English overrides rich Indian regional languages

Parents also feel that there is no real need for children to be fluent in their mother let alone be proficient.

A few days back, I was at a party full of glee to cover it for my publication. Wine in elegant flute glasses were being passed on in full swing. Shakira’s hit song Hips Don’t Lie was playing on. Just then one of the invitees, when we started to talk cricket, asked, “What is a cow corner shot?”

The banker was quick to answer but did so in Telugu though he speaks English fluently. Just then, another invitee answered the question in English and this, at once, got the attention of the ‘quizzer’ who looked pleased.

The banker’s only drawback was that he loved his mother tongue enough to speak it. Our society has a lot of people who are English-crazy. They don’t understand the depth or importance of being knowledgeable. They think English sells and that that’s enough.

Around 1000 years ago, there was a period called Medieval Warm Period (MWP). That was a time nobody spoke, not even those in countries (like the UK and the US) that are stanchly English-speaking. At that juncture, the Englishmen used to speak ‘Latin’.

Nurturing our mother tongue is vital, only then can we preserve indigenous literature. Also, when a language dies, the culture associated with it also fades away. Unfortunately, today’s generation has forgotten the mother tongue.

In this modern age, we live on the stage of English language. Here, we find the numbers of English-medium schools are gradually growing all around. English is the language of business, technology, and empowerment is known to almost all. But, we also need to think about our mother tongue.

Now, a child needs to pick up English as it is a prerequisite for learning. If it does not pick it up fast enough there is obnoxious pressure on it. To an average child, such an education process in English medium can only appear immensely stiff and uninteresting.

In fact, English medium in education is so deep-rooted in India that English is almost being seen as a mother tongue. Also, most of those who are from the English-medium schools, don’t know how to write their mother tongue. Is it not a shameful?

Undoubtedly, English is making communication easy today. But, if every flower is painted to look like a rose, then the garden loses its sheen.

In more developed countries like Germany, France, Italy, Japan, China, and Russia, one picks up working knowledge of English language doing a short course in it after finishing the high school. Therefore, nobody in the corporate world or elsewhere makes a fuss about speaking impeccable English. In those societies, learning English is not a necessary and indispensable accomplishment.

I have a suggestion. In India, let the pupils have sufficient time either at home or at school to master their language and literature and through these, to acquire a fair general knowledge of all the subjects that they are interested in. Then, whatever their medium, it virtually doesn’t matter.

The purpose of putting across a thought in mother tongue, which Rabindranath Tagore talked about, is to be able to do it with better ease and comfort. The system has reduced the importance of mother-tongue learning.

At schools, teachers also hesitate to use mother tongue in a classroom. They feel also culpable when they end up using a regional language during a session. Only English language in the curriculum must be imparted through teaching sessions in English. However, all things said and done, the aim that the learner should learn to speak English like a native speaker or has to think in English, is inappropriate and unachievable.