This language policy, good or bad?

Having lost its battle in the Supreme Court to introduce Kannada medium up to class V in all schools in the state, the Karnataka government has now made it mandatory for all schools to teach Kannada no matter what their affiliation. While the law on this language policy was applicable only to classes I and II since it was introduced in 2015, it is being extended to class III from this academic year. As it becomes progressively applicable to higher classes with every passing year, the fear is it could make life difficult for students in high school, especially if they have recently arrived from other states. DC reports 

It took a 20 year legal battle  by the Karnataka Unaided Schools Management's Association (KUSMA) for the state government to scrap its Kannada medium policy  in 2014. The Supreme Court by its order of May 6 that year quashed the policy, which insisted on all children upto class V being taught in the Kannada medium no matter what the syllabus of the school. A year later, having failed to justify its language policy in the Supreme Court, the state government hurriedly introduced the Kannada Language Learning Bill  and got it cleared by a voice vote.

And now under the Kannada Language Learning Act, which came into force on April 29, 2015,  Kannada is required to be taught as one of three languages in all schools of the state, including those following the CBSE and ICSE syllabus and international schools with their international curriculum.

Starting from the academic year 2015-16 , all children, even those who do not speak Kannada as their mother tongue must learn it as either their second or third language. The only concession  made is that the language will be introduced in phases upto Class X and not at one go in all classes.

So while in the last couple of years students of only classes I and II in all schools have been required to learn the language , this academic year the rule will be extended to students of class III as well.  But like the government's previous diktat on Kannada medium in schools, this rule too is reportedly being flouted by many institutions, forcing the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to issue a notification in May to direct its officials to monitor schools and ensure that they strictly follow the law on teaching Kannada.

“Till last year schools were not checked to see whether they were implementing this Act or not. But we have received a lot of complaints that most of the non- state syllabus schools are not following it in its true spirit.   Now with the May notification, we can start action against such erring schools,” says an officer of the DPI.

Contending that the government is within its rights to pass such a law  as the Supreme Court has only found  fault with its language policy making Kannada the medium of instruction upto class V, he asserts, “The Supreme Court order doesn't prohibit the government from making the state language compulsory in schools. This Act is applicable to all schools irrespective of their affiliation.”

But not everyone is convinced about the practicality of the new law. How will students from say Delhi or Chennai, who join schools in class VII and above in the state learn Kannada well enough to answer a paper on it in their board exams, they ask.   So is the solution to restrict teaching the language to the lower classes?

Arun C Shekar, an independent researcher, believes it makes more sense to teach Kannada as one of the languages upto class VII and not thereafter. “Education may be a state matter, but making learning Kannada mandatory upto Class X is undesirable as students start preparations for various examinations, courses, sports and other activities by class VIII ,” he argues.

Why this Act?
The statement of objects and reasons of the Kannada Language Learning Act, 2015 says  a  policy decision was taken by the government of Karnataka to ensure that all students studying in classes I to X in all schools of the state should be taught Kannada language compulsorily as one of three languages in a phased manner from the academic year 2015-16.

Learning more languages is good. But nothing should be made compulsory as this will only add to the stress. A language can be taught in a fun way                
— Shyamala Bhat, a parent

This Act will not create any problem for state syllabus schools. Most schools have already implemented it  
—An officer from DPI

In a city like Bengaluru where the floating population is very high hundreds of students join CBSE/ ICSE schools in different classes. If a PSU employee from Hyderabad is transferred to Bengaluru when his child is in high school, how can he  be expected to learn Kannada in just a year or two? Many schools have multi-city branches just to cater the needs of such children. In Kerala Malayalam has been made compulsory while in Karnataka it is Kannada. If a family moves to Bengal, Bengali must be learnt. These kind of laws will affect thousands of students every year and will not serve any purpose
— Kumar Nirajan academician

‘If mandatory, it can work against students’
The city’s ICSE and CBSE schools are most apprehensive about the 2015 Act making the teaching of Kannada mandatory. While they were not very  concerned when it was first introduced as the board examination for their schools was optional at the time, they are now afraid it could work against the students as starting from the next academic year, it  has been made mandatory for them too like for other schools.

 "Starting from the next academic year, our children will have to write a board examination. Learning a language that is not their mother tongue and writing an examination in it will only add to the stress of the students. Keeping their interests in mind at least those in class X  should be spared from learning Kannada,” says a ICSE school principal. "If we oppose this Act we are dubbed anti- Kannada. But in a federal country like India where every year thousands of parents migrate from one state to another, such a law can be difficult for students to handle. Suppose  a class IX student migrates from Delhi to Bengaluru just a year before the class X examination, how is he or she  supposed to prepare to write the  Kannada language exam?” he asks.

 An independent researcher, Arun C Shekar, believes the trend of  most  non-Hindi speaking states like Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Bengal making learning of their  state languages mandatory in all schools is a sort of a backlash against the perceived imposition of Hindi on them. "There are allegations that CBSE schools and Kendriya Vidyalayas are imposing Hindi on non-Hindi speaking students. And so in retaliation the states have made their own languages mandatory in all their schools. The ultimate sufferers are students who are not a party to any argument or decision,” he maintains.

While you are in Karnataka, you must learn Kannada
The government’s decision to ensure that Kannada is taught in all schools  irrespective of their syllabus is right. Students must pick up the vernacular language no matter where they hail from and realise that learning Kannada will help them survive better in the state.  Also, learning the vernacular language amounts to respecting the culture of the state.

However, Kannada should be made the third language and not the medium of instruction and the syllabus should be simple enough to equip one to handle the language confidently, enabling the student to read, write and converse it.  If the language paper set is simple it should not prevent students from scoring good marks in the  board examinations as well. My belief is that while you are in France, you must learn French, and while you are in Karnataka, you must learn Kannada. We cannot live in an English ghetto.
– TV Mohandas Pai educational expert