In a significant move aligning with the National Education Policy, 2020, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued a directive to its affiliated schools, urging them to consider using Indian languages as optional mediums of instruction.
This step aims to foster multilingual education and promote linguistic diversity among students.
CBSE's Director (Academic), Joseph Emmanuel, emphasized the significance of this initiative, suggesting that Indian languages listed in Schedule 8 of the Indian Constitution could be incorporated as mediums of instruction from the foundational stage to the end of secondary education (pre-primary to class 12), alongside the existing options.
However, the board acknowledged the challenges involved in implementing multilingual education. One major hurdle is ensuring the availability of skilled teachers proficient in teaching various subjects in multiple languages.
Additionally, the creation of high-quality multilingual textbooks poses another obstacle.
Moreover, the time constraints faced by two-shift government schools present further challenges to seamless implementation. Despite these obstacles, CBSE urged schools to collaborate and pool available resources to effectively execute the multilingual education initiative.
