NEW NATIONAL CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK

1. Context

The New National Curriculum Framework for the foundational stages of education was launched by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and has recommended that mother tongue should be the primary medium of instruction in schools, for children up to eight years of age in both public and private schools.

The thrust on the mother tongue as the medium of instruction, especially in the primary grades, has been a feature of education policies and curriculum frameworks over the years.

2.National Curriculum Framework Recommendations

Children learn concepts most rapidly and deeply in their home language, the primary medium of instruction would optimally be the child's home language /mother tongue /familiar language in the Foundational stage.

English can be one of the second languages taught at that level.

3.Present Scenario

• At the national level, in schools affiliated with the CBSE or ICSE, English is the main medium of instruction from the primary classes, despite efforts to get the boards to adopt the mother tongue or dominant regional languages at least for the primary grades.
• Neither of these boards has so far signaled any possible revision in the current arrangement.
• Most state boards, meanwhile, have their regional languages as the main mode of instruction.
• However, every state government also runs schools in which English is the medium of instruction.
• Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governments have taken policy decisions to gradually get all schools to impart education only in English.

4.Previous Education Policies

4.1.First Education Policy

The first education policy, which was based on the recommendations of a commission headed by the former Chairman of the University Grants Commission Dr. D S Kothari, observed that regional languages were already in use as the medium of education at the primary and secondary stages and steps should be taken to adopt the same at the university stage as well.

The recommendations did not contain any specific instructions on the mother tongue but underlined that ‘special emphasis should be laid on the study of English and other languages.

4.2.Second Education Policy

It was introduced in 1986

It was silent on the use of the mother tongue as the medium of instruction at the foundational stage.

4.3.Programme of Action

In 1992 Programme of Action, which was based on a review of the 1986 policy, that at the preschool level, the medium of communication should be the mother tongue/regional language.

4.4.New Education Policy

It was introduced in 2020, marking a departure from the past, as it made a clear case for the mother tongue

Wherever possible, the medium of instruction until at least Grade 5, but preferably till Grade 8 and beyond, will be the home language /mother tongue /local language /regional language.

5. National Curriculum Frameworks

1. The first NCF which was published in 1975said that, so far possible primary education should be in the mother tongue
2. NCF 2000 said the medium of instruction, ideally, ought to be the mother tongue at all stages of school education.
3. NCF 2005 said the language of interaction and communication in Early Childhood Care and Education would generally be the Child's first language or home language. And English to be introduced early as a second language, either in class I or at the preschool level.

6. Constitutional Position

Under article 350A of the constitution, the government must try to ensure that children from linguistic minority groups are educated in their mother tongue.

It shall be the endeavour of every State and of every local authority within the State to provide adequate facilities for instruction in the mother tongue at the primary stage of education to children belonging to linguistic minority groups, and the President may issue such directions to any State as he considers necessary or proper for securing the provision of such facilities.

6.1.Article 351

It shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression for all the elements of the composite culture of India and to secure its enrichment by assimilating without interfering with its genius, the forms, style, and expressions used in Hindustani and in the other languages, specified in Eight schedules.