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ERIC Number: ED530679
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 32
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Language Policy in Education and the Role of English in India: From Library Language to Language of Empowerment
Meganathan, Ramanujam
Online Submission
Background: This is a chapter in the book titled, Dreams and Realities: Developing Countries and the English Language. Purpose: To study the role of language in development. Setting: National Council of Educational Research and Training. Study Sample: All India. Intervention: Survey Methods. Research Design: Statistical Survey; Qualitative. Data Collection and Analysis: Survey Methods. Findings: This study has found that: (1) 75 different languages are used in India's education system. (2) 31 different languages are used as media of instruction; this is approximately half the number of languages that were being used for this purpose in the 1980s. (3) English is taught somewhere in the curriculum of all the 32 states and Union Territories which provided data for the survey reported here. Only Hindi is taught in as many states. (4) The percentage of schools teaching English as a "first language" doubled between 1993 and 2002 from five per cent to ten per cent in primary schools and from seven per cent to 13 per cent in upper primary schools. (5) English is offered as a second language by more states than any other language. (6) 33 of 35 states claim to offer English as a medium of instruction; this is more than any other language. (7) Between 1993 and 2002 there was an increase in the proportion of schools offering English as a medium of instruction; the sharpest increase (from five per cent to 13 per cent) occurred in primary schools. (8) By 2002, more than a quarter of all secondary schools were offering English as a medium of instruction. (9) English is offered as a second language in 19 states, of which 16 introduce it in Class I, one in Class III and two as late as Class V. Conclusion: The Increasing demand for English language and policies and curricular implementation strategies unable to meet the demand. Citation: MLA. (Contains 10 tables and 3 boxes.) [This document was published in: "Dreams and Realities: Developing Countries and the English Language" edited by Hywel Coleman (ISBN 978-086355-659-3).]
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: India
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A