ENGLISH VS MOTHER TONGUE AS A MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION

ABSTRACT

This paper emphasizes the importance of having English as the medium of communication. Medium of instruction is a language used in teaching. This paper will also deal with the medium of instruction in different Countries and regions. It is unfortunate that in our country the question of the medium of instruction is a problem to be debated even after fifty years of independence. For in all civilized countries, the medium of instruction is the mother tongue .The problem, as it exists in our country, is one of the unfortunate legacies of foreign rule. Our British rulers made English the medium of instruction. When a few gifted men learnt to speak and write English with force, the achievement was hailed. On the other hand, our vernaculars were not properly developed.

It was through English that we established contact with the thought and culture of the West as also of other states. We got 80 languages and English should have been the language taught, so all the ethno-linguistic groups can communicate with each other. English is the world language and even your Japanese, Finns, French, Spaniards, Catalans, Indonesians, etc. are learning English now. So the best solution I think is to teach English and stop shoving Tagalog down our throats.

Medium of instruction is a language used in teaching. It may or may not be the official language of the country or territory where the first language of students is different from the official language; it may be used as the medium of instruction for part or all of schooling. Bilingual or multilingual education may involve the use of more than one language of instruction. UNESCO considers that "providing education in a child's mother tongue is indeed a critical issue” AnEnglish medium education system is one that uses English as the primary medium of instruction - in particular where English is not the mother tongue of the students

HISTORY

Initially associated with the expansion of English from its homeland in England to the lowlands of Scotland and its spread to the rest of Great Britain and Ireland, the rise of the British Empire increased the language's spread, as has the increased economic and cultural influence of the United States since World War II.

In our day to day life, working knowledge of English is perceived as being valuable, many states throughout the world where English is not the predominant language encourage or mandate the English as the normal medium of instruction. It is a million dollar question that why on earth still English is the universal language?In all civilized countries, the medium of instruction is the mother tongue.

The problem exists in our country, is one of the unfortunate legacies of foreign rule. Our British rulers made English the medium of instruction. When a few gifted men learnt to speak and write English with force, the achievement was hailed. On the other hand, our vernaculars were not properly developed. It was through English that we established contact with the thought and culture of the West as also of other states.

A revealing instance of attempted cultural assimilation is the Prayer Book rebellion of 1549, where the English state sought to suppress non-English language speaking with the introduction of the Book of Common Prayer, which was made available only in English. In replacing Latin with English, and under the guise of suppressing Catholicism, English was effectively imposed as the language of the Church, with the intent of it becoming the language of the people. At the time people in many areas of Cornwall did not speak or understand English.

The forced introduction of English to church services in Cornwall provided a major reason for the rebellion. The articles of the rebels states: "and we the cornyshe men (whereof certen of vs vnderstande no Englysh) vtterly refuse thys new English."

The British Raj

British recordsshow that indigenous education was widespread in the 18th century, with a school for every temple, mosque or village in most regions of the country. The subjects taught included Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, Theology, Law, Astronomy, Metaphysics, Ethics, Medical Science and Religion. The schools were attended by students representative of all classes of society. Gandhi is said to have described the traditional educational system as a beautiful tree that was destroyed by British rule. The Charter Act of 1813 decreed that English would be taught in the Indian education system.The current system of education, was introduced and funded by the British in the 19th century, following recommendations by Thomas Babington Macaulay. Traditional structures were not recognized by the British government

Thomas MacAulay's infamous 'Minute on Indian Education' (1835) encapsulates both the overt and covert agendas for such a policy.

The term 'Macaulay's Children' is used to refer to people born of Indian ancestry who adopt Western culture as a lifestyle. It is usually used in a derogatory fashion, and the connotation is one of disloyalty to one's country and one's heritage.

In 1835 Lord William Bentinck revitalized the earlier Charter Act with his New Education Policy which determined that English should be the official language of the courts, diplomacy and administration.

In 1854 Sir Charles Wood published his Education Dispatch which was aimed at widening the availability of Western oriented knowledge. Universities were established under the London examining model in Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras.

Lord Ripon's Hunter Commission of 1882 somewhat belatedly advocated that there should be increased provision of education at primary level and for women. The theory was that there would be a subsequent rise in the caliber of applicants for third level entry.

The inevitable result was that an Indian-based education was viewed as being second rate in comparison to an English medium education.

In his recent address Dr Manmohan Singh the Prime Minister of India said that none is more important than the English language and the modern school system. Nevertheless, that English has been enriched by Indian creativity as well and we have given you back R.K. Narayan and Salman Rushdie. Today, English in India is seen as just another Indian language.

Medium of instruction in different countries and regions

In Australia, most schools use English. However in the State of Victoria (known for its many Greek and Italian settlers) there are a number of schools that teach in Greek and Italian. A number of schools also teach in French, Irish, Chinese, Arabic and Japanese

  • In Belarus, Russian is the main language of instruction. While Belarusian language schools comprise 53%, they are located mostly in rural areas and the share of students who receive instruction in Belarusian is as low as 18%.[2]
  • In Belgium, Dutch and French (and German in some parts of Eastern Belgium) are used.
  • In Brazil, every public school uses Brazilian Portuguese as the medium of instruction, but no law prohibits the use of other languages in private schools. Many schools use other European languages (mainly because of the country's European heritage) such as English, German, Italian or French. Public schools also have mandatory English and Spanish, but only once or twice a week.
  • In Canada, almost all public schools use either English or French as the medium of instruction: French is standard in the province of Quebec and, along with English, in New Brunswick. The official language not used as the primary medium of instruction is taught as a mandatory subject in primary school, and becomes optional for most secondary school students. Many public and private school systems in English jurisdictions also offer French immersion. In the far north, some aboriginal languages, such as Inuit and Innu, are also used in local school systems.
  • In the People's Republic of China (PRC), Mandarin is used as the medium of instruction in most schools. In elementary and secondary schools for ethnic minorities, the minority languages - such as Mongolian, Tibetan and Korean - are also used. In recent years, some joint-venture schools offer exclusive English medium of instruction.
  • In Hong Kong, either Cantonese or English is the medium in most schools at the primary and secondary level. English is used almost exclusively at the tertiary level. The use of Cantonese Chinese as a medium of instruction for primary and secondary schools has been a controversial issue in the decade after Hong Kong's handover to China.
  • In India, media of instruction switch among English, Hindi, and the respective states’ official languages. Private schools usually prefer English, while public schools tend to go with one of the last two.
  • In the state of Tamil Nadu, Tamil or English is used.
  • In the state of Goa, English or Konkani is used.
  • In the state of Maharashtra, English or Marathi is used.
  • In the state of Andhra Pradesh, English or Telugu is used.
  • In Japan, Japanese is used in most schools (including Universities and Colleges).
  • In Pakistan, most public schools use Urdu while private schools have English as medium of instruction. Medium of instruction in universities is mostly English except one.
  • In the Republic of China (Taiwan), Mandarin is used as the medium of instruction.
  • In Singapore, the medium of instruction is English in all schools following the national curriculum, except in "mother-tongue" subjects. International and private schools may use other languages.
  • In the United Kingdom, English is mostly used.
  • In the Isle of Man (not part of the United Kingdom) English is used, but Manx is being revived with one Manx-medium school at St. John’s.
  • In Scotland, English is the primary language of instruction although Gaelic medium education is also available. There is little or no use of Lowland Scots as a medium of education.
  • In Wales, while the majority of schools teach through the medium of English, an increasing number teach through the medium of Welsh.
  • In Cornwall, the Cornish language is used in some schools otherwise teaching occurs using English.
  • In the United States, English is used, but in some schools, Spanish, French (in Louisiana,) Hawaiian (in Hawaii) and local Indian languages are used as well.

BENEFITS OF EDUCATION IN ENGLISH

Education in English is spreading. English is the most sought after medium of instruction in India today. Even in the small towns and villages, the parents are aware that the mastery of English is necessary for a respectable living. I get reminded time and again about my own medium of education at the high school and intermediate in science level. The switch over from the vernacular in school final to English in intermediate science was not very difficult for science education. Why is then English medium spreading so fast and is being recommended right from primary stage even by National Knowledge Commission in its report? Perhaps, the better employability of the students of English medium education demands this.

  • Kerala and Delhi states ranked at the top of the recently developed Educational Development Index (EDI). However, according to the State Report on Elementary Education in India, 2005, a National University of Educational Planning and Administration publication, Andhra Pradesh has more students studying in the English medium than any other state, followed by Tamil Nadu. The study only account for students studying in government and government-aided schools- primary, upper primary, secondary and higher secondary schools.
  • In Andhra Pradesh, while 90.34 lakh students out of a total of 1.13 crore students go to schools where Telugu is the medium of instruction, 19.32 lakh attend English medium schools. However, In the EDI list, AP is ranked eighth.
  • In Tamil Nadu, third on the EDI list, out of total enrolment of 97.8 lakh, 78.2 lakh students go to the schools with Tamil as the main medium of instruction, while 18.06 lakh go where English is the preferred medium.
  • In Maharashtra, 7.58 lakh go to English-medium schools while 1.04 crore go to Marathi-medium schools.
  • In Bihar and UP, English-medium students lag further behind in enrolment numbers. Both the states are the last in ranking. One reason may be the less urbanization of the states.
  • Surprisingly in Jammu and Kashmir, more students study in the English medium than any other language.
  • Interestingly, Kerala and Delhi states ranked at the top of the recently developed Educational Development Index (EDI). EDI rankings did not take the medium of instruction as a performance indicator. But students enrolled in English-medium schools are only a small fraction of those receiving instruction in Malayalam and Hindi respectively. In Delhi, Hindi is the most favored medium with nearly 15.5 lakh students opting for schools with national language as the medium of instruction. Again, English is way behind with only 4.34 lakh students going where it is medium of instruction.
  • The medium of instruction for the subjects other that English must be the vernacular. The kids at the tender age coming from all sorts of social status can’t be sufficiently comfortable in understanding the subject if taught in a language that is not their mother tongue.

The Kerala and Delhi model can work and are better. Students may start learning English from the primary class itself and can continue learning up to school final or higher secondary as one language. The medium for other subjects may remain the language of the majority of the students- one of the major Indian languages. But the emphasis must be on using newer techniques. The students after 12 years or more for school final or higher secondary must be able to communicate perfectly in English. They need not be mastering the fine intricacy of grammatically correct English and appreciate the finer literary aspects of English writers and poets. But they must be as good in written and verbal communication as those studying in English medium or better. Teaching, testing, and examination must aim for attaining this skill of communication through rigorous language labs, group discussions, dramas, debates, and presentations through audio and video aids. And that will serve the purpose of the market.
However, it will require first the training and development for the teachers responsible for teaching this foreign language to the students. Students can’t be expected to learn a language from the teachers who themselves are deficient in communicating in English language. And that must be taken care of on priority in education.

ADVERSE EFFECTS

The presumed benefits are somewhat self-explanatory – students will become proficient in English not only in conversation but in academic subjects, they may fare better in the work force, etc. There is also some idea that having English as the language of instruction removes the connection between having money and having the chance to learn English.The problem, as it exists in our country, is one of the unfortunate legacies of foreign rule. Our British rulers made English the medium of instruction. When a few gifted men learnt to speak and write English with force, the achievement was hailed. On the other hand, our vernaculars were not properly developed. It was through English that we established contact with the thought and culture of the West as also of other states.

Since Hindi has been made the Rashtrabhasa (State language), a section of our North Indian countrymen, which include some influential public men, are insisting that Hindi should be made the medium of instruction all over India. The idea is, it will be possible thereby to create a linguistic unity as a step towards a wide national unity and integration. But this has placed the students of Hindi speaking in an advantageous position for obvious reasons, through the Central Board of Secondary Education introduced English- Hindi medium in all states.

The advocates of English or Hindi make one mistake: they forget to main object of the medium of instruction. They fail to distinguish between a state language and a medium of instruction. The object is to also direct means for imparting education through mother tongue. It needs no argument to prove that the mother tongue helps the assimilation of knowledge in the impressionistic age, with the utmost ease. It is, therefore, the natural medium. Knowledge received through the mother tongue is always more concrete, abiding and intimate. That is why knowledge imparted through a foreign medium can never be satisfactory. Furthermore, it involves a great wastage of labor.

  • However, the recent news articles I found appeared because many people find problems with instruction in English. In India, sometimes the worry is that non-Hindi-speaking students studying two second languages, Hindi and English, may have negative implications for their own language, and at the same time they are taking in too much to become proficient at either English or Hindi. I suspect that one connected concern is not that they will stop speaking their own language, but perhaps that over time, there will be fewer and fewer literary works in those native languages as educated people are trained to write in other languages.
    One interesting point brought up in the article about the Philippines is that English as the language of instruction tends to benefit most those who already have a strong background in English – they can excel and students weaker in English feel intimidated or can’t keep up. The authors even assert that the English policy may be a factor in students with weaker English language skills dropping out of school, and in this way the policy may hurt the country in general more than it helps.

A study made by Amamio (2000) on the attitudes of students, teachers and parents toward English and Filipino as media of instruction provided an interesting comparison. According to the result of the study, students and teachers prefer the use of English as the medium of instruction, with the teachers finding English a more comfortable language for explaining ideas and concepts. Teachers further noted that English is an “intellectualized language” and a valuable tool to source information technology. However, parents preferred Filipino because “it is the language in which they can think and express themselves” and it is the language that they understand and through which they themselves are better understood.