<div dir="ltr"><h1 class="gmail-detail-title">Draft national education policy rekindles debate on mother tongue</h1><div class="gmail-detail-info"><div class="gmail-article-links">· <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/draft-national-education-policy-rekindles-debate-on-mother-tongue/article8930355.ece" style="color:rgb(174,174,174)" title="Change Text Size" id="gmail-inc" class="gmail-defaultSize">T</a>
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<img src="http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02955/07bg_bgtki_lang_02_2955577f.jpg" class="gmail-main-image" alt="New policy:The draft states that if States opt the medium of instruction to be the mother tongue, then there is a need to ensure that the second language is English.— file photo" title="New policy:The draft states that if States opt the medium of instruction to be the mother tongue, then there is a need to ensure that the second language is English.— file photo" height="449" width="636"> </div>
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New policy:The draft states that if States opt the medium of instruction
to be the mother tongue, then there is a need to ensure that the second
language is English.— file photo
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<h2>Draft policy’s stand on issue comes as good news for State government</h2>
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<p class="gmail-body">Resurrecting the debate on the medium of instruction,
the draft National Education Policy (NEP) has stated that it could be in
the child’s mother tongue, local or regional language, if the States
“desire” so.</p><p class="gmail-body">The issue has been debated in Karnataka
and seen long-drawn-out court battles. In fact, the draft policy’s stand
on the issue comes as good news for the State government, which in May
2014 lost a nearly two-decade-old legal battle related to the State’s
language policy of 1994.</p><p class="gmail-body">Despite losing the battle in
court, the government had also passed an amendment to the RTE Act in
April 2015 in order to make mother tongue the medium of instruction in
primary classes.</p><p class="gmail-body"><b>Important role</b></p><p class="gmail-body">The
document titled ‘Some Inputs for Draft National Education Policy 2016’,
circulated to States, says: “All States and UTs, if they so desire, may
provide education in schools, up to Class V, in mother tongue, local or
regional language as the medium of instruction.”</p><p class="gmail-body">While
acknowledging that English plays an important role and that it is
necessary to make children proficient in reading and writing in the
language, the draft states that if States opt to have the medium of
instruction in the mother tongue, then there is a need to ensure that
the second language is English.</p><div id="gmail-inarticle_wrapper_div"><div id="gmail-inread1_26817" style="display:inline-block;overflow:hidden;clear:both"><div class="gmail-mainAdView" id="gmail-inread_26817" style="height:1px;overflow:hidden"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr id="gmail-zd_tr_26817"><td style="opacity: 0;" id="gmail-zd_td_26817"><br></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><p class="gmail-body">While
the State government is happy with these developments, private school
managements don’t feel so. D. Shashi Kumar, general secretary of the
Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka,
said the matter was already settled as the apex court had given its
verdict. “Both, the State and Union governments are using this for
political vendetta and are not willing to listen to the aspirations of
parents,” he said.</p><p class="gmail-body">Ironically, the State government
too had softened its stand on the medium of instruction, and had said
that the final choice should be with the parents rather than the
government. But, it had maintained that the medium of instruction should
be the mother tongue in government and aided schools at lower primary
levels.</p><p class="gmail-body">However, during consultations, the former
Minister of State for Primary and Secondary Education, Kimmane Ratnakar,
had batted for mother tongue as medium of instruction during the NEP
discussions.</p><p class="gmail-body"><a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/draft-national-education-policy-rekindles-debate-on-mother-tongue/article8930355.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/draft-national-education-policy-rekindles-debate-on-mother-tongue/article8930355.ece</a><br></p><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/" target="_blank">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
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