EDUCATION IN LOCAL LANGUAGE – POLITY
News: UGC
asks universities to allow students to write exams in local languages
What's in the news?
● In
a landmark decision, the University Grants Commission has asked the
universities to allow students to write exams in local/regional languages, even
if the course is offered in English medium.
Importance of Local Language in Higher Education:
1. Substantial demand:
● A
quick check on YouTube reveals a high viewership count for content explaining
math and science concepts in Hindi and other Indian languages. This indicates
substantial demand for vernacular-language educational material. Several edtech
startups have also tapped this market.
2. Better performance:
● It
has been observed that the human mind is more
receptive to communication in the local language in which it is accustomed
to thinking from childhood.
3. Higher motivation:
● Further,
educational psychology literature reports additional benefits of instruction in
the native language, including higher attendance and motivation among students
and improved parental involvement and
support in studies.
4. Bridges divide:
● It
can narrow the divide in access to higher education between the marginalized
and the privileged.
● This
will help provide quality teaching to more students and thus increase Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in
higher education.
● Teaching
in the mother tongue/ regional language will help in building an equitable
education system.
● The
personal and social circumstances of students should in no way be obstacles to
realizing their full academic potential.
5. Reduces drop out:
● Understanding
the subject matter would boost the confidence of the student and propel him/her
to continue with his/her higher education thus lowering the drop-out rate.
6. Preserves culture:
● Learning
in a foreign language also brings a sense of alienation from one’s own culture
and heritage.
● Education
in the mother tongue will help the students in getting a better sense of their cultural background. And therefore, helps
him/her progress in life his/her roots intact.
7. Global practices:
● Among
the G20, most countries have state-of-the-art universities, with teaching being
imparted in the dominant language of their people.
● In
South Korea, nearly 70% of the
universities teach in Korean, even as they aspire to play a role on the
international stage.
● This
trend is also observed in other countries like China, Japan, and Canada (in the majority of French-speaking Quebec
Province).
Challenges in Offering Local Language:
1. Industrial Market Demand:
● Given
the already lamentable employability of college-educated individuals, studying
in a regional language could further inhibit
job opportunities, sharpening India’s language divide and going against the
envisioned goal of instilling confidence in students from disadvantaged
backgrounds.
2. Lack of faculty:
● The
availability of faculty for regional-medium courses. Given the English-medium
legacy of higher education in India, attracting and retaining quality teachers
who are willing and able to teach in regional languages would be a challenge.
3. Globalization:
● Delivering
technical courses in regional languages may prevent students from competing in global labour and education
markets, where fluency in English yields a distinct edge.
4. Lack of high-quality material in regional
languages:
● One
of the biggest bottlenecks for more students to take up higher education in
native languages is the lack of high-quality textbooks, especially in technical courses.
5. Reliability of translations:
● Artificial
intelligence-powered tools to translate books, academic journals, and videos
may cause issues of reliability and irregularities with the quality of these
translations.
WAY FORWARD:
1. Mother tongue plus English approach:
● Research
has shown that small children quickly
grasp new languages, given their neuroplasticity in early years. Hence,
this is an appropriate age to be exposed to a foreign language as a means of
communication.
● Neuroplasticity
means the capacity of brain cells to change in response to intrinsic and
extrinsic factors
2. Quality control of initiatives:
● To
counter the challenge of availability of study material in regional languages,
the AICTE has launched an artificial
intelligence-powered tool to translate books, academic journals and videos.
● However,
quality control of these translations should be given utmost importance. We
need further efforts in linguistics and machine learning to serve the cause.
3. Use of Technology:
● There
was artificial intelligence-based technology available to enable real-time
translations that would be seen in classrooms in the future.
4. National Education Policy:
● The
National Education Policy 2020 lays emphasis on promoting mother tongue which
should be a medium of instruction at least till class fifth or class eighth and
after which it should be offered as a language.
A
holistic approach is warranted and
the implications of native-language instruction in an increasingly globalized
world need deep deliberation for India to achieve its equity objectives.