Every citizen has the right to education and culture. Their books must reflect their values and culture and must be relevant to their living circumstances. Only skilled local authors can address such needs.
National language policy mandates use of the language of the catchment area as the medium of instruction in Grades 1 to 3; in practice, however, English is used extensively as the medium of instruction even in Grade 1 classrooms. The national education agendas are motivated by economic progress and social advantage.
Given the complicated and dynamic language situation, the role of language in Indian education has been at the centre of both debate and controversy. The central issue in the last hundred and fifty years has been the medium of instruction. There is evidence to show that before the British rule there was a vigorous system of indigenous education with provision for both sectarian and secular education.
This page provides information on Language Education Policies for numerous countries.
The Language in Education Policy is based on recognition of cultural diversity and the promotion of multilingualism. This policy support the additive multilingualism approach. The Language in Education Policy specifically recognizes diversity beyond language, by supporting languages used for religious purposes, and South African Sign Language.
Section 29(2) of the Constitution provides that every learner has the right to receive a basic education in the language of his or her choice, where this is reasonably practicable. This right is an important recognition of equality and diversity, and the need to depart from a history in which education – and language in education, in particular – was used as a vehicle to implement and strengthen apartheid.
This chapter explores language policy-making processes in the Indian context, implementation issues and the place and role of English in school education. Language in education policy derives from the Indian Constitution which guarantees linguistic rights to all citizens; most importantly, members of minority groups (both religious and linguistic) are granted a special right to be educated in their mother tongue.
In 2006, when the Hewlett Foundation started the Quality Education in Developing Countries initiative, one of the initiative’s goals was to help answer precisely this question. From 2007 to 2013, combining resources with co-funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Foundation supported eleven school-level approaches to improving early learning, accompanied by ten rigorous evaluations.
This presentation was delivered delivered on 22 May, 2019 at the 3rd African Library & Information Association (AfLIA) Conference and 5th African Library Summit, held at the Weston Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya. The theme of the conference was ‘African libraries creating the Africa we want and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals’.