Background
India‟s linguistic, cultural, ethnic, religious diversity is very strong and wide spread. Heterogeneity and multilingualism is not a recent product. It goes back to the time when Aryans came to India with Sanskrit and thereafter many came, invaded and settled in India and with them was their languages.
The Present Status
India has,now, 23 constitutionally recognized official languages. And there are several hundreds of language varieties in India. Hindi is the most spoken language in India, while English, too, has a very strong hold in this country.
39%
8.30%
7.80%
7.45%
6.30%
5.18%
4.48%
3.69% 3.21%
Major Languages in India , and the % of People who use each language
Hindi
Bengali
Telugu
Telugu
Tamil
Urdu
Gujarathi
Kannada
Malayalam
As India had been
being ruled by
different rulers
throughout the
history, she kept a
particular language
policy during
different regimes,
based on the interest
of the community of
the ruling class.
During the Vedic
Period and Epic
Period, the major
language of
Instruction in the
Educational Process
was Sanskrit, the
language of the upper
cast people
During the Budhist
Period, they started
using Pali, the
language of the
common folk at their
Viharas for educational
transaction
During the Medieval
or Islamic Period in
India, Arabic and
Urdu became more
Prominent in all walks
of life and educational
institutions, as well.
And after the emergence of Britishers to India, the whole picture of Education was altered , and the language policy, too
Though, at the initial stage of their educational system, they had given regard to vernacular languages, they gradually started giving focus only to English
And it was Macaulay, who, at first, stood for English, and he made it mandatory that English should be the medium of Instruction at all the stage of education
Macaulay’s policy caused for infamous Oriental-Occidental Controversy which became a huge hurdle before the educational development of that time.
Later, Charls Wood, in his Dispatch, recommended that vernacular language could be used at the primary stage, and English at the higher stage.
How ever, throughout the British rule, English enjoyed the supreme position, and the Indian Languages hardly got due regard.
During 1930s Gandhiji argued for mother tongue as medium of instruction in his educational views called Wardha Scheme, as he believed that mother tongue is the most useful weapon for expressing one’s own ideas
Any how, Gandhiji did not supported the argument of Congress that Hindi should be promoted, as he feared that Muslims would be segregated from the main stream
Articles 343–351 of Part XVII and
the 8th Schedule of the Constitution of
India deal with issues of the
languages of the country
“English can be used for all official
purposes as a language of vital opportunities and
international contact.”
“Official communication between States
and Union should be in the Official language of the
Union i.e. Hindi.”
State should provide adequate facilities for
instruction in the mother-tongue at the
primary stage of education to children belonging to linguistic
minority groups
In1952, Muthaliyar Commission, recommended Three Language Formula which stated that mother tongue should be taught at primary stage and English and Hindi should be introduced later.
In 1966, Kothari Commission put forth a revised or modified Three Language Formula which stated that along with Mother tongue English and Hindi should be taught at non-Hindi states while instead of Hindi, any other modern South Indian language should be taught at Hindi speaking states
The Three Language Formula Fetched
people protest in south Indian states like
Tamilnadu that they were ready to accept
Hindi as second language
Most of the Hindi Speaking states is, now,
following Hindi, English and
Sanskrit formula
Some non-Hindi speaking states like Tamil Nadu a two language
formula i.e. Mother tongue
and English
The states like Orissa, West Bengal, and
Maharashtra still follows the real three language
formula i.e. Hindi + English+ a
modern south Indian language
The Present Status of Three Language Formula
It offers multi lingual capacity It facilitates learning of national
language It facilitates learning of
International Language It promotes national integration Learning of mother tongue
helps in cultural preservation Learning of English provides
global identity Learning of Hindi widens
opportunities Learning of mother tongue
facilitates expression of ideas
Merits and Demerits of Three Language Formula
It often creates administrative confusion
The south Indian people feel that Hindi is imposed on them.
It often becomes a burden for children to learn three languages together before mastering the mother tongue.
Merits Merits
MLE ( Multi Lingual Education)
Multi Lingual Education (MLE) is
one of the latest trends in Education all over the world in which children start learning their mother tongue, and
moves towards learning second
language only after mastering the mother tongue
Features of MLE
Strong foundation: Studies tell that children who
starts their education in their own language show
better performance during later studies
Strong Bridge : Systematic Bridging occurs between
learning of mother tongue and learning of the second
language in MLE Programmes
Stages of MLE Programme
Entire Learning in L1
Fluency in L1 and Introduction of Oral L2
Oral Fluency in L2 & Introduction of L2 Literacy
Using L1 as well as L2 for Life Long Learning