In a groundbreaking educational
reformative initiative, the Assam Government will introduce school textbooks in
tribal languages to bridge the gap and foster cultural preservation among
indigenous communities in the State.
The initiative, under the leadership of
Education Minister Ranoj Pegu, is set to begin with the upcoming school session
and aims to provide textbooks in multiple tribal languages such as Mising,
Deuri, Dimasa, Tiwa, and others.
The State Council of Educational
Research and Training (SCERT) will supply these textbooks.
This multilingual approach aligns with
the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which supports for primary education
to begin in the students’ mother tongues before transitioning to regional or
English languages at the secondary school level.
This policy reflects an understanding of
the cultural and linguistic plurality of Assam, where more than 55 languages
are spoken, including dialects.
Assamese, which evolved from the middle
Indo-Aryan Magadhi Prakrit and is related to many Eastern Indo-Aryan languages,
remains the principal language of the State.
However, the government recognizes the
importance of other tribal languages, such as Bodo, which is already approved
as a medium of teaching, and others like Mising, Rabha, Dimasa, Deori, Khampti,
Turung, Phake, that are used until the primary level.
Further, by incorporating tribal
languages into the education system, Assam is taking a step towards inclusive
education that respects and promotes the linguistic heritage of its indigenous
populations.
NE Watch Desk
