English Department
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About The Department
The Department of English is one of the oldest departments at Government Aizawl College, having been set up along with the establishment of the College in 1975. There are presently eight (8) regular faculty members. There have been many graduates from the Department who have gone on to become mature and responsible members of society, with an impressive number holding doctorate degrees and filling the need for English teachers at the university, college and school levels.
Open House: A unique feature of the Department is the Open House. Since 2005, the Department has been organizing what are referred to as Open House sessions at regular intervals for the English Core students. Prominent citizens from within the state, and members of the alumni with notable achievements are invited to address and interact with the students. These have included writers, poets, novelists, media personalities, motivational speakers, Indian administrative officers and trainers. The Open House also provides an ideal platform to discover and project the talents of the students, be it poetry writing/reading, elocution, music, etc. It helps the students to build their personality and gain self-confidence.
Department faculty members contribute Rs. 500/- at the beginning of every session for the Open House. A contribution of Rs.100/- is also collected annually from Core students for the same purpose.
Felicitation of New Graduates: The Department also felicitates each batch of graduates with mementos at a special Felicitation Open House session, and awards the topper in the university examination with prizes funded by special contributions from the faculty members.
Parents-Teachers Meet: In 2009, it was decided to gather parents of the English Department students to discuss the college educational system and what was expected of their children since college is so different from school. It was found to be very helpful on both sides, so the Parents- Teachers Meet became a fixed department practice. In 2011, with the introduction of the semester system, the College Principal decided to adopt it as a college practice with every other department having such meets with parents of every fresh batch of students.
Personal Interviews: The Department conducts written tests and personal interviews for admission to every first semester Core batch. This is a time-honoured practice that was first introduced due to the need to preserve and maintain a high standard of English among Honours/Major/Core students.
Besides this, towards the end of the first semester, personal interviews are held with every first semester student, irrespective of Core subject, as part of the university examination requirements in the Ability Enhancement Course under the National Education Policy.
Classroom Teaching: Classroom teachings are often conducted with audio-visual aids for Core students as and when necessary. Multimedia classes are also held in the form of film and video shows of novels, plays and material in the syllabi. Seminars, paper presentations and group discussions for the students are organized regularly. Extra classes are also conducted every semester, as and when necessary.
Student Mentoring: Mentoring of students by faculty is practiced by the Department. Students are divided into small groups led by one faculty member. The mentor maintains records of the academic performances of the students, as well as any other significant personal details. The mentor monitors the mentees and helps them out as and when needed.
Department Meetings: Meetings are held on a regular basis and exam results of the students analyzed every semester under the guidance of the Head of Department.
Field Trips/Study Tours: Final semester students are taken on an annual field trip or study tour by the faculty. In recent times, these have included trips to the Mizoram Univeristy campus, the two adopted schools at Hmuifang where Little Libraries were presented, the Mizo model village at Falkawn, etc.
Department Blog: The Department has set up a blog titled The GAC Lit Orbit to document the doings and comings and goings of the Department, as well as to showcase the talents and skills of the students.
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Published at July 23, 2025
|English Department Activity
As part of the GAC Gives Back initiative, an outreach programme celebrating the College’s Golden Jubilee, students of the 5th Semester, Department of English, accompanied by all faculty members of the Department visited the Mizo Hmeichhe Tangrual Motherless Babies’ Home on July 23, 2025.
A short formal function was led by Mrs. Elizabeth L. Hmar who elaborated on the purpose of the visit. She shared how this outreach is part of the College’s strong commitment to give back to the community, especially during the Golden Jubilee year. Mr. Mark Vanlalrema offered a prayer, followed by a special item from the 5th Semester students. Ms. Cindy Zonuntluangi, the Superintendent of the Home, gave a short speech, sharing the history and present condition of the establishment. She spoke about its founding during the Rambuai period, marking it as the first home of its kind in Mizoram. Currently, the home houses 18 children under the ages of ten, providing them with shelter, care and hope.
Donations of money, clothes, books and other essential items were made to support the home. Students and faculty interacted with the children and workers. Snacks were distributed and shared among all participants of the event and the students also took the time to help clean the premises, embodying the true spirit of service.
The visit was a truly invaluable experience. Interacting with the children, sharing moments of joy and connection, and hearing their stories from the workers left a lasting impression on both students and faculty alike. It was a humbling reminder of the silent battles many children face and the everyday blessings we often overlook.
This outreach programme marked a significant milestone in our year-long jubilee celebrations and demonstrates the College’s commitment to social responsibility and compassionate service.
The Department extends our heartfelt gratitude to the Motherless Babies’ Home for welcoming us and look forward to deepening our outreach efforts in the future.
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Published at March 21, 2025
|English Department Activity
The 10th General Conference of the Mizoram English Literary Society (MIELS) and ‘International Seminar on Northeast Narratives: Literary Trends, Culture and Society’ was held at Government Aizawl North College on March 21, 2025. Attended by members of MIELS and students from colleges across Aizawl, the Conference saw the election of new leadership for the next tenure, the release of MIELS Journal, and an international seminar where Dr. Easterine Kire presented the keynote address, followed by paper presentations from academicians and research scholars, among whom was GAC English Department alumnus Moses Rampuia. Notably, selected GAC students of English Department were also in the spotlight during the productive discussion session chaired by Mark V. Vanlalrema, Assistant Professor, Government Aizawl College.
Published at September 4, 2024
|English Department Activity
On the occasion of ‘LitFest 2024’ organized by Mizoram English Literary Society (MIELS) on September 4, 2024 at Government Hrangbana College, students from Government Aizawl College also participated in the state-wide competitions that marked the festival. These were poetry and short story writing competitions— both done on-the-spot with options from pre-selected themes, an extempore speech competition—which was a new introduction from this year. The college entered in all these items, with R. Lalrinawma, 3rd Semester student of English department clinching the 2nd position for his extempore speech on the topic “Ten years from now, I see myself…”
There was also an acoustic beat contest with song choices from the UG English department course under Mizoram University, where the College Music Club band represented GAC.
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Published at July 31, 2024
|English Department Activity
Ms. A. Hmangaihzuali Poonte, Associate Professor, Department of English retired on superannuation pension on July 31, 2024. Her retirement was marked by a bittersweet farewell organized by the college Employees' Welfare Association.
Miss Zualteii graduated with English Honours from Pachhunga University College in 1981 and completed her MA in English from NEHU, Shillong in 1983. She began her teaching career at Zirtiri Women's College in July 1984 in the English Department. In July 2000, she was transferred to Government Aizawl College, where she continued to work until her retirement. She lives in Chanmari with her two younger sisters.
At GAC, she set many milestones, the most notable being that she was the first faculty to deliver a lecture aided by Powerpoint slides, on October 8, 2012. Her contributions extended beyond the classroom. She played the pivotal role in establishing the ICT-related systems for the college website, email protocols and official social media channels. With her at the helm, the College won First Prize in the category of Official Institutional Website at the annual Government Online Excellence Awards 2023-2024 conducted by the Dept. of Information & Communication Technology, Govt. of Mizoram. It was under her able chairmanship of the ICT Committee that online classes and online examinations could be conducted smoothly during the pandemic lockdowns. She also took the lead in setting up the first digital Learning Management System of the college.
Miss Zualteii possesses a rare iconoclastic combination of creativity, professionalism and perfectionism, tempered by kindness and generosity. She has extended financial help to numerous individual students as well as student clubs and extension bodies, and her patronage of the Art Club and the Music Club is incomparable.
The College will deeply miss her presence. We wish her continued good health and a happy, productive retired life.
P.S. : We wish to see a lot more action on her blog www.mizowritinginenglish.com/
Published at April 11, 2024
|English Department Activity
A study tour of the cultural site at Reiek Village was organized by the Department of English on the 11th April 2024. Twenty four 6th semester English Core students and five faculty members participated.
The village, located about 30 kms from Aizawl, offers a variety of tourist attractions including an array of Mizo huts of a typical ancient village, each designed and furnished according to the existing social norm. This enabled the students to immerse themselves in a first-hand experience of life in the past, its values and social mores. The participants also hiked up the summit of Reiek hill, which is 1548 metres from sea level.
