ROLE OF MOTHER TONGUE AS PER NCF 2005
“Mother tongue” refers to the first language or native language that a person learns from their parents or caregivers during early childhood. It is the language that is spoken in the household and is often the primary language of communication within the family. The term is also sometimes used interchangeably with “first language” or “native language.” The mother tongue plays a crucial role in shaping a person’s linguistic and cultural identity. People may learn additional languages later in life, but the mother tongue holds a special significance as it is deeply ingrained in one’s early experiences and forms the foundation for further language development.
MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION
NCF 2005 an emphasis on the recognition of children’s mother tongues, including tribal languages, as the best medium of education.
Particularly at primary level mother tongue as medium is suggested. According to NCF 2005, The medium of instruction at the level of primary school must be the mother—tongue(s) of learners, building upon the rich experiential, linguistic, and cognitive resources that they bring to schools. The medium of instruction for the rest of the school education should be the mother—tongue(s)/regional language(s) of learners.
IMPORTANCE FOR OTHER SUBJECT
At primary level mother tongue is important even for teaching other subjects. That is why NCF has suggested it with emphasize. According to NCF 2005, Primary education is essentially language education. Even elementary arithmetic and early knowledge about society and environment are best acquired through the mother—tongue(s) of learners when learner learns terminology of science, understand concepts of maths he use mother tongue as tool.
LANGUAGE SKILLS
NCF gives importance to four language skills for teaching all subjects. But it put greater emphasize on reading skills. According to NCF 2005 Emphasis on reading throughout the primary classes is necessary to give every child a solid foundation for school learning.
AS RESOURCE FOR SOCIALIZATION
NCF 2005 took guidelines from great Indian educationists. They also suggest mother tongue as resource of socialization process of children. In retrospect NCF 2005 read that Gandhiji recommended the use of the immediate environment, including the mother tongue and work, as a resource for socializing the child into a transformative vision of society.
PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Under quality dimension NCF discuss role of Private Schools. According to it private schools system makes marks/examination result as quality criterion which is wrong. In this race mother tongue is suffered. According to NCF 2005, “The fact that they (private schools) often neglect the child ‘s mother tongue warrants us to wonder about the opportunities that they are able to provide to the child for constructing knowledge in meaningful ways.”
SCOPE OF MOTHER TONGUE
Here scope means what includes in the meaning of mother tongue. NCF does not include home in mother tongue. It also adds language influence of neighbors, mohalla, street, local environment. According to NCF-2005 when we talk of home language(s) or mother tongue(s), it subsumes the languages of home, larger kinship group, street and neighborhood, i.e. languages(s) that a child acquires naturally from her/his home and societal environment.
IMPORTANCE OF INITIAL STAGE
NCF give much importance to initial stage of learners with respect to mother tongue. It is assumed that learners is competent in his own mother tongue. According to NCF-2005, “They enter the school not only with thousands of words but also with a full control of the rules that govern the complex and rich structure of language at the level of sounds, words, sentences and discourse.
GOAL OF MOTHER TONGUE EDUCATION
According to NCF-2005 A child knows not only how to understand and speak correctly but also appropriately in her language(s). She can modulate her behaviour in terms of person, place, and topic. She obviously has the cognitive abilities to abstract extremely complex systems of language-from the flux of sounds. Improving these skills by progressively fostering advanced-level communicative and cognitive abilities in the classroom is the goal offirst-language(s) education from class III.
CREATIVE EXPRESSION
Mother Tongue may be used to develop creativity among learners. The role of education is to develop language creativity by using different forms of literature. According to NCF-2005, “After hearing a story, poem or song, children can be encouraged to write something of their own. They can also be encouraged to integrate various firms of creative expression.”
LITERACY AS TOOL
The higher aim of mother tongue is to develop effective communications skills. For this oracy and literacy will be used as tool to achieve this aim. According to NCF-2005, “From Class Ill onwards, oracy and literacy will be tools for learning and for developing higher-order communicative skills and critical thinking.”
INITIAL ACCEPTANCE
When learner enter in the school his language is accepted as it is. Teachers here should not focus on errors, limitations and weaknesses of mother tongue. According to NCF-2005 At the primary stage, child’s languages must be accepted as they are, with no attempt to correct them.
CORRECTION BY CONSTRUCTION OF KNOWLEDGE
NCF indicate psychological process of correcting errors in mother tongue. It suggest to use constructivist perspective to correct errors. According to NCF-2005, “It should be accepted that errors are a necessary part of the process of learning, and that children will correct themselves only when they are ready to do so. Instead of focusing attention on errors and ‘hard spots’, it would be much better to spend time providing children comprehensible, interesting and challenging inputs.”
ADVANCED SKILLS
By using mother tongue as tool advanced level communication skill should be developed. Advanced level demand formal language development. It needs high vocabulary, complex sentence, aesthetically rich. For example, writing an easy on abstract topic, writing letter or application to authority in convincing language. According to NCF-2005, “Basic language skills are adequate for meeting situations that are contextually rich and cognitively undemanding such as peer-group interaction; advanced-level skills are required in situations that are contextually poor and cognitively demanding such as writing an essay on an abstract issue.”
LINKING CULTURE
Through literature of mother tongue teacher can link learners with his own and different cultures. A poem may link with rural culture. A story may link with urban, slum, tribal culture. A drama may link with local, historical events.
DISCOURAGE BORING GRAMMAR
It is fact that traditionally grammar was taught with boringness. NCF discourage such boring grammar teaching of mother tongue. It suggest to teach grammar by relating with literature, social interactions and own experiences.
DIFFERENTLY ABLED LEARNERS
NCF suggest that gifted and creative learners must be given additional language resources. They should not be teach as normal learners. According to NCF 2005, “They (differently abled learners) could additionally be provided with especially designed materials that would assist and enhance their growth and development.” According to NCF 2005, “While many of the differently abled learners (who may be physically or mentally challenged) may pick up the basic language skills through normal social interaction, and may have little difficulty in handling computers, they may be provided special access to modern technology and specifically designed materials to assist their growth in attaining enhanced proficiency.”
DISABLED LEARNERS
Additional need-based assisting language resources should be provided to disabled learners. Even for normal learners NCF 2005 suggest – Studying sign language and Braille could be included as options for learners without disabilities.
TEACHING CONTINUE
Teaching of mother tongue is not limited upto primary level. It should be continue to all/higher levels of education. NCF 2005 suggest — Mother—tongue(s)/regional— language(s) should continue to be taught until all levels because high levels of proficiency in the mother—tongue(s) or the language(s) of the neighborhood ensure better cognitive growth, foster healthier interpersonal communication skills, and promote conceptual clarity.
INPUT EMPHASIS
Methods and material to teach (and learn) mother tongue should be effective. It means curriculum transaction of mother tongue must be psychological and social. It should improve learners proficiency in mother tongue. According to NCF 2005, “Input in terms of methods, materials, classroom strategies, and assessment procedures should be such as to ensure that pupils leave school with very high levels of proficiency in Hindi/Regional Language(s) and English.”
CHALLENGING TEXT BOOKS
It is suggested that textbooks of language must be highly interesting and challenging. Even others books also possess such qualities. Language books must have variety of interesting themes and registers.
EDUCATION OF MOTHER TONGUE TEACHERS
Quality teacher education is required for mother tongue teachers. Two hard suggests are given. First establishing quality teacher education colleges for language teachers. Second, involving NGO’s for improving language pedagogy.
DECENTRALIZING LANGUAGE
It means give more rights to state and local authorities to set priorities about mother tongue teaching. For this, different kinds of flexibility in the implementation of the three-language formula while maintaining its essential spirit is suggested.
ENDANGERED LANGUAGES
Some mother tongues are at risk of survival. Actually rapid social; change and globalization it occurs. Further, preserving and sustaining minority, tribal languages in education is essential. School and teachers should make all efforts to save these mother tongue.
ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES
Assessment of Mother tongue needs to change. It should not be threatening to learner’s life. It should not be tension full. It must give opportunity to improve Mother Tongue. Second rigid emphasis and grammar and local reading comprehensive should be avoided in assessment.
USE ICT
Online interactive teaching of regional languages is suggested. According to NCF 2005- “relevant and interesting television programmes may be created that will aid both language learning and meta-linguistic awareness.”
SPECIAL ORIENTATION COURSE
For all language teachers, special orientation courses are suggested. It will help to perform better role of languages across the curriculum. In these special courses, nature, structure, functions and evolving strategies of language will be discussed.
LIBRARY RESOURCES
In order to encourage the reading habit, every school must have a well-equipped library where every possible effort is made to involve children in the processes of reading and writing independent of their normal course work. There must be books on different languages that can promote language development.
RESEARCH PROJECTS
Research projects are suggested in the area of language learning and language teaching methods. Actually it is not an easy task for school teachers. But language teaching can be improved by using such small projects.
TEACHER AS RESOURCE
Language teacher should be resource of language as whole. He should have wider knowledge about other languages along with mother tongue. Particularly, Hindi and English teachers need to know other languages. It will help to increase participation of learners. NCF 2005 suggest — in less bilingual tribal areas, it should be essential to engage teachers who know the tribal language as well.
