On her first day of school in a tribal hamlet in Jharkhand, young Sumita sat quietly as her teacher began the lesson in a language she barely recognised. At home, she chattered confidently in Mundari; in school, the words sounded distant, turning her curiosity into hesitation. Sumita's confusion is not uncommon—many Indian children begin school navigating a language that feels different from the one they know best.
One of India’s greatest strengths is its linguistic and cultural plurality. It’s home to 1,369 mother tongues and 121 constitutionally recognized languages (Census, 2011). As we look to meet the learning demands of the 21st century, there is an opportunity to turn this diversity into a powerful educational engine.
Nearly 44% of children experience discrepancy between home and school languages (NCERT, 2022). Annual Status of Education Report surveys (e.g., ASER 2024) show low reading levels nationwide, and even when improvements are noted (e.g., ASER 2025), they are marginal and don’t close the learning gap, disproportionately impacting marginalised populations, including tribal, migrant and poorer socioeconomic strata.
Global research has established that young children learn best in familiar languages. This ensures conceptual understanding and reduces learning loss in the early years, building a foundation for later learning. It also gives children confidence, a sense of cultural identity, and socioemotional comfort. UNESCO has identified India as having a high rate of language extinction, with many endangered languages. There are, therefore, at least three excellent reasons for offering education in home languages--supporting comprehension and conceptual understanding; promoting emotional comfort secured in sociocultural identity; and preserving languages and local knowledge systems.
However, primary education is offered only in 28 mediums of instruction. A 2025 landscaping study conducted by Tata Trusts revealed that, far from being the norm, only a miniscule number of programmes offer education in home languages to minoritised groups. Most are in tribal belts (such as Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra) and are NGO-led. Many use home languages to “bridge” children swiftly to the school language (usually by Grade 2), without the intent of preserving cultural identities or knowledge systems. Odisha stands out as the only state with a Multilingual Education (MLE) Policy with curriculum and pedagogy provisions--offering a learning model for other states. However, implementation varies and in many parts of the state, serious MLE adoption is not visible. Importantly, the study revealed that, even as India expands anganwadi reach to connect more children to pre-primary education, state-designed curriculums for anganwadis often overlook children’s home languages.
{{/usCountry}}However, primary education is offered only in 28 mediums of instruction. A 2025 landscaping study conducted by Tata Trusts revealed that, far from being the norm, only a miniscule number of programmes offer education in home languages to minoritised groups. Most are in tribal belts (such as Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra) and are NGO-led. Many use home languages to “bridge” children swiftly to the school language (usually by Grade 2), without the intent of preserving cultural identities or knowledge systems. Odisha stands out as the only state with a Multilingual Education (MLE) Policy with curriculum and pedagogy provisions--offering a learning model for other states. However, implementation varies and in many parts of the state, serious MLE adoption is not visible. Importantly, the study revealed that, even as India expands anganwadi reach to connect more children to pre-primary education, state-designed curriculums for anganwadis often overlook children’s home languages.
{{/usCountry}}The popular misconception that children need quick access to languages of power--of higher education and the workforce (such as the regional language, Hindi or English)--is belied by decades of research suggesting that concepts learned in a familiar language form a shared cognitive base that supports learning in other languages. Evidence suggests that children who learn in familiar languages until Grade 8, or at least until Grade 5, do better than those transitioned out of home languages early. The argument for Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education (MTBMLE) is that the most familiar language be used as the primary medium of instruction. Yet this is contrary to trends currently observed in the small pockets of the country where MLE education is being attempted.
While the National Education Policy 2020 rightly centres mother tongue instruction in pedagogical reform, the conceptualisation and implementation needs strengthening. States must undertake regular language mapping exercises to understand language profiles of learners and teacher and curricula availability. Policies should also provide for a certain percentage of localised, non-transferable teacher positions to reach target populations of children in their home languages; alongside investment in teacher preparation for delivering MTBMLE effectively. Pre-primary education should also be integrated into efforts, leveraging tech support. Local literature and community-based knowledge systems would need to be incorporated meaningfully into curriculums, too.
A collaborative ecosystem involving academia, civil society, and states will be needed in the long-term to support sustainable, evidence-based implementation. This is a matter of great urgency to meet learning goals for all children, provide equity for marginalised learners, and preserve India’s vibrant multicultural, multilingual ethos.
This article is authored by Shailaja Menon, language and literacy expert, Tata Trusts.