, Dr J B Paranjpe.