Multilingual Education in Nepal: Practices, Perplexities and Possibilities

Dr. Gopal Prasad Pandey Tribhuvan University, Nepal

11/29/19 1 Highlights

• Language Situation in Early Grades in Nepal • National Commitments: MLE Strategies and Policies • Policy- Practice Gap • Interventions • Challenges • Possibilities/Issues & Conclusions

11/29/19 2 11/29/19 3 Nepal: Population size, Languages and language Families • Population: 26,494,504 (26.5 million) • Nepal has 125 caste/ethnic groups • 123 languages spoken as mother tongues in Nepal • The major language families of languages spoken in the country: Tibeto-Burman, Indo-Aryan, Dravidian (CBS, 2011)

11/29/19 4 Language Situation in Early Grades in Nepal • Nepali: As MoI (in about) 85 % community schools at primary stages. • English: As MoI by 10-15 % (about) community schools (But the situation varies from district to district). • Nepali: Taught a period a day (6 periods a week. • In about 90-95 % community schools English is taught as 2 subjects (MoEST, 2015/16- 019/20)

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• MT: taught as subject in less than 5% community schools. • MTB-MLE curriculum is followed in 25-30 schools in different regions. Some are Finland supported while others are I/NGO supported (SIL International) • Approximately 20,000 classes use MT as a transition language.

11/29/19 6 National Commitments: MLE Strategies and Policies • The Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal (1990) • The Report of the Recommendation commission for Formulating Policy for National Languages (1993; English translation 2007) • EFA National Plan of Action (2004-09) • Interim Constitution of Nepal (2007)

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• EFA National Plan of Action (2001-2015) • The Tenth Five-Year Plan 2002–2007 (identified social inclusion as a pillar) • The Local Self-Government Act, 1998 • Primary education curriculum (2008) - Use of local language for teaching + LL prescribed as the optional subject with 100 full marks) • Three year Interim Plan (2007/08-2009/10) (This plan endorsed tri-languages policy: Nepali) 11/29/19 8 03

• Multilingual Education Implementation Guidelines 2009 • School Sector Reform Program (SSRP 2009-2015) • Constitution of Nepal (2015)

11/29/19 9 Constitutional Provision (2015)

• All languages spoken as the mother tongues in Nepal are languages of the nation (Article, 6). • In addition to Nepali language, a province shall select one or more national languages spoken by majority of people in that province as the official language/s as provided for by the state law (Article7.2). Right to education and culture

• Every person and community shall have the right to use their languages (Article, 32.1). • Each community residing in Nepal shall have the right to preserve and promote its language, script, culture, civilization and heritage (32.3).

11/29/19 11 Right to Education

• Every citizen shall have the right to access to basic education(31.1). • Every citizen shall have the right to compulsory and free basic education, and free education up to the secondary level(31.2). • Every Nepali community shall have the right to acquire education in its mother tongue, and the right to open and run schools and educational institutions as provided for by law (31.5).

11/29/19 12 Policy- Practice Gap

• MT-MLE will be implemented in the 7500 schools by 2015 (SSRP) • Gap: There are only 6,081 MT-MLE schools in Nepal • Everyone has the right to have basic education in her MT. • Gap: Mother tongue is taught only as a subject • Gap: Shift of MoI from Nepali to English due to parental desire, demand and pressure

11/29/19 13 Practices

• Nepal is a multilingual country, where groups of people speak many different languages as their mother tongue in daily practices • 69 local languages which have been used as the medium of instruction in the classroom teaching and learning activities at primary level (Flash Report I, MoEST, 2016)

11/29/19 14 Local Languages

• Local language used were: Maithili, (11.67 % ) Tamang (5.11), Doteli (2.97), Awadhi (1.89), Bhojpuri (5.98), Tharu (5.77), Magar (2.98), Limbu (1.30), Bajjika (2.99) etc. were usually used in the Terai and Hill districts. • The provision of teaching through local language/s is line with the government initiation to promote the local languages/mother tongues for teaching and learning activities at primary level.

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• Training packages/Workshops: To promote the use of local language/s (NCED) • Teacher Professional Development (TPD) modules. • In addition, text-books developed in some local languages for early grades.

11/29/19 16 Curricula & MoI

• Curriculum Framework and Guidelines – Primary education through Mother Tongues • CDC has developed textbooks (1-5) in 26 Languages and NFE (Non Formal Education) materials in 14 Languages. • Developed guidelines for developing local materials

• • 17 Policy Implementations

• MLE Guidelines for MTB MoI Implementation • MLE Steering Committee • VDC/ Municipality • Schools/ SMCs: MLE implementation and ensuring students learning • Community/Parents/ PTAs • Partnerships with (I)NGOs, Lessons drawn from regional and global practices • Provision for Local Language/Mother Tongues from grade 1 with 100 Full Marks (4 Credit Hours)

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• MLE Unit and Support staff at different units • Provisions for 20% local content in primary education • NCED ( Now CEHRD) offering MLE teacher training in 15 languages • teachers trained for MLE in schools

11/29/19 19 Challenges

• Attitudinal (Fixed Mindset) • Conceptual, Methodological, Structural • Curricular, instructional, managerial, administrative • Lack of written literature • Large classes sizes • Sustainability- donors

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• Practicality- many students, many MTs • Mixing of codes/Problem for (New) teachers • Learning different languages and their writing system could be problem for children • No trained teachers

11/29/19 21 Possibilities

• Nepal: • Heterogeneity • Linguistically and culturally diverse • Government- Integrating mother tongue-based education into national education policies, in the areas of curriculum teacher development and assessment • The use of first languages as languages of instruction can contribute to the attainment of EFA goals. 11/29/19 22 • First language instruction results in: (i) increased access and equity (ii) improved learning outcomes (iii) reduced repetition and dropout rates, (iv) sociocultural benefits and (v) lower overall costs. (World Bank, 2005)

11/29/19 23 Issues/Questions • How can we convince the parents who want to send their children in EMI implemented schools? • How can MLE be employed in classrooms when there are students with three or more more MTs? • What are effective approaches for managing the use of two or more languages in a bilingual/multilingual curriculum? • TPD ?

•11/29/19Effective materials ? 24 Conclusions

• Some misconception/misinterpretation about the MLE/MTB-MLE programs (MTB-MLE, Report, 2012) • Require political commitment and the support of parents and community members. • The goal should be to make children literate in their first language and also to acquire fluency in the second language.

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• Awareness campaigns among teachers, parents and I/NGOs/ • Quality materials • Financial support • Involvement of concerned language community in education decision making • Need to work for effective implementation of Policy, program and sustainability. • Awareness & TPD- necessary 11/29/19 26 References

Department of Education, Ministry of Education. (2009). Report on MLE policy and strategy. Bhaktapur, Nepal: Ministry of Education, Government of Nepal. Government of Nepal, Department of Education. (2014). National early grade reading programme. Sanothimi, Bhaktapur: Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Department of Education. Government of Nepal, Department of Education. (2015). Flash I Report 2072. (2015-016). Sanothimi, Bhaktapur: Government of Nepal, Ministry of Education. Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs. (2019). The constitution of Nepal. Kathmandu: Law Books Management Board

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Government of Nepal, National Planning Commission, Central Bureau of Statistics. (2018). Statistical pocket book of Nepal. Kathmandu: Central Bureau of Statistics. Government of Nepal. (2007). Interim constitution of Nepal. Kathmandu: Nepal Law Books Society. Malone, S. E. (2010). Planning mother tongue-based education programs in minority language communities. SIL International retrived fromhttps://www.sil.org/system/files/reapdata/3 7/28/09/3728095590661524300669143094078 0490013/MLE_Program_Planning_Manual.pdf Yadav, Y. P. (2017). Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB MLE) in Nepal. Kathmandu: Transcend Vision Nepal (TVN) Pvt. Ltd. 11/29/19 28 11/29/19 29 Slide # 29