SEP panel recommends two-language policy, Kannada/mother tongue as medium of instruction

The Commission for State Education Policy (SEP), headed by educationist Prof. Sukhadeo Thorat, has recommended Kannada/mother tongue as the medium of instruction in primary education and a two-language policy in place of the current three-language policy in Karnataka, among its key recommendations.

The SEP, submitted to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday after a delay of over a year, has proposed to mandate Kannada/mother tongue as the medium of instruction at least until Class 5, and preferably up to Class 12 (II PUC). Alongside this, a two-language policy should be implemented, comprising Kannada or the mother tongue, and English. “To support this policy, teachers must be trained in bilingual teaching methods, and a dedicated Language Teaching Centre should be established,” it recommended.

Structural changes

Suggesting some structural changes in school education, the SEP has recommended schooling in the 2+8+4 model, which includes 2 years of pre-primary, 8 years of elementary, and 4 years of secondary education. According to the National Education Policy (NEP-2020) the structure of school education model was 5+3+3+4. “In addition to restructuring, it is important to retain small schools to ensure access and equity in education, and to avoid arbitrary closures,” it stated.

To strengthen Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), it is recommended to attach two-year pre-primary programmes to existing primary schools. “An ECCE Council should be formed to enable integrated governance and coordination across departments. Additionally, private pre-schools must be brought under a dedicated regulatory framework,” it said.

The commission has also cleared up confusion about the minimum age limit for children to enrol in school and recommended standardising the admission age for Class 1 to 6 years (±3 months).

In three volumes

The final report of the commission has been consolidated in three volumes, comprising a total of 2,197 pages, of which there are 617 tables, 47 figures, 16 graphs, 8 figures and 619 pages of appendices.

“The recommendations are based on a vast amount of empirical data, information, and the experiences of those who have been actively involved in the development of education at the national and state levels for decades,” stated the commission.