Language and Schooling of Tribal Children: Issues Related to Medium of Instruction

Author(s): Geetha B. Nambissan

Source: Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 29, No. 42 (Oct. 15, 1994), pp. 2747-2749+2751-2754
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly
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 Language and Schooling of Tibal Children
Issues Related to Medium of instruction
Geetha B Nambissan
AlthoughtheConstitutionin 1956 recognisedtheneedforprjmaryeducationin themothertongueforlinguisticminorities,
today educationstill is being impartedprimarilyin the 15 'official' languages and English. The denial of schooling in
the-mothertongue to children of tribal communitiesassumes significance in the context of theirpoor response to formal
educationand high attritionrates.A growing bodyof researchon language and educationof ethnic minoritiesin western
societies highlightsthe crucial role played by home languages in early learning.Thispaper discusses some critical issues
pertainingto the mediumof instructionat the primarystage and reviewspolicy and practice relating to mothertongue
educationfor tribal children in India.

IN 1956, the Indian Constitution through currentlycalculated,a distortedindex of the their children,it becomes essential to focus
Article350A recognisedthe need to provide spreadof schooling [Nambissanand Batra on school processesas well. This is necessary
facilitiesforprimaryeducationin themother 1989: 58]. given the magnitude of drop-out (and
tongue to linguistic minorities. However, Census dataon the actualparticipationof possible stagnation) of children within a
today, almost four decades later, educationchildrenfromtribalcommunitiesin primary year of joining primary school.
isbeing impartedprimarilyinthe 15 'official'
schools presenta more soberingpicture.In
languages that are listed in the English 1981 barely 23.9 per cent of tribalchildren SCHOOL ANDQUALITY
PROCESSES
OF LEARNING
Schedule' of the Constitutionas well as in aged 5-14 years in rural areas actually
English.Languagesof communitiessuch as attendedschools (Table 1). In states such as Informationon the quality of education
the Scheduled Tribes do not figure in the Bihar, MadhyaPradeshand Rajasthan,the is limited largely to the physical facilities
Schedule and remain outside the precincts percentage of tribal children enrolled in for schooling that are available to children.
of the school.2 schools in ruralareaswas 24.0 percent, 16.4 Data from the All India EducationSurveys
The denial of schooling in the mother percent and 18.4 percentrespectively[India reveal that primary schools in rural areas
tongue to childrenfrom tribalcommunities 1981].3 have relatively poor infrastructure.There
gives cause for concern in view of the What is of special significance in the are a large number of schools that W*ve
growing volume of researchthat highlights context of the presentdiscussion is thatthe 'kutcha' buildings, inadequate number of
the crucial role played by languages of themajority of children who enroll in Class I classrooms and lack library facilities and
home in processes of early learning. The drop out within a few years of entering baqic amenities such as drinking water
poor response of tribal children to formal school. Official drop-out figures of tribal arrangementsandtoiletswithinthepremises.
childrenbetweenClassesI andV was as high
education and their high rates of attrition, Blackboards,chalks and dustersare also in
especially in the firstfew yearsof schooling,
as 64.50 per cent as comparedto 47.90 per shortsupply.However, as comparedto rural
assume significance in this context. This cent for the general category of students areas in general, tribal habitations are
paper discusses some of the critical issues(Table 1). Classwise enrolments at the relatively poorly served with facilities for
that pertainto the language used to impart primary stage reveal that the sharpestdrop schooling. For instance, while 51.4 per
educationat the primarystage of schooling. in enrolmentoftribalchildrenoccursbetween cent of rural habitations have primary
While both policy and practice relating to Class I and11.Forinstance,Table 2 indicates schools, this is so in only 45.4 per cent of
'mothertongue' educationof tribalchildren thatfor every 100 tribalchildrenenrolledin tribal habitations [NCERT 1986: 116-36].
in India are reviewed, an attempt is made Class I in ruralschools in 1986, there were Again, while 30 per cent of ruralprimary
to incorporateinsights thathave emergedin 59 in Class II, 49 in Class III, 37 in Class schools are 'single teacher schools', they
researchon languageandeducationof ethnic IV and 29 in Class V [NCERT 1986]. predominatemore in backwardtribalareas
minorities in western societies. A closer perusalof datasuggeststhatthere [India 1988: 300].
is probablyalso a large degreeof stagnation The academic attainmentof children in
SCHOOLINGOF TRIBALCHILDREN
andfailureattheprimarystage.Theaggregate specificskillsthattheyareexpectedtoacquire
The dismal state of primaryschooling of presentation of educational statistics, in primaryschool is yet to be systematically
tribalchildrenis not immediately reflected however, underplaysthe magnitudeof the tested. Studies which have been conducted
in the school enrolmentratiosthatare given phenomenon. Around 4 per cent of tribal suggest that the average student has poor
in official documents and reports.In 1991, boys in Class II, 8 per cent in Class III, 18 reading abilities, does not master content
the enrolment ratio of tribal children in per cent in Class IV and45 percent of those areas in mathematicsand performspoorly
primaryschools (Class I-V) was calculated inClassV wereover 11yearsof age [NCERT in science [Kurien 1974; Jalaludin 1991].
to be as high as 104.7 (Table 1). While it 1986: 1020]. It will be recalled that 6-l 1 is Passing reference that is made to tribal
is commonly acknowledgedthatthe rolls in usuallytakento be the primaryschool-going students in some studies emphasises poor
school registers are often inflated, the age group. levels of comprehensionandreadingability
methodology used to calculate enrolment While analysingthepoorresponseof tribal among children [Srivastava 1992: 135]. Of
ratios is also faulty. The assumptionmade childrento formal schooling, scholars tend critical importanceto the learning process
while calculating enrolment ratios, that to emphasisethe economic marginalisation is the languageof communicationin schools
childrenin primaryschools are in the 6-11 of these communities, their illiteratehome and the medium through which school
age group, succeeds in glossing over environments, inadequate facilities for knowledge is imparted.The child's access
phenomena such as late entry, stagnation educationand,culturally,the alien natureof to subject areas in the curriculumdepends
and drop-out. A significant proportionof the school system. While these factors are on a minimal level of proficiency in the
childrenin primaryschools arewell over 11 no doubt importantto explain the response language used for instruction within the
years of age, making enrolment ratios as of tribal communities to the education of school. The data that are available from

Economic and Political Weekly October 15, 1994 2747

studiesbasedon limited samplesof students tions between 'minority' and 'dominant' incorporation of minority languages in
in MunicipalCorporationPrimarySchools groups. For instance, until the mid-60s the schools a major plank of the multicultural
in Bombay, Baroda and rural Maharashtra languagesof immigrantandminoritygroups perspectivein education.As will be discussed
are extremely disturbing.The majority of in Britain and the US such as the Blacks, later, the right of minorities to the teaching
childrenwere observedto be unable to read Puerto Ricans and Native Indians were of mothertonguesin schoolandtheimportant
lettersof the alphabet(Bombay-ClassI) or considered linguistically inferior, illogical role that linguistic diversity could play in
simple two letter words (Baroda-ClassII)) and hence not conducive to education.Poor education increasingly was dwelt upon.
and scored less than 40 per cent in tests of achievement in schools by children from However, this concernwith mothertongues
achievement in language (Maharashtra- these communitieswas seen to result from, was mainly in the context of subjects to be
Class V) [Jalaludin 1991: 197-99]. While among other factors, inadequate com- taught in schools ratherthan as media of
discussing 'school related factors' that can prehension and 'verbal deficiency' caused instruction.
raiselearnerachievement,educationistsand by languages spoken within the home and In India, government policy and official
researchers tend to focus largely on community. Languages of the home or documentshadadvocatedas earlyas the 50s
improving techniques of teaching. They mother tongues other than the 'standard' that primary education be imparted to
emphasise the need for a more 'effective were actively discouraged in schools and linguisticminoritiesin theirmothertongues.
pedagogy'thatis 'childcentred'and'activity every effort was made to teach childrenthe Article 350A of the Constitutionstates that
based' [Jalaludin 1991: 206]. There is, dominant language (usually English) as "it shall be the endeavourof every state to
however, failure to understandthe socio- "speedily and efficiently as possible" provideadequatefacilities for instructionin
culturalcontext of language andthe manner [Jeffcoate1982:55]. Of course,thedominant the mothertongue to children belonging to
in which it defines the educational language also had a critical role to play in linguistic minoritygroups".In the early 60s
experiences of children, particularlythose the largerprojectof culturalassimilationof the Dhebar Commission highlighted the
who belong to minority communities. minorities in mainstreamsociety. importanceof language in t'heschooling of
The criticalityof languageas the medium A rethinkingon language in the context tribalchildren."It is experiencedthat tribal
of school education becomes particularly of educationin western societies was set in childrenpick up lessons easily when taught
relevant in pluricultural, multilingual motion in the 70s by a numberof factors. throughtribaldialects.It is felt thatthe tribal
societies.The singlingoutof some languages Significant among these was the work of dialectsshouldbe developedandpreserved"
as the 'standard'and appropriatemedia of linguists who began to scrutinise language [India1962].Withspecific referenceto tribal
educationsets asidetherestas 'non-standard' varieties that were earlier dismissed as communities, the Kothari Commission
and inappropriate for schooling. The 'inferior'. It was argued that there are no (1966) recommendedthat the "mediumof
implications that follow are pertinent for linguisticreasonsforclaimingsuperiorityof instructionin the firsttwo yearsof the school
pedagogy and curriculum transaction, as one languageor dialectover another[Cohen should be the tribal language". This was
well as forteacherattitudesandexpectations and Manion 1983: 209]. For instance, againechoedby the 1986policyon education
thatunderliethesocialprocessesof schooling Labov's study of Black English Vernacular (NPE). The revised Programmeof Action
and influence educational outcomes. As (BEV) indicatedthatit was a valid language of the NPE recommendsthat"childrenfrom
Pattanayak observes, "where multiple in its own right and perfectly capable of tribal communities be taught through the
languages and cultures co-exist, the notion meeting the communicative needs of its
of one dominant language as the medium speakers. Edwards, referring to 'dialects' TABLE 1: PROFILEOF SCHOOLINGOF CHILDREN-
of instructionleaves thousandsilliterate in subsumedunderCreole, maintainsthatthey TRIBAL, ALLCOMMUNITIES

their mother tongue and fosters low are fully developed languages: "They are Children's Schooling
achievementlevel in the dominantlanguage logical and regular and it would be quite Tribal All Com-
itself' [1981:43]. wrong to considerthemin any way 'broken' munities
In 1961, 87.13 per cent of the Indian or 'inferior"'[quotedin Cohen and Manion
Grossschoolenrolment
population spoke the 'standard', official 1983: 209]. ratio (1991-92) Class I-V 104.7 102.7
languages that are included in the Eighth While linguistic research sought to Schoolparticipation
Schedule of the Constitution[India 1961].4 establish the 'valid' nature of minority rate(1981)5-14 years
Over the years, the percentage of the 'tongues', these languages were brought (percent)
population that speaks non-scheduled centrestage by the ethnic movementsin the Total 25.4 44.2
languageshas declined from 12.87 per cent 70s in which language proved to be a Rural 23.9 38.8
in 1961 to 3.84 per cent in 1981. Tribal powerful symbol of identity and sense of Schooldrop-outrate
communitiesform the majorityof linguistic community.Minoritygroupsdemandedthat (1988-89)(percent)
minorities in the country. Though they their languages be taught in schools and ClassI-V 64.5. 47.9
Class l-VIII 78.1 65.4
compriseless than8 percentofthe population began taking initiatives in setting up
theyspeakaround400 mothertongues.These supplementaryschools where community Source: Census of India, 1981, Education for
have been grouped into 100 languages of languageswere taught[Homans 1992: 147; All: The Indian Scene, 1993.
which 25 have over 50,000 speakers each. FlerasandElliot 1992: 147]. In additionwas
Languagessuch as Santali,Bhili, Gondiand the pragmatic realisation that minorities TABLE 2: ENROLMENTIN EACH CLASS AS PER CENT
Khuruk/Oraonare spoken by over 10 lakh would comprise a significant proportionof OF ENROLMENTIN CLASS I (1986)
people [India 1961]. What are the the labourforce by the turn of the century
perspectives on language use in imparting and that they were inadequatelyschooled TribalChildren All Children
(Rural) (Rural)
education to tribal children in primary [McCollum and Walker 1992: 178-95].
schools? Attention was focused on the 'specific ClassI 100.0 100.0
educationalneeds' of these communities.It Class Il 58.6 72.4
LANGUAGEAND LEARNING:CHANGING Class III 48.7 65.5
is in this larger context that multicultural
PERSPECrIVESIN EDUCATION ClassIV 36.8 54.7
educationevolved as a majorpreoccupation
Perspectives on language and schooling of policy and researchin the 80s in Britain, Class V 29.1 49.1
tendto reflect largersocio-culturalrealities the US and Canada. The emphasis on Source: FifthAll lndia EducationSurvey,Vol II,
in society and in particularthe power rela- pluralism and cultural diversity made the based on Tables 167, 177.

2748 Economic and Political Weekly October 15, 1994

mothertonguein theearlierstagesin primary
school" [India 1992:10]. Related
recommendations also have been made
regardingthe preparationof textbooks in
triballanguages(using the most appropriate
script, regional, Devanagri or Roman),
recruitmentof teachers familiar with the
spoken tongues of children, and so on.
Policy statements have admittedly
addressedissues relatingto triballanguages
as mediain education.However, these must
be analysedwithin the largercontext of the
increasinglymarginalisedposition of tribal
communitiesin India.Traditionaleconomic
and social institutions that gave tribal
communities a distinct way of life have
practicallydisintegratedfollowing extreme
exploitationfromtradersandmoneylenders,
penetrationof urban industrial structures,
and the destruction of their habitat.Their
diverseandrichcultures,of whichlanguages
are the essence, are unable to withstandthe
onslaught of the market and media which
blatantlyprojectthe culturalstandardsof the
urbanelite as the norm. What is 'tribal' is
popularly perceived as 'backward' and
'inferior'.The increasingtendencyfor tribal
people to retain the regional language as
theirmothertongue is only one indicatorof
their growing vulnerability in the face of
these larger social processes.
Policy-makers concerned with the
development of tribal communities must
necessarily be sensitive to the vulnerable
position they occupy in Indian society.
Transition, if seen as necessary, must be
made as painless as possible ensuring that
these communities retain their inalienable
rightto theirown cultureandways of living.
Aspects of their cultureand society thatare
critical for raising the quality of their lives
need to be consciously. strengthened.For
instance,if it is felt thatschooling in mother
tongues will facilitate the education of
children, it is important that government
policy adequately intervene in favour of
tribalcommunitiesin this regard.A critical
re-readingof policy documents referredto
earlier suggests that this has not been the
case.
While the importanceof mother tongues
as media of education has often been
emphasised, it is significant that no tribal
languageis includedin the EighthSchedule
and therebygiven the status of an 'official'
language.Official languages are recognised
as languages of power - they are used in
administration,the legislature, the courts
andeducation.The fact thattriballanguages,
even those with over 10-20 lakh speakers,
remainoutside the Schedule is a reflection
of the relative powerlessness of these
communities. It must be mentioned that
language and script have become symbols
of tribalidentityandrevitalisationof culture
in tribal movements, especially in the last
50 years, Though attentionhas been drawn
Economic and Political Weekly October 15, 1994
to language, this has been mainly in the
context of a returnto the past ratherthan
in functional terms [Singh 1985: 284].
If statements relating to tribal mother
tongues as they appear in the Kothari
Commission(1966) andthe NPE (1986) are
critically viewed, it appears that they are
mere 'add-on' cosmetic elements that tend
todevaluetriballanguagesratherthanattempt
to explore and exploit their pedagogic
relevance. While tribal languages are
mentionedas appropriate mediaof instruction
at the primary stage of education, the
overriding concern appearsto be with the
transitionto regional languages within two
years of schooling. The Commission
recommendsthat duringthe first two years
when tribal languages are being used as
media of instruction,"the child should be
given oral instructions in the regional
languageandtheirfamiliarityandcommand
over it should be improved. By the third
year, the regional language should be the
medium of instruction"[1966:246]. In the
1986 policy as well as its revised version
in 1992, the emphasis appearsto be on the
"transition to regional language by
Class III" [India 1992: 10]. In neither of
the policy documents does there appearto
be any concern with mother tongues after
Class II. What is also disturbing is that
policy does not attempt to visualise how
mothertongues will concretely function as
media of instruction, particularly when
overshadowedby the regionalor 'standard'
language.The perfunctorymannerin which
mother tongues are expected to be used in
schools and then abruptlydispensed with
suggests that policy-makers are not
convinced of the 'valid' nature of these
languages.They appearto view themmerely
as familiarbridgesbetweenhomeandschool
rather than as effective languages for
education in their own right.
The preparation of teaching/learning
materials for tribal children is a complex
task in view of the large numberof sp(,ken
languages and the need to evolve scripts,
grammar,as well as appropriatevocabulary
to communicate'schoolknowledge'.Further,
TABLE 3: PRIMARYSCHOOLSACCORDINGTO DIFFERENTLANGUAGES USED
AS MEDIA OF INSTRUCriON- 1986
Languages
Official languages (listed in Eighth Schedule)
Other Indianlanguages (not listed in Eighth Schedule)
English
Total
Note: * Figures in parenthesisare percentagesof schools with different media of instruction.
Source: Fifth All India EducationSurvey, Vol 1, NCERT, 1986.
these languages lack official recognition
(whichby itself couldhaveprovidedimpetus
for their support and development). They
have also received inadequate research
attention.Itis thereforedisturbingto observe
the casual mannerin which the Programme
of Action [ 1992] recommendsthat"standard
teaching/learningmaterialwill be re-written
to make them intelligible to the SC/ST
children especially in areas where the
standardlanguage and learners'dialect are
different"[1992: 6]. There is no attemptto
take stock of the existing situationregarding
instructuralmaterials in tribal languages.
Education policy documents also have not
dwelt on the magnitude of tasks that are
involved in the preparationof primersand
textbooksfor tribalchildrennoroutlinedthe
concrete steps that have to be taken in this
direction.
Educationthrough'non-standard'spoken
languages appears to remain merely at the
level of official rhetoric. Hence it is not
surprisingthat a publicationby the NCERT
(which is involved in the preparationof
textbooks in triballanguages) should make
the following observationwhen referringto
the large numberof mother tongues in the
country: "Even otherwise most of these
mothertongues are uncultivateddialects or
languages of no educational importance.
Therefore comparatively very few Indian
languages,most of which arewell cultivated
literarylanguages, are taughtin our schools
and fewer still are used as mediaof instruc-
tion" [Chaturvediand Mohale 1976: 2].
OFINSTRUCTION
MEDIUM FOR
TRIBAL
CHILDREN
The most striking aspect that emerges
fromthe scantydataon languagesin primary
education is the almost total absence of
tribal languages in schools. The All India
EducationSurvey (1986) lists 43 languages
that are used as media of instructionat the
primarystage.The triballanguagesof Naga,
Mizo, Khasi, Ao, Angami, Manipuri and
Nicobareearementioned.Surprisingly,four
languagesmentionedas mediaof instruction
PrimarySchools according to
Media of Instruction
Rural Urban Total
5,48,372 72,025 6,20,397
(96.9)* (92.9) (96.4)
13,936 1,147 15,083
(2.5) (1.5) (2.3)
3,797 4,303 8,100
(0.6) (5.6) (1.3)
5,66,105 77,475 6,43,580
(100) (100) (100)
2749
in an earlier survey conducted in 1979 are
not listed in 1986. Among the 'missing'
languages is the tribal language of Santali
which in 1981 was spoken by over 40 lakh
people [India 1981a]. Gondi, Bhili and
other major tribal languages also do not
find any mention as school languages
[NCERT 1986: 197].
At an all-Indialevel, datareveal that98.3
per cent of primary schools were single
medium schools. In 96.9 per cent of rural
schools, the media of instructionwere the
15 languages listed in the Eighth Schedule
(Table3). While 0.6 percent of schools have
English as the medium, only 2.5 per cent
were using "other Indian languages", a
categorv that comprised as many as 24
languages [NCERT 1986]! While the first
language introduced in school is usually
assumed to be the medium of instruction,
thisis notalwaysthecase. Only 27 languages
are introducedin primary schools as first
languagesascomparedto 43 thatareobserved
to function as media of instruction. In as
manyas 97 percent of ruralschools, the first
languages introducedat the primarystage
are the languages included in the Eighth
Schedule [NCERT: 1986].
The situation pertainingto the language
of instruction and, communication (by
teachers)in schools gives cause for concern.
It is known that of the 1,64,129
predominantly tribal habitations in the
country, 45.4 per cent had the facility for
primaryschool within them while 87.6 per
cent had access to schooling within 2 km
[NCERT1986: 22]. The NCERTfigures on
school languages suggest hat in only a
negligible number of these habitations,
mainly in north-eastIndia, is the language
of instructionthat which is spoken in the
homes of tribal children.
Intermsof policy, manystategovernments
have recognised tribal languages as media
in primaryeducation.In Bihar, where there
is a sizeable tribal population, Santali, Ho
andOraonarerecognisedby thegovernment
as languages for instructionat the primary
stage. However, the Comimissioner for
LinguisticMinoritiesreportsthat"inpractice
thestategovernmenthas nottakenanyaction
to introduceOraon,Ho, SantaliandMundari
as media of instructionin areas where the
speakersof these languages are in sizeable
majority" [1980-81: 39]. As can be seen
from Table 4, there are as many as 19,876
predominantlytribal habitations in Bihar
whereprimaryschooling facilities arebeing
made available to children within a range
of 2 km. However, the NCERT survey
clearlyindicatesthatit is Hindi,the 'standard'
regionallanguage,thatis mainly being used
in primaryschools in the entire state. While
Urdu, Bengali and Oriya figure nominally,
no otherIndianlanguages are being used to
impart primary education in Bihar
[1986:198].
Economic and Political Weekly October 15, 1994
In Madhya Pradesh, around23 per cent
of the populationis designatedas tribal,and
there as many as 18,913 tribal habitations
withinwhichprimaryschoolingis available.
Though the state government claims that
five tribal languages are being used as
media in primary education in Kandua,
Jhabua, Raigarh, Bastar and Madala, this
is not reflected in the 1986 Survey data
[NCERT 1986]. The same is the case with
the other predominantlytribal areas in the
states of Rajasthan, Orissa and Bengal
[India 1980-81].
If, for the sake of argument, tribal
languagesaremadethe mediaof instruction
in areas where these communities
predominate,would the requirednumberof
teachersand textbooksbe available?There
is as yet no informationon the numberof
teachers who are conversant with tribal
languages,thoughgovernmentusuallystates
that teachers knowing tribal languages are
to be posted in tribal areas. School-related
dataindicatethatonly 6 percent of teachers
who are in primaryschools belong to tribal
communities [NCERT 1986: 91]. The fact
that 50 per cent of these teachers are
untrained,and are mainly matriculatesor
have only passed middle school, gives rise
to scepticismaboutthe qualityof instruction
being imparted regardless of language
spoken. Reports of the Commissioner for
LinguisticMinoritiesdo makereferencesto
teachers in tribal areas but this is mainly
confined to statementssuch as "thereis no
difficulty in providing tribal language
teachers"or thatthere are refreshertraining
centresfor acquiringelementaryknowledge
of tribal languages [India 1985-86: 45]. It
appearsunlikely thatprogrammesarebeing
designed to train teachers who are sent to
tribal areas so that they can communicate
effectively with children. As discussed
below, teacher training in relation to the
schooling of linguistic minoritiesis crucial
in terms of both the pedagogic aspects of
languageas well as underlyingattitudesand
expectations of educators.
TABLE 4: LANGUAGE AND PRIMARYSCHOOLINGOF TRIBAL CHILDREN IN BIHAR AND MADHYA PRADESH
TribalPopulation(1981) (per cent)
No of predominantlytribalhabitations
Tribalhabitationswith access to primary
schooling (1986)
Within habitations
Within 2 kms
No of speakersof majortriballanguages in
lakhs (1961)
Primaryschools with medium of instruction(1986)
Scheduled languages
Hindi
Tribal languages
Note: * Numberof speakersin lakhs as per the 1961 Census are given in parenthesis.
Source: Census of India, 1961, Fifth All India EducatiotnSurvey, Vol I, 1986, NCERT, New Delhi.
As regardstextbooks in triballanguages,
it has been noted that initiatives are being
undertaken by the Central Institute of
Languages, Hyderabad ad NCERT, New
Delhi. The number of languages in which
textbooks and primers actually have been
published,the extentto which they aremade
availableto schools, andthemannerinwhich
thesearebeingutilisedby teachersandpupils
are anybody's guess. Such informationis
not clear from reports such as that of the
Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities.
Srivastavahas observedthatthe "paucityof
literature and textbooks in tribal dialects,
will for the time being come in the way of
teaching through the mother tongue"
[1992: 135].
The foregoing discussion suggests that
tribalchildrenin Indiaareby andlargebeing
imparted primary education in languages
that are not their spoken tongues. Further,
it also appearsthatsystematicefforts areyet
to be madeto preparethegroundforschooling
in triballanguages. Why is it importantthat
tribal children be given education in their
own languages at least in the early years of
schooling?
WHY EDUCATIONIN MOTHERTONGUES?
Broadly two kinds of perspectives are
advanced to advocate the use of mother
tongues or home languages as media of
instructionin early education as well as to
encourage linguistic diversity in schools.
The firststemsfroma recognitionthatmother
tongues are not merely speech varieties bu.
are languages that provide social and
emotional identity to individuals, express
the essence of their cultures,and give them
a sense of rootedness[Pattanayak1990: ix].
Schoolingin thelanguageof thechildreflects
respect for her and an appreciationof her
culture. The exclusion of mother tongues
from school hence is seen as 'harmfulto the
child's self-esteem' [Edwards 1984: 81].
Accordingto Pattanayakchildrenarethereby
reducedto "minoritiesin their own homes"
Bihar Madhya Pradesh
8.3 22.9
21,165 44,861
7,596 18,913
19,876 40,388
Santali (61.5)* Gondi (10.5)
Mundari(5.7) Khuruk/Oraon(2.7)
Khuruk/Oraon(5.6) Bhilali (3.4)
Ho (4.4) Bhili (3.5)
100 100.0
97.2 98.38
0.0 0.0
2751
[1987: 71]. Extended to the realm of
pedagogy, the argument links the
acknowledgement and acceptance by the
school of the language and culture of the
childto a positiveidentityof self andthereby
to effective educational achievement. As
Edwards says, "the rejection of a child's
language is unlikely to enhance feelings of
self worth which are important for
educational success" [1984: 83]. Further,
this perspective argues that "'theright to
education in a language that the child
understandsis a basic human right and an
essentialingredientof equalityin education"
[Moodley 1986: 92]. Pattanayakforcefully
observes that to "control and dictate the
languages of access" to knowledge is a
"positive suppression of human talent. It
deprives individuals and society of free
choices, curbscreativityandinnovativeness
and restricts participation or potential
participationin multiple spheresof human
interaction,thusimposinglimitson freedom"
[Pattanayak1987: 8].
The second line of argumentis primarily
pedagogic. The most basic is the common
sense principle of moving from the known
to the unknown.It points to the importance
of spoken languages in bridging the often
yawning gap between home and school
especially for minority, in this case tribal,
communities.Moreimportantis theemphasis
on mother tongues or home languages as
assets which can facilitate the process of
learningin children.For instance, it is now
acknowledgedthat children who are fluent
in spoken languages bring to school highly
developedlinguisticandsocial skills as well
as learning strategies which need to be
capitalised upon for further learning
[Jeffcoate 1984:57]. It is felt that verbal
dexterityandlinguisticexpressionobserved
amongchildrenfromcommunitieswith oral
traditions can contribute to successful
learning.While much of the researchon the
subject pertains to black and west Indian
childrenwhose culturesplace high value on
verbaldexterity,therichnessof tribalcultures
and particularlytheir oral tradition offers
unexplored pedagogic possibilities.
Researchon bilingualismoffers a number
of insightsthatarerelevantfor theeducation
of tribalchildren. Studies have shown that
bilingual children have greater cognitive
flexibility, greater social sensitivity and
greater adeptness at creative thinking'
[Wiles, 1985:92].The learningstrategiesof
such children,for instanceproblemsolving,
are found to be highly developed. It is
emphasisedthatthe"sensemakingstrategies"
that bilingual (and multilingual) children
acquire, as well as the social skills they
possess (seen in the ease with which they
shiftacrossandwithinlanguagesinldifferent
contexts), are strengths that slhould be
supportedby the school system [Edwards
1984; Miller 1983;Wiles l98^ Mosttribal
2752
communities in India are observed to be
bilingual and multilingual, though they
usually have one language for 'in group'
communication[SinghandManoharan1993:
21]. Outof 623 tribalcommunitiesanalysed
by the ambitious People of lndia Project,
"80.26 per cent were bilingual, in some
cases trilingual and multilingual". Thus,
childrenfrom these communitieswho have
acquired or are acquiring more than one
language are also likely to have highly
developed linguistic and social skills which
need to be recognised and strengthened
within the classroom.
Linguisticdiversityis today beginningto
be seen by scholarsas a pedagogic resource
thatcanengenderlearningwithinclassrooms
ratherthanactas animpedimentto education
[Wiles 1985]. Encouragingchildrento talk
using languages they are most comfortable
withas well as theirown culturalexperiences
is seen to facilitate expression and
communication of ideas, and to motivate
readingand writing.The assumptionis that
in such an environment, children will be
better able to practise linguistic and
conceptual skills which can enlarge their
repertoireand also aid second (dominant)
language learning.They will have "access
to as wide as possible a range of language
... which will allow them to form/hypo-
thesise about words and structures.They
must also have realistic opportunities to
communicatewith teachersand peers so as
to test the validity of the rule systemnsthey
are developing"[Edwards1984: 85]. While
this perspective underlines the pedagogic
relevance of home languages or mother
tongues in early learning, it also suggests
that an early imposition of the dominant
language and an abruptterminationof the
home language in school would be
detrimentalto thedevelopmentof children's
learning abilities.
AND CLASSROOM
TEACHINGSTRATEGIES
PROCESSES
If tribal mother tongues or spoken
languagesareto be given theirrightfulplace
in earlyeducation,it is obvious thatteaching
strategiesandclassroomprocesseswill have
to undergoa sea change from what obtains
at present. Rather than assuming that children
are passive learnersand thattheirminds are
in the natureof 'tabularasa', they will have
to be seen as active participantsin theirown
learning.Scholars who have been involved
with ethnic minoritychildrenemphasisethe
importance of 'collaborative' rather than
'didactic' methodsof teachingand learning
in classrooms.Wells notesthat"therelation-
ship between teacher and learner must at
every stage of developmentbe collaborative
an attemptto negotiate sharedmeanings
and understanding"[Wells 1985: 39]. Peer
reinforced language development in the
Economic and Political Weekly
natureof "small group learning, structured
and nurturedby teachers" is also seen as
an effective pedagogic tool in classrooms.
As Wiles says, children make "excellent
teachers and helpers" [Wiles 1985: 87].
Teachersarecautionedagainstbeing 'over
fussy' when childrenuse spoken languages
(dialects) as they begin to speak, read and
write the standard language in school.
"Miscues" in home languages are not to
be reprimandedas "errors"but are to be
treated as instances of children employing
"problemsolving strategies"which require
that they "use all information at their
disposal to arrive at an unknown word"
[Edwards1984:86]. Itis felt thattheconcern
of teachers in the early years of schooling
should be with the child's ability to
communicate ideas, to present them
logically and coherently in writing, and to
comprehendthe meaningof what they read
[Wiles 1981,1985; Edwards1984].Teachers
may actually obstructlearningby unneces-
sary correction, constant interruptionand
exaggerating 'lapses' by childrenwho bring
their mother tongues into the classroom.
It must be rememberedthat the response
of teachers to the languages of minority
childrenis usuallyreflectiveof largersocietal
stereotypesregardingthese communities.In
a sense, teacher attitudesto language form
part of the hidden curriculumof schooling
that plays a role in persuading minority
childrenof the inferiorityof theirlanguages
and cultures.
Teacher attitudes are likely to be
particularlycrucialin schools in tribalareas
in Indiagiven theuse of theregionallanguage
as the medium of instructionas well as the
prevailingstereotypesof these communities
as 'backward'and 'uncultured'.Saxenaand
Mahendroo, while describing their
experiences in school educationin Madhya
Pradesh,note thatthey have "constantlywit-
nessed children and adults being ridiculed,
humiliatedcandreprimandedfor speakingin
their own languages. In schools, there is no
dearth of episodes where children arc
punished for failing to talk in the standard
languageor continuouslylapsingbackin the
mothertongue"( 1993:2446). The reference
to spoken languages as 'dehati bhasha',
implying thatthey arenot 'properlanguage'
and that their use has a 'bad influence' on
the chlildrenare instances of perceptionsof
mother tongues-by the school system. The
authors point to the demeaning and
humiliating experiences of parents and
children and to the "violence done to the
sense of self-respect of people when their
languages are put down in this way" [1993:
2446]. Therearealso learningoutcomesthat
follow such as poorcomprehensionabilities
and failure.
Language issues hence must form an
integ,ral component of teacher training
programmnes.There is a need to create
October 15, 1994
awareness among teachers about the
linguisticvalidityof non-standardlanguages
as well as demonstrate their scope and
flexibility. Teachers need to recognise that
the freedom of children to use languages
with which they are most comfortablecan
facilitatethe generalprocessof learningand
contributeto specitic abilitiesin readingand
writing, and that the knowledge of more
thanone language(includingwhatarecalled
dialects) can improve the linguistic and
conceptual abilities of children. The
debilitatingeffects thatnegative attitudesto
languagecanhaveforchildrenfrom minority
communitiesalso requirespecial emphasis.
Miller quotes Edwards who insists that
"...priorityshould be given to sensitisation
of teachers to the relationship between
language attitudes and social stereotypes
andto thedangerthatthese maybe translated
into reality" [Miller 1983: 118].
CONCLUSION
Theforegoingdiscussionattemptsto focus
attentionon the crucial role that languages
spokenwithinthe home (or mothertongues)
can play in facilitating the education of
childrenbelonging to tribalcommunitiesin
India.At present,triballanguages with few
exceptions are absentas mediaof education
in schools. Educationis impartedmainly in
the dominantregional languages-which are
included in the Eighth Schedule of the
Constitution of India.
The home language of tribalchildren(as
of all children) is integral to their sense of
culture,identity, and self worth. Hence, the
rejection of the child's language by the
school, which is at present the case, is likely
to causeirreparable harmto thechild's r.atural
desireto learnas well as to the community's
attitude to schooling. Equally significant
are insights from recent research on the
schooling of ethnic minoritiesthathighlight
the link between home languages and the
general language and conceptual
development of children from these
communities.Childrenare seen to bring to
school highly developed linguistic,
conceptual and social skills that can be
important aids to learning. Linguistic
diversityitself, as well as the variedcultural
experiences of children, are also being
acknowledged as pedagogic rcsources that
can be used by the teacher to facilitate the
development of skills such as reading and
writing. Research suggests that acceptance
and encouragementof the first languageof
the child is necessary in order to promote
achievementin the second language.These
insights powerfully underline the need to
incorporatetriballanguagesas mediathrough
which education should be imparted to
children at least in the early stages of
schooling. It follows that the drop-out of
tribal children from school and their poor
Economic and Political Weekly October 15, 1994
achievementmay be due at least in partto
the rejectionby the educationsystem of the
linguisticandculturalresourcesthatchildren
bring with them.
The emphasison children'slinguistic and
cultural resources and their role as
participantsin the process of learning may
appearutopian in the light of the realities
of schooling in tribalareas- the economic
and social constraintsthat parent face in
sending childrento school, inadequ.to and
poor facilities for schooling, and so oni.
However, what is importantis that the case
for mother tongue education or schooling
in spoken languages has yet to be made,
particularlyin the context of their critical
link with early learning processes and
effective pedagogy.The languagesof tribal
childrenare still seen as 'under-developed'
and inappropriate for schooling. These
stereotypes underlie recommendations in
educationpolicy as well as the attitudesand
expectations of teachers which are
communicated to children as part of the
hidden curriculumof schooling. It is here
that interventionscan and must be made.
Government must recognise that the
conferring of 'official' status on a few
languageshas in effect not only stigmatised
'non-official' languages but also imposed
curbson theirdevelopment.Encouragement
to tribal mother tongues and spoken
languagesmsutformpartof a largerlanguage
policy that strives to restorethe dignity of
minority languages and provides financial
and institutional support for their
development.Considerableground-workis
required in the sense of building the
infrastructureof these languages such as
writing of scripts, grammar,vocabularies,
dictionariesand so on. Concrete steps will
also have to be undertakento incorporate
tribal languages in schools as media of
education at the primarystage. Textbooks
and resourcematerialshave to be prepared
takingcareto ensurethatchildrencan relate
to the content that is presented. Research
efforts are necessary to demonstrate the
validity of tribal languages (usually
disparagingly referred to as dialects) as
well as their role in engendering learning.
Such research findings must be dis-
seminated to teachers, policy-makers and
the larger public. Teacher training which
emphasises not only the relationship
betweenlanguage,pedagogyandeducation,
but also the detrimentaleffects of negative
attitudes towards tribal children and their
mothertongues. will he crucial. Hereagain,
research on school processes that focuses
on the hidden curriculum can be used to
sensitise the school community.
Till what stage should education be
impartedin triballanguages?It is clear that
tribal languages must be used initially as
languages which facilitate education at the
primarystage. The shift to the 'standard'or
regionallanguagewill be necessaryin middle
school. This is essential not only for the
acquisition of furtherknowledge and skills
by tribal children, but also to widen their
access to futureoccupationalopportunities.
However, what is important is how the
transitionis effected from the language of
the child to that of the standardof school.
The sensitivity with which this is effected
within the school and the "discourse
strategies" provided to children to enable
them to make the transitionin as smooth a
manner as possible would be important
[Pattanayak 1990: v].
For mother tongue education to become
a realityfor tribalchildren,concertedefforts
bothwithinandoutsidetheeducationsystem
are necessary. The role of policy-makers,
academics, researchers, educators and
teachershas alreadybeen highlighted.Tribal
communities also will have to be involved
in order to understandthe linguistic and
cultural resources that children bring to
school and to identify languagesthatshould
initially be used as medium of instruction.
It will also be necessary to elicit the co-
operationof speakersof these languagesand
to encourageparentalandcommunitysupport
for education. The demand for 'quality'
education in mother tongues must become
part of larger movements for democratic
rights in general and those of children in
particular.Itwill thenbe possiblefor schools
to give tribal children back their mother
tongues and enrich their experience of
education.
Notes
[This is a substantially revised version of a
paper presented at the National Seminar on
'Perspectives on the Eighth Schedule' held at
the Centre for Linguistics and English,
Jawaharlal NehruiUniversity in August 1993.]
1 The Eighth Schedule of the Indian
Constitution pertains to articles 344(i) and
351 which inform the language policy of the
government. According to the most recent
edition ol the Constitution (1991), there are
15 languages in the Eighth Schedule. The
Scheduled languages are recognised as
'official' laiiguages by different states. (In
1992,three iiiore languages were included in
the Schedule). However, the data rnerred to
in this paper pertain to the 15 languages as
on Septemnber1, 1991 [India 1991J. These
languages are: Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati,
Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalrmn,
Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi,
Tainil, Telugu and Urdu.
2 In this paper. all speech varieties are referred
to as languages. The term 'dialect' is not
used because of its disparaging connotations.
The ternms 'mother tongues', 'spoken
languages' and 'home language' are used
interchangeably to refer to speech varieties
that are used for coinmunication within the
family and community. Where tribal
commliunities areconcerned, 'mothertongues'
are distinctly different from the 'standard'
regional laniguages, which are usually those
2753
 listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian
Constitution.
3 While the participation of tribal children in
primaryschoe.iingis poor, thereare variations
between statch and regions and particularly
between boys and girls. For instance, barely
14.6 per cent of tribal girls as compared to
32.8 percent boys in the 5-14 year age group
in rural areas attend schools [India 1981].
As the focus of this paper is on language
and schooling, the issue of gender, though
extremely crucial, is not discussed.
4 The total number of languages spoken in
India is a matter of debate and depends
largely on definitions and categories used by
the Census. Italso depends on the perceptions
of people regarding the status of their own
mother tongues. In 1961, as many as 1652
mother tongues were listed by the Census.
These were grouped by linguists into around
180 languages. The 1981 Census only lists
languages with over 10,000 speakers. One
hundredand twelve languages find a mention
in the Census. Singh and Manoharan note
thatthe "policy of the census of not recording
the languages of populations below 10,000
needs to be revised...because these languages
are intrinsic to the identity of their speakers"
[1993: 14].
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