The Department of English is one of the oldest departments at Govt. 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 a 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 1st 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 1st semester, personal interviews are held with every 1st semester student, irrespective of Core subject, as part of the university examination as per requirements of the Oral Communication course in the General English paper.

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 regularly organized by the department. Extra classes are conducted for 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 HOD.

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 two adopted schools at Hmuifang where Little Libraries were presented, Mizoram University, the Mizo village at Falkawn, etc.


DEPT. BLOG: The dept. has recently set up a blog titled The GAC Lit Orbit to document the doings and comings and goings of the dept., as well as to showcase the talents and skills of the dept. students.

Contact:  englishdept.gac@gmail.com