LARKANA: I would like to draw the attention of our educational policymakers towards research that has proved that a mother tongue medium of instruction at early stages of life brings benefits that have ripple effects in later schooling and life.
The lap of the mother is the first seat of learning where a baby begins to pick up broken speech. Throughout development, the mother tongue medium of instruction results in confidence in social interaction, especially for early learners. According to research, using the mother tongue medium of instruction enables primary school students to actively participate in basic class tasks and ask questions for clarity when needed. This academic engagement enhances a child’s learning capacity, which ultimately ensures better performance at later stages.
After the foundation is firmly established in the home language, students find it easier to adapt to the environment where they are taught in a second language. Otherwise, the language barrier at the formative phase negatively impacts academic engagement and as a result, students lose concentration, which is the major reason behind dropping out of schools. This is why, Unesco has acknowledged and encouraged a mother tongue medium of instruction in primary education since 1953. According to Unesco, if the home language is implemented right from the start, children are more likely to enrol and succeed and the drop-out rate will decrease to a considerable level.
Modern educationists and sociolinguists are also in favour of this medium of instruction in early learning years. Zubaida Mustafa, the distinguished author of the book “The Tyranny of Language in Education” recommends the language of the environment as a tool of teaching for early learners. The effectiveness and practicality of this medium of instruction can be gauged from the fact that the Philippines government has recently established language-in-education policies that embrace mother tongue instruction in primary education.
It is high time our educational policymakers acknowledged this research-based approach and put in place policies that ensure switching over to this medium of instruction in primary education.
Nazeer Ahmed Arijo
Published in The Express Tribune, April 19th, 2016.
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