Move to reinstate Hindi in British schools

Almost a decade after the Hindi examination was removed from Britain's national educational syllabus, efforts are on to reinstate the language.

Almost a decade after the Hindi examination was removed from Britain's national educational syllabus, efforts are on to reinstate the language in the school curriculum in Nottingham.

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Behind the latest move to get Hindi as a GCSE subject is the Kala Niketan Hindi School in Carlton. The Hindi examination was removed from the syllabus in 1995.

Kala Niketan Hindi School's founder and head teacher Sudershan Mohindra said the boards claimed there were not enough pupils taking Hindi to make the exam "viable".

But she said there were 100 pupils aged between three and 16 at the school -- enough to make the exam viable in Nottingham. More than 1,000 Indian families are reported to be living in Nottingham.

As of now, pupils can take GCSEs in other Asian languages like Urdu and Punjabi, but not in Hindi. Mohindra said: "Our children learn Hindi in their own time, so they want something they can show for it. At the moment, they are spending time working at Hindi but with no certificate to show to universities or employers."

Kala Niketan Hindi School is based at the Hindu Temple and Community Centre in Carlton.

Besides speaking in Hindi, children learn to read and write in the language. The school has produced its own textbooks after finding those available were not up to scratch. It hopes to have them published next year.

Mohindra said learning Hindi was vital for second-generation British Indian children. "It's important for them to communicate with their grandparents," Mohindra said.

"They need it to learn about their religion and also to understand Bollywood movies, which many of them are interested in."

She said the school was needed because many Indian parents who moved to England talked to their children in English.

The school also teaches Indian culture, music and dance.

Kirti Sharma, from West Bridgford, first went to the school as a seven-year-old. She spoke some Hindi at home but improved to such an extent at the school that she entered a national Hindi competition this year and won a trip to India.

"I find some of the pronunciation hard and the reading and writing is difficult," said the 16-year-old student.

"But I loved going to school, it was a really good atmosphere."

Sharma spent two weeks in India this summer, visiting Delhi, Mumbai and the Taj Mahal in Agra and being interviewed by Indian TV and newspapers.

"It was a great experience and really improved my confidence," she said.