Abstract
While the broader ambition of the Indian government’s Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act (2009) has been lauded, scholars have expressed reservations with the universal education measure. One area that has not been adequately addressed within these debates is the instructional medium. While RTE (2009) recognizes children who are “disadvantaged” as linguistic minorities, and stipulates that the “medium of instruction shall, as far as practicable, be in child’s mother tongue”, it offers little further direction. India is home to more than 1,652 languages, but only 43 languages function as instructional media. Therefore, the majority of children learn in a tongue that is not their home language, experiencing serious educational disadvantages. How this issue complicates the intent of the RTE (2009) Act remains to be explored. This article examines this gap using the theoretical lens of dis-citizenship, which is conceptualized in terms of exclusions experienced by marginalized groups. Here, we focus on those marginalized by the language of instruction. We investigate questions about language access, inclusion, equity, and rights arising from RTE (2009), within the narrative of India’s complex, hierarchical multilingualism.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Chaise LaDousa, the editor of this special issue, as well as our reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions. This manuscript has benefited greatly from their advice. All errors, of course, are our own.
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© 2018 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Introduction: Language and schooling in India and Sri Lanka: Language medium matters
- The language medium “divide”: Ideologies of Hindi-English use at four all-girls’ “public schools” in North India
- English medium education, patriarchy, and emerging social structures: Narratives of Indian women
- English immersion and Bangla floatation? Rendering a collective choice private
- Language medium and a high-stakes test: Language ideology and coaching centers in North India
- Muslims in Sri Lankan language politics: A study of Tamil- and English-medium education
- The right to education act (2009): Instructional medium and dis-citizenship
- Book Review
- The gendered significance of the language-medium divide: moments of discursive empowerment and dis-empowerment
- Small Languages and Small Language Communities 86
- Language ideologies and identities in Kurdish heritage language classrooms in London
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Introduction: Language and schooling in India and Sri Lanka: Language medium matters
- The language medium “divide”: Ideologies of Hindi-English use at four all-girls’ “public schools” in North India
- English medium education, patriarchy, and emerging social structures: Narratives of Indian women
- English immersion and Bangla floatation? Rendering a collective choice private
- Language medium and a high-stakes test: Language ideology and coaching centers in North India
- Muslims in Sri Lankan language politics: A study of Tamil- and English-medium education
- The right to education act (2009): Instructional medium and dis-citizenship
- Book Review
- The gendered significance of the language-medium divide: moments of discursive empowerment and dis-empowerment
- Small Languages and Small Language Communities 86
- Language ideologies and identities in Kurdish heritage language classrooms in London