Medium of instruction: a boon or bane? Dr. Pratap Naik, S.J. Director Thomas Stephens Konknni Kendr Alto Porvorim, Goa - 403 521
"Mother tongue" is a misleading term. As a linguist, I question this term because what will be the mother tongue of a child who has lost its mother or parents at the babyhood? Even if one accepts the validity of the term mother tongue, it cannot be the norm for medium of instruction at the primary school. In an ideal situation if the dominant language spoken at home or in the neighbourhood is used as the medium of instruction, the child will easily understand the subjects taught and its academic growth will attain the desirable level. Besides the medium of instruction, the quality of textbooks, teaching methods and the competence of teachers are also equally important for the child's academic growth. In most of the countries of the world the medium of instruction is their dominant language. In India we do not have a single language which is accepted by all as the language of education. English is the only language which unites the Indians at the level of education. In Goa till 1991 in a number of schools the medium of instruction in primary schools was English or Marathi. Konknni as a medium of instruction was limited to two schools in South Goa. Spoken Konknni unites the locals but written Konknni divides. Konknni written in Devanagari script has done more harm to locals and Konknni culture compared to Marathi. Konknni written in Devanagari is nobody's baby. It is artificially kept alive by the government grants to please a handful of protagonists. The textbooks written in Konknni are filled with innumerable grave errors of all types. It is nobody's concern to rectify them. Those managements who opted for Konknni medium have done so not because of their conviction but to avail grants from the education department. Teachers are not sufficiently equipped to teach in Konknni medium. The rich and those who can afford, send their children to unaided English medium primary schools and later on shift to aided schools. In this visionless and chaotic atmosphere the children who attend the Konknni medium schools have become the voiceless and helpless victims. It is a great injustice done to them. All of us are responsible for this crime. Hence it is our duty to rectify the past blunder and to obtain justice to our children by providing them free English medium education at the primary level. I say this with full conviction after working for Konknni as a researcher and teacher in Goa for 25 years. Our love for Konknni should not make us blind for the future of our children. In Goa, Konknni is needed only to maintain the cultural identity of the people. Let Konknni be the language of our heart, namely household language, language in the domains of social, cultural, religious and other related fields. In Goa, let English be the language of our mind and intellect, namely education at all levels, administration and intellectual growth and to earn our daily bread. All over India, English is gaining momentum as the medium of instruction at the primary level. In the neighbouring districts of Sindhudurg, Belgaum, Dharwad, and Uttar Kannada, even in the villages English medium schools exist and their demand is increasing day by day. Primary education in English in Goa will be a boon for all irrespective of their home language, religion, region and caste. Let our parents, managements and the education department do not fall as a prey to the hypocritical double standard talk of pseudo-educationists, mother tongue protagonists and politicians. The future of Goa and our people lies in English medium education, which is a boon to our children. * * * Dear fellow Goans and residents of Goa, There is a rally at Azad Maidan on March 21, 2011 -- Monday afternoon. If you believe that Goa and Goans deserve a better educated GenNext -- and that loves Konkani as a language and not as a pain to be endured for four years in the 'purgatory' of primary school -- make sure you are there by 4 pm at Azad Maidan, near Ferry Jetty, Panaji-Goa. The issues are simple: * The right to free education up to Standard VIII in a language or "medium of instruction" of one's choice. The child should have the first choice, the parents the second choice, the schools the third choice. This has been done democratically by People's High School, Panaji-Goa, which reverted to English medium with higher fees in 1992 -- after just one year. The ABE needed 19 more years to understand this because of its own convoluted pedagogy. Not surprisingly, the only vocal supporter of this pedagogy in the Goa Legislative Assembly is Shri Manohar Parrikar of BJP! * Compulsory 'second language' in school from Standard I to SSC to be the sole official language of the linguistically organized State of Goa in the Indian Union. * Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Malayalam or any other of the 22 Indian national languages as per the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, can be the optional "third language", unless the student opts to study in one of those languages as the "medium of instruction" as done currently in Goa. Hindi is NOT the 'National Language' of India. Hindi is one of the 22 National Languages of India recognized so far. The Goa, Daman & Diu Official Language Act, 1987, has a specific proviso for non-discrimination on the basis of language for grants for educational, cultural and social activities. The Goa, Daman & Diu Education Act, 1984 and Rules 1986 do not have any bar on English as a medium of instruction. The Central Right to Education, 2009 does not have a bar on English language as Medium of Instruction. Goa's Official Gazette, Assembly proceedings and court proceedings are recorded in English as original and referral language to this day. The laws, rules and forms are not printed in the sole official Language of Goa, Konkani. They are either only in English or in English and Marathi. So English is the 'unofficial' official language in Goa as it is legally the 'official Language' in Nagaland. Not everyone can be given five minutes to speak, but I hope the organizers will give time to Tomazinho Cardoz (former teacher and Headmaster in DSE-ABE schools in Arpora, Chorao, Moira and other villages, former President of Dalgado Konkani Akademi, former member of Goa Konkani Akademi board, former Director in the ESG Board, incumbent Founder-President of the Tiatr Academy of Goa and member of Kala Academy Board) and to Dr. Pratap Naik SJ, a teacher who is the Director of the Thomas Stephens Konknni Kendr, a Konkani language research institution managed since 1985 by the Society of Jesus that also manages the St. Britto High School, Mapusa, and Loyola High School (now with an English medium primary section running parallel to the so-called Konkani medium primary school in Margao). Parents of students in primary and pre-primary (nursery and play schools) schools as well as those having toddlers and infants are the most worried lot. People of marriageable age may or may not be thinking about it. Those of us who are older worry about the employability of the GenNext that knows neither Konkani nor English fluently. On the other hand, if the sole official language (also known as "Konkani written in the Devanagri script") of Goa was made the compulsory second language from Std. I to SSC and kept as an option for Std. XI and XII, each child would be exposed to the language for ten years instead of just FOUR years [or seven years, if the student does not opt for Marathi as third language from Std V to VIII). After that the application forms for her/his driving licence, voter ID card or EPIC and other documents could be made available to him in the "official language" ... and the "official language" would prosper. As far as the Goa, Daman & Diu Official Language Act, 1987, matters, Konkani in the Devanagari script is the sole official language. It is monolithic, monotheistic, kind of thing with minor saints like Marathi and Gujarati (Daman and Diu were linked to Goa when the OLA, 1987 was enacted in February, 1987) SOME RELEVANT INFORMATION: RIGHT TO EDUCATION ACT, 2009 [Central Act made by Govt of India] Under the Right to Education Act 2009 (RTE) any child in the age group 6-14 can demand provision of free education to him or her in his or her neighborhood up to Class VIII. Nowhere in the Act does it say that the medium of instruction should be compulsorily in the child's mother tongue. It also does not link funding of education with the medium of instruction. The Act does not state that the official language of a state should be the medium of instruction. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/RTE-is-silent-on-medium-of-instruction/articleshow/7723682.cms GOVERNMENT OF GOA, DAMAN & DIU Education Department Notification 7 ... the areas in Goa, Daman and Diu, specified by the Director of Education in this ... Medium of instructions at the primary stage. - Teaching in a school at ... www.education.goa.gov.in/Goa%20Education%20Rules%201986.pdf Parents make case for English as medium of instruction HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, MARCH 6, 2011 Parent Teachers Associations of prominent schools met to deliberate on the implementation of the Right to Education Act. Anxious parents raised a host of questions over the medium of instruction policy from Std I-VIII and strongly demanded English as the medium of instruction with Konkani as a compulsory subject. Addressing the PTAs, Barros added "Figures available between 1991 till date would reveal that around two lakh children have suffered because of imposition of Konkani as the medium of instruction. This is not to express apprehension of any language. " . http://oheraldo.in/news/Main%20Page%20News/Parents-make-case-for-English-as-medium-of-instruction/46233.html Archdiocesan Board backs demands of PTAs HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, MARCH 16, 2011 "These parents do not advocate any imposition on any other school. What they demand is the lifting of restrictions under which their children, and they, have suffered for 20 years", the Board said, adding that the acceptance of this demand will not cost the Treasury of the government of Goa one paisa more than it costs at present. "We are in receipt of memoranda from 18 Educational societies representing 117 schools", the Board said. http://www.oheraldo.in/news/Local%20News/Archdiocesan-Board-backs-demands-of-PTAs/46507.html Take demand on medium of instruction seriously: AGUSPA TNN | Mar 11, 2011, 11.39pm IST MARGAO: The All Goa Unaided School Parents Association (AGUSPA) stated in a press note that the demand of parents-teacher associations (PTA) of various schools in the state to change the policy of the medium of instruction must be considered seriously. An executive member of the AGSUPA questioned the absence of Konkani or Marathi medium unaided schools which could offer quality education on a par with that offered by English medium unaided private schools. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Take-demand-on-medium-of-instruction-seriously-AGUSPA/articleshow/7682811.cms Cheers, Tomazinho! Mar 12th, 2011 | I WOULD like to congratulate Tomazinho Cardozo for finally coming to his senses and talking of reintroducing English as the medium of instruction in all primary schools in Goa. It's time to say enough is enough to such the double standards of Uday Bhembre and an introduce English as the medium of instruction in all primary schools with Konkani as a compulsory subject. Jerry Fernandes, Saligao. http://goanobserver.com/cheers-tomazinho.html * * *