Meet on mother tongue in UoH today

Hyderabad: The Centre for Applied Linguistics and Translation Studies (CALTS), University of Hyderabad will organise a two-day national symposium on ‘mother tongue medium of instruction in school education in India’ from Monday.

The importance of mother tongue in education especially in formative years at school is an undeniable fact. A number of research studies in linguistics and Psychology have empirically proved this. The recently released draft of the National Educational Policy (2016), stresses on the importance of study in mother tongue at school level.

The policy draft suggests that, “All states and UTs may provide education in schools, up to Class V, in mother tongue, local or regional language as the medium of instruction.” Even UNESCO advocates mother tongue based multilingual education. Despite these universally accepted/endorsed views, educational scenario in India is far from realising this.

Indifferent to these observations, each state in India is replacing mother tongue as medium of instruction with English. The speed and alacrity with which this process is taking place leaves one dumbstruck.

Going by the current crisis created by the choice of English as medium of instruction, it is time for linguists, educationists and others to come together and strive towards bringing changes in the decisions made by the policy makers for reinstating mother tongue medium of instruction in all the states where it has been removed.

The present Symposium gives scope for discussing various issues related to mother tongue medium of instruction in various Indian states, the encroachment of English in education, its precedence over Indian languages, the need to plan our languages, the need for an effective language education policy.