LANGUAGEFIRST

—MAYURBHANJ: When Sandhya Rani, a class V student, isasked which language she would rather not learn, she prompt-ly replies, “English.” Sandhya, who belongs to the Munda com-munity in Odisha, is learning three languages as part of thestate’s mother tongue-based Multilingual Education (MLE)programme. Though Odia is the official language, there aremore than 26 officially recognised tribal languages in Odisha.With this in mind, as a pilot, the state government introducedthe MLE programme in 545 schools in 10 languages acrosseight districts in 2006.

“Tribal children, whose mother tongue is not Odia, find itdifficult to follow the lessons. When they are taught in a famil-iar language they comprehend better,” says Lalita Patnaik, ed-ucation specialist, Unicef-Odisha.

As per the Right to Education Act: Medium of instructionsshall, as far as practicable, be in child’s mother tongue (29.2.f).The MLE programme was designed to cover the primary edu-cation of children from class I to V. The language transitionplan was developed to initiate learning in the mother tongue inclass I and gradually the second language — Odia is introducedin class II, oral and written; while English (oral) begins in classIII. However, except Santhali, no other tribal language has itsown script. Hence, the learning material is in the tribal lan-guage but in Odia script and it was developed, based on the Na-tional Curriculum Framework and NCERT syllabus.

“Ten languages were selected for adoption under the pro-gramme including eight major tribal languages — Santhali,Saura, Koya, Kui, Kuvi, Kishan, Oram and Munda and two en-dangered languages — Juang and Bonda,” says Usha Padhee,commissioner-cum-secretary, department of school and masseducation, Odisha government. Training initiatives were intro-

duced in tribal areas to help teachers understand the learningneeds of linguistically disadvantaged children. According toHR Satapathy, additional director (planning), Odisha PrimaryEducation Programme Authority (OPEPA), “Since the use ofcultural elements is strong in tribal communities, teachers areencouraged to use folklore, traditional art and local elementsin class.”

In Kaliapada Project UP School, Mayurbhanj district, theteacher draws a papaya on the blackboard. The children scram-ble to form the alphabet ‘p’ with bamboo pieces carved by theirteacher Santosh. In the adjoining classroom, six-year-old Lopatries her hand in maths with marbles made from jackfruitseeds. The children have individual blackboards to expressthemselves.

Satapathy says there has been a significant increase in en-rolment in schools where the MLE programme has been imple-mented. An NCERT study found that the programme had a pos-itive impact on students’ achievement in language and maths.He adds that RTE has given an impetus to the MLE pro-gramme. The state education department has decided to ex-pand the programme to 1000 schools and in another nine triballanguages. Also, an MLE policy has been drafted to provide theframework for further expansion. With the RTE compliancedeadline ending on March 31, 2013, the discourse has shiftedfrom access to learning. In response, the state government hasintroduced an initiative to assess student-learning in schoolson basic skills in reading, writing and numeracy. The findingswill identify the gaps and help develop interventions.

> For complete story, visit wwwwww..eedduuccaattiioonnttiimmeess..ccoomm,, and click on ‘School Guide’

lar topic, abilities, ethnicity1, language, so-cio-economic status as well as wider affilia-tions and heritages. Despite success on at-taining enrolment of nearly 98% of chil-dren aged 6-14 years into elementaryschools, the country is still faced with thechallenge of reaching out to the 8.1million children who still remain outof school (OoS).

These issues are compounded fur-ther by various forms of social exclu-sion that exist in the Indian society,such as caste and gender discrimina-

tion, and the fact that a largenumber of children remainengaged in exploitativelabour, with first generationlearners forming a large ma-jority of this excluded popu-lation. The percentage ofchildren from various socialgroups that continue to beleft out of the ambit of educa-tion are 7.67% Muslims, 5.60%STs, 5.96% SCs and 2.67% OBCsand others (MHRD, 2010).

The largest OoS populationcontinues to remain childrenwith disabilities, with 34.12% ofchildren with disabilities still outof school. Large drop-out rates re-flected by National Apparent Sur-vival as well as Retention Rate atprimary level, which have re-mained stagnant at 70-78% (since2005) and transition rate stagnantat 83-84%, is a major cause of con-cern. Education for All and theRight to Education Act will only

become a reality when we ensure that chil-dren are retained in school through provi-sion of an inclusive, relevant and meaning-ful learning experience.—TEACHER TRAININGThe 1978 Curriculum Framework stressedthat “teacher education has to become rele-vant to the life, needs and aspirations of

children and to the community to whichthey belong.” The 1990s witnessed the cre-ation of a number of institutions such asthe District Institutes of Education andTraining (DIET), the Institutes of Ad-vanced Studies in Education (IASE) and

Colleges of Teacher Education (CTE). Italso led to the institutionalisation of theNCTE as a statutory body. Despite policy-makers attributing considerable impor-tance to role of teachers (National Knowl-edge Commission & NCTE 2009), very littleevidence exists to qualify what constitutes‘good teaching.’—INCLUSIVE EDUCATIONIn order to influence the current education-al system, which focuses primarily on rotelearning from textbooks, the role of theteacher, teacher training and ensuing class-room practices, need to undergo a para-digm shift. The goal of quality instructionis more often idealised than realised, asteachers struggle to provide effective in-struction. Teaching has so far been mainlybased on criterion of averages, whichmeans that while few students cannot keepup, others find teaching ‘too easy’ and bor-ing. Teacher training and developmentmust be envisioned with the purpose of en-suring that both in-service as well as con-

tinuing professional development (CPD)programmes to enable teachers to imple-ment teaching strategies that can accom-modate a variety of learners with differentbackgrounds, needs and strengths. In orderto meet diverse needs in the classroom, dif-

ferentiated instruction mustbe planned based on theunique learning profiles of in-dividual students.

Inclusion cannot mean sim-ply folding all children into thestatus quo of the general class-rooms to be fed pre-digestedinformation. Acquiring knowl-edge is active, not passive. Ithas to transform and this re-quires the learner’s participa-tion (Rhodes, 1995). Therefore,teaching processes must un-dergo a shift from beingteacher-centred to learn-er-centred. Stu-

dents must develop into ‘ac-tive explorers’ as envisagedby the National CurriculumFramework, 2005 andteacher training institutesmust build their own capac-ity to support teachers inusing flexible means to pres-ent curricula in a manner,which is relevant and mean-ingful to children’s lives.

Undoubtedly, this wouldrequire going back to thedrawing table and thinkingafresh all the changes re-quired to instil confidenceand skills in teachers, bothat the pre-service and in-service stage, since they arecentral to creating inclusivelearner-friendly environ-ment. Last but not the least,inclusion demands a processof transformation, not onlyin centres of higher learning

and schools — but also a process of trans-formation that must start from the teachersthemselves.

Analysis shows that there are 5.23 lakhvacancies of school teachers at the elemen-tary level and the provisions under the RTEAct would lead to additional requirement ofaround 5.1 lakh teachers. Moreover, around7.74 lakh teachers are untrained, i.e. theydo not possess the prescribed qualification.Further, there are large inter-state varia-tions in terms of percentage of untrainedteachers, vacancy of teacher posts, additio-nal requirement of teachers under the RTEand the capacity of teacher education insti-tutions to prepare professionally trainedteachers. Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, J&K,Jharkhand, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh and WestBengal together account for 6.06 lakh un-trained teachers and a requirement.(1Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes)

TELL ME A STORY —JORHAT: Baga haati (white elephant)and bagh mama (tiger uncle) are theirconstant companions in a world limitedto the boundaries of the tea estate. But,imagination has no limits as the childrendream of a world where elephants can flyand tigers can talk.

The tea gardens of Assam that con-tribute 51% of India’s tea production andone-sixth of the global tea market, are in-habited by migrant populations fromneighbouring states with their own so-cio-cultural identity and dialects. Mosttea communities have their own linguafranca called ‘Baganiya’ (garden lan-

guage), a pot-pourri of severallanguages.

“This isunique to the teacommunities inAssam. The chil-

dren find it diffi-cult to under-

stand the les-sons as themedium of

instructionin school is As-

samese and it isdifferent from the

language spokenat home and

in the gar-dens,” saysParash

Goswami, dis-

trict project officer, SSA-Jorhat. Hence,was born the idea of storytelling as alearning tool.

Heritage Assam, a Jorhat-based NGO,in partnership with Unicef-Assam,launched the storytelling initiative in thetea gardens of Jorhat and Dibrugarhfrom 2009 covering over 5000 children. “Aformal system of education has not metthe needs of linguistically diverse com-munities on the margins. We decided touse the ancient art of storytelling tosharpen the children’s language skills.The stories are mostly in Assamese witha few ‘Baganiya’ words. The stories aredrawn from both folklore and classics,”says PC Tamuly, a well-known children’swriter and founder of Heritage Assam.

The storytelling session focuses onlistening and understanding, interactingand participating, as well as reading. Be-sides improving their performance inschool, storytelling has given the chil-dren confidence. “Most of them are first-generation learners and have limited ex-posure beyond the tea gardens. Theyhave low self-esteem and poor communi-cation skills. Storytelling has given themthe confidence to communicate better,”adds Tamuly. In fact, many of the chil-dren have participated in storytellingcompetitions in the state-level and haveeven won prizes.

The tea communities have developeda high level of dependence on thegardens and few have explored alternatelivelihood options even though thewages remain low. Most labour lines

(where the labourers live) do not haveelectricity or regular water supply.Storytelling has helped the youngergeneration to dream of a different life. “Iwant to be a writer,” says Purobi, a classVIII student, who won a consolationprize when she was in class III in a state-level storytelling competition. “I read bythe lantern light, and write down everyword. I draw inspiration from differentstories and then write my own.”

Surrounded by the lush green, thechildren listen in rapt attention to thestoryteller. Sessions take place duringand after school. The older children, whotake care of their younger siblings whiletheir mothers work in the gardens, bringthem along for the sessions. And thoughthey are yet to speak their first word, thetoddlers are equally captivated bythe stories.

But these are no ordinarystorytellers. Young men andwomen from the teacommunities, who are fluent inboth the ‘garden’ language andAssamese, are selected andtrained in recitation anddramatisation. “It’s not easy tosustain children’s interest,especially since it’s a mixed agegroup. We have to innovate andintroduce different intonationsand expressions,” says BineetaRajput, a storyteller. Thestorytellers ask the childrenthe meaning of words andencourage them to tell their own

stories to improve vocabulary.Teachers have noted the improvement

in comprehension and language fluencyin these children. To sustain this initia-tive, Uttam Bordolai, principal, DistrictInstitute of Education and Training(DIET), Jorhat, feels it should be integrat-ed in the school curriculum and teachertraining. “Reports indicate that it is help-ing the children in a holistic manner,hence, instead of a stand-alone effort itneeds to be formalised.”

In the afternoon, while the mothersare busy plucking the first flush of theseason, the children gather around thestoryteller, picking up words. In theevening, when 10-year-old Junmun tells atale, her mother asks: “How did you learnto tell such a lovely story?”

> STORYTIME: The ancient art of storytelling is being used to sharpen the language skills of children of tea communities in Assam

BY RENU SINGHCountry Director

Young Lives

Mind the Gap

www.educationtimes.com

LISTENING

UNDERSTANDING

READING

INTERACTING ANDPARTICIPATING

lllA formal system has not met theneeds of linguistically diversecommunities. We decided to usethe ancient art of storytelling tosharpen their language skills.

PC TAMULY, author; founder,Heritage Assam

PARIKSHIT SAIKIA

Due to the efforts by Sarva ShikshaAbhiyaan (SSA), schools are increas-ingly being accessed by disadvan-

taged groups of children, who have histori-cally been ‘kept out.’ As a result, learningenvironments are becoming more diverseor heterogeneous. This heterogeneity is re-flected in gender, varied background andexperiences the students bring to a particu-

7.67% MUSLIMS

5.60%STS

5.96%SCs

2.67% OBCsAND OTHERS

THE PERCENTAGE OF CHILDREN FROM VARIOUS SOCIAL GROUPS THATCONTINUE TO BE LEFT OUT OF THE AMBIT OF EDUCATION

(MHRD, 2010)

5.23 LAKHVACANCIES OF SCHOOLTEACHERS AT THEELEMENTARY LEVEL

PROVISIONS UNDER THE RTEACT WOULD LEAD TOADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT OFAROUND

5.1 LAKHTEACHERS.

MOREOVER, AROUND

7.74 LAKHTEACHERS ARE UNTRAINED, i.e.THEY DO NOT POSSESS THEPRESCRIBED QUALIFICATION

SU

BR

AT

K S

AH

U

SUBRAT K SAHU

IVEDUCATION TIMES15th Anniversary

monday, may 27, 2013

www.educationtimes.com

WHILE THE DISCUSSION ON RIGHT TO EDUCATION (RTE) ACT SHIFTS FROM ACCESS TO LEARNING OUTCOME, THERE ARE CHILDREN WHO ATTEND SCHOOLS, BUT CANNOT FOLLOW THE LESSONS DUE TO A LANGUAGE DISADVANTAGE.

MALINI SEN VISITS ODISHA AND ASSAM TO SHOWCASE GOOD PRACTICES THAT ARE HELPING TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEENLINGUISTICALLY MINORITY CHILDREN AND FORMAL EDUCATION

Inclusion:OPEN CLASSROOM - SECTION 1

THE STORYTELLINGSESSION FOCUSES ON

> WORD PLAY: Children express themselves on the blackboards