Citing several local languages, Nagaland urges Centre to allow teaching in English under NEP

KOHIMA: The Nagaland government has urged the Centre to allow it to continue the use of English as the medium of teaching in schools instead of mother tongue as mandated by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 as the state has several tribal languages.

The implementation of NEP 2020 in the state is challenging as the state has over 20 different languages, said Kekhrielhoulie Yhome, the advisor for school education. Nagaland has 17 recognised major Naga tribes speaking their own languages with no officially declared common dialect. English is the official language of the state, however, Nagamese -- a lingua franca which is a mixture of different dialects -- is used for daily conversations. For a multi-diverse state like Nagaland, the implementation of NEP 2020 becomes difficult in the linguistic area, especially in the developing and urban areas, Yhome said, adding that mother tongue as a medium of instruction can be used in the rural areas and villages. "We have 20-plus linguistic categories here while it is much more in the interior areas," he said.

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As per NEP 2020, the medium of instruction until class 5, but preferably till class 8 and beyond, is to be the mother tongue or local language. Yhome said that faced with the challenge, the Department of School Education has requested the Ministry of Education to be "more flexible with Nagaland" on the medium of instruction. "We have no option but to teach in English, especially in the urban areas," he said while expressing optimism that the request would be considered by the Centre.

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Yhome was speaking during the inaugural function of a four-day regional workshop on 'a study of school assessments and examination practices and equivalence of boards', organised by PARAKH in collaboration with the Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE). Representatives of boards from three states -- Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura, besides officials of the Board of Open Schooling and Skill Education Sikkim, CISCE and NIOS are participating in the workshop, which will conclude on July 27.