Promote Education in Mother Tongue

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) encourages all affiliated schools to utilize educational materials that emphasize education in the mother tongue.

Education in the Mother Tongue:

Historical Background

• Mahatma Gandhi criticized the dominant use of English for creating a social divide and hindering the spread of knowledge.
• Prominent Indian leaders like C Rajagopalachari, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, and Annie Besant supported an education system that reflects Indian values and is governed by Indians.

Key Educational Policies:

• The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 recommends implementing mother tongue education up to Grade 5, preferably extending to Grade 8 and beyond.
• According to the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2022, the mother tongue should be the primary medium of instruction until a child is eight years old.

Constitutional Provisions:

• Article 30(1): Grants linguistic minorities the right to establish and manage their educational institutions.
• Article 350A: Mandates that states must provide primary education in the mother tongue to children from linguistic minority groups.
• Article 351: Advocates for Hindi as a common medium of expression, which may diminish the presence of other regional languages.
• Article 350B: Introduces a Special Officer role tasked with overseeing and reporting on issues affecting linguistic minorities.
• Section 29 of the Right to Education Act, 2009: Specifies that, wherever feasible, the medium of instruction should be in the child’s mother tongue.