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Mother tongue first

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Old article from dawn but worthy of read,


A fascinating report released recently by the British Council Pakistan on the role of language in education in Pakistan, suggests that Pakistani students are best served by education if they are to be instructed in their mother tongues.
The report also suggests that Islamic madrassas are extremely interested in learning English so they can promote Islam in other countries, learn about other religions, communicate their message to the world in a better way, improve image of Islam in the world as well as the basic need for Muslims to learn knowledge.
Titled Teaching & Learning in Pakistan: The Role of Language in Education, the report (prepared by Hywel Coleman and the British Council), was based on the results of a widespread research and survey of the many languages spoken in Pakistan and the country’s education sector.
Some of the findings in this context are:
- Language breakdown of Pakistanis by mother-tongue are: (Punjabi) 49.3 %, Pushto 12.0 %, Sindhi 11.7%, Urdu 6.8%, Balochi 3.6%, Brahui 1.3% and Farsi 0.6 %.
- Urdu tends to remain the medium of instruction except for a few English schools.
- Class 3 students are not able to write simple sentences in Urdu and do not recognize simple words in English. They are in effect functionally illiterate and innumerate.
- English is involved in two contexts: as a subject, as the medium of instruction
- While intention is good for use of English as medium of instruction, its impact is negative.
The report insists that education in mother tongue is more effective especially in early years because:
- There are no barriers to comprehension as formulation of basic concepts takes place in mother tongue.
- Children learn to read and read more quickly and easily in a language they are already familiar. Making connections between sounds of a language and signs on a written page is more effective when those sounds are repeated more often.
- The same language spoken at home, so learning can be reinforced. This also enables the parents to get involved and monitor and contributeto children’s education.
- Children can relate their learning inschool with their home environment, the games they play, the TV programs they watch, their interaction with other students if all of this is in the same language.
- All communities feel equally respected if their home languages are employed. Using a language in school that people do not understand leads to political and social instability and conflict. Particularly important for Pakistan as it is one of 11 countries with high levels of “fragility of conflict” and one of 19 countries with high linguistic fractionalisation
- Survey of 22 countries suggests that choice of first language affects educational attendance, performance and explains half of the reason for low retention rates. This is particularly relevant for women.
- All things being equal, children are likely to achieve greater proficiency in English if they first study in their home language and then study English as a foreign or second language.
- Only 5 % of Pakistanis have access to education in their first language.
The report thus recommends that support should be given for advocacy of adoption of multiple languages in education. But it also notes that education in multiple languages is logistically difficult to arrange for in Pakistan. However since the seven major languages in Pakistan are first language for 85 percent of the school population, thesecan be used as medium of instruction right at the start.
The report points out that international experience suggests that adoption of multiple languages for primary education strengthens loyalty of ethnic minority towards the state.
Based on these findings, the report then goes on to make some potent recommendations for education in Pakistan till the year 2020.
The following is how the recommendations have been devised:
- Nursery Education : Learn to speak mother tongue language
- First 3 years: Introduction to alphabets, learn to read and write intheir mother tongue. (Scripts for local language and Urdu are either same or very similar.)
- Class 3-5 : Urdu is introduced and gradually replaces regional language as the language of instruction. By 5 this transition is complete. Regional language is a subject not medium of instruction but still taught as a subject.
- Class 6: Children should be confident and fluent in Urdu by now.Roman alphabet and English are introduced. English is studied as a main subject for four years (grade 6-9)
- Class 10: English becomes medium of instruction; Urdu and regional languages become subjects.
- Entrance exams for civil service, other employment and universities will require that candidates are good in all 3 languages (Urdu, English, regional language). This will help them serve their people better and oblige elite schools to teach local language.
The British Council report will be officially launched on Thursday.
http://dawn.com/2010/10/21/mother-tongue-first/
 
@Monkey D Luffy : I was thinking the same thing a while ago !

Why not make the medium of instruction in the majority language in a particular district (not province) & in those districts where you've got a significant linguistic minority have Urdu instead or have those districts demarcated on linguistic lines & then provide education in (say!) Pashto on one side of the line & in (say!) Saraiki on the other !

Let Urdu be the Lingua Franca & that all are supposed to be proficient in it as Urdu as a Second Language ! So that whatever research paper you write, whatever article you write for public consumption & so on & so forth for the rest - You ensure that, if it is to be published, you come up with a mandatory Urdu translation of your original work !

Or we could replace Urdu with English as our Lingua Franca ! I was even thinking of the possibility of us looking into Koranic Arabic (the Qureshi dialect) as our Lingua Fraca.

But imparting education in one's mother tongue is based on very sound logic & should be looked into....!

What do you think - @Aeronaut @Abu Zolfiqar @Talon @Dillinger @Secur @AstanoshKhan @Leader @Spring Onion @JonAsad @A.Rafay @Marshmallow
 
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@Monkey D Luffy : I was thinking the same thing a while ago !

Why not make the medium of instruction in the majority language in a particular district (not province) & in those districts where you've got a significant minority have Urdu instead or have those districts demarcated on linguistic lines & then provide education in (say!) Pashto in one side of the line & in (say!) Saraiki on the other !

Let Urdu be the Lingua Franca & that all are supposed to be proficient in it as Urdu as a Second Language ! So that whatever research paper you write, whatever article you write for public consumption & so on & so forth for the rest - You ensure that, if it is to be published, you come up with a mandatory Urdu translation of your original work !

Or we could replace Urdu with English as our Lingua Franca ! I was even thinking of the possibility of us looking into Koranic Arabic (the Qureshi dialect) as our Lingua Fraca.

But imparting education in one's mother tongue is based on very sound logic & should be looked into....!

What do you think - @Aeronaut @Abu Zolfiqar @Talon @Dillinger @Secur @AstanoshKhan @Leader @Spring Onion @JonAsad @A.Rafay @Marshmallow

We did that here, protected the regional languages, linguistics can be a very touchy subject for some people besides using a dual medium of instruction is a good idea, let them have their mother tongue and let them still have a standardized language for employment and communication.

Linguistic chauvinism is a BAD idea, leads to a lot of bad blood. :agree:
 
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We did that here, protected the regional languages, linguistics can be a very touchy subject for some people besides using a dual medium of instruction is a good idea, let them have their mother tongue and let them still have a standardized language for employment and communication.

Linguistic chauvinism is a BAD idea, leads to a lot of bad blood. :agree:

What India teaches (say!) all the subjects in Tamil in Tamil Nadu or something similar in some other State upto a certain level ? :what:
 
What India teaches (say!) all the subjects in Tamil in Tamil Nadu or something similar in some other State upto a certain level ? :what:

Yes,

We in Andhra learn three languages Telugu mother tongue, Hindi and english, Government schools teach every subject in Telugu.

Same thing applies for every state.
 
What India teaches (say!) all the subjects in Tamil in Tamil Nadu or something similar in some other State upto a certain level ? :what:

Yup, we have English medium schools where primary instructions (maths, sciences and the arts) are taught in English while the regional language is taught as COMPULSORY course right along with it till class 8th/10th- after which you may opt out. Or we have Bangla medium schools and Tamil medium schools where the medium of imparting knowledge on all subjects is taught in the regional language and English is taught throughout as a COMPULSORY language. We have major competitive exams in regional languages and even our Indian Administrative Exams may be held in regional languages soon. Pretty much an average govt school fellow will know at least 2 languages by the time he/she is done and Private school fellows will be using three languages (3rd one being a foreign language- french, German, Spanish), one of my exes got proficient in German while in a CBSE school and then transferred to an IB school and got pretty good at Spanish.

Never enter Tamil Nadu and tell them that some other language is more important than Tamil, they'll probably roast you alive and that too slowly.
 
@Monkey D Luffy : I was thinking the same thing a while ago !

Why not make the medium of instruction in the majority language in a particular district (not province) & in those districts where you've got a significant linguistic minority have Urdu instead or have those districts demarcated on linguistic lines & then provide education in (say!) Pashto on one side of the line & in (say!) Saraiki on the other !

Let Urdu be the Lingua Franca & that all are supposed to be proficient in it as Urdu as a Second Language ! So that whatever research paper you write, whatever article you write for public consumption & so on & so forth for the rest - You ensure that, if it is to be published, you come up with a mandatory Urdu translation of your original work !

Or we could replace Urdu with English as our Lingua Franca ! I was even thinking of the possibility of us looking into Koranic Arabic (the Qureshi dialect) as our Lingua Fraca.

But imparting education in one's mother tongue is based on very sound logic & should be looked into....!

What do you think - @Aeronaut @Abu Zolfiqar @Talon @Dillinger @Secur @AstanoshKhan @Leader @Spring Onion @JonAsad @A.Rafay @Marshmallow

the first idea. bold part is a marvelous idea. this way you stop economic migration within the country as well..

uptil 8th class mother tongue be the medium..

further English/Urdu/Chinese/Farsi/Arabic/Hindi should be learned as languages as these are market languages !!
 
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the first idea. bold part is a marvelous idea. this way you stop economic migration within the country as well..

uptil 8th class mother tongue be the medium..

That was the case before...my parents and teachers and all the folks studied in Urdu. Our Physics teacher used to explain full physics in Urdu (with the Urdu terminologies) as shughal sometimes!!!
 
What India teaches (say!) all the subjects in Tamil in Tamil Nadu or something similar in some other State upto a certain level ? :what:

There is central board in English or Hindi medium who teaches regional language, Hindi and English as language subject. While state education boards have education in English or regional language medium teaching Hindi, English and regional language as language subjects.
 
In India there are State Education Boards and Central Education Boards...State Education Boards have curriculum in State language as well as English Medium...

I learned in a Marathi Medium School....until 4th Standard Marathi was the sole language of instruction as well as the only language taught....from 5th Standard to 7th Standard We learned Hindi along with Marathi & English with Marathi being the medium of Instruction...From 8th to 10th I learned Marathi with Sanskrit( I opted Sanskrit instead of Hindi) & English....From 8th though I learned Science & Mathematics in English and other subjects in Marathi....
 
That was the case before...my parents and teachers and all the folks studied in Urdu. Our Physics teacher used to explain full physics in Urdu (with the Urdu terminologies) as shughal sometimes!!!

most PhDs that taught us used Punjabi :what:

one of them I remember used to say, "moun veenga hogiya aye angrezi bol bol kay, kuch apnay ustad tay rehman karo..." :omghaha:

a technical subject such as physics, economics, or even sociology, they should be taught in English. hence mother tongue only uptil 8th grade.
 
@Monkey D Luffy But in Pakistan language had never been an issue except for Bengalis. Urdu and English have been accepted as only languages of instruction among Pakistanis.
 
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most PhDs that taught us used Punjabi :what:

one of them I remember used to say, "moun veenga hogiya aye angrezi bol bol kay, kuch apnay ustad tay rehman karo..." :omghaha:

Same thing happens to us ! Some of our teachers usually start a lecture in English, switch to an Urdu-English combo in between & by the time we're almost done - We've just heard the last 15 minutes in Urdu, Punjabi & English - All rolled into one ! :omghaha:
 
In CSS, languages are high scoring subjects....which points to the notion that they actually encourage students to opt them. I myself enjoy reading punjabi a lot.
 
Never enter Tamil Nadu and tell them that some other language is more important than Tamil, they'll probably roast you alive and that too slowly.

That is a misconception even Karunanidhi had and tried having compulsory tamil only education till 5th grade and he lost bigtime. Tamilians see English for progress and Tamil as part of their culture. Hindi was seen as neither a language contributing to their progress nor part of their culture.
 
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