Scholars urge education in Mother Language

F.P. Report

PESHAWAR: Like across the world, 21 February observed International Mother Language Day aimed for promoting multilingualism among the children from the initial stages of learning.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO’s) International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21 February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism.

Scholars of Pashto language opined that educating learners in their Mother Language is inevitable for the development of a nation.

Director Pashto Academy Professor Dr Nasrullah Wazir said that Pashtoons are broad minded people and beside their community they also look for education and other formalities in their mother languages for other communities. 

Making Pashto a compulsory subject in education institutions is not the ultimate solution to the problem but to teach all non-science subjects  in mother language will not only facilitate the learners but will also cause promotion of language, he remarked.

We have strived hard to highlight the misery on government and academic levels and to make Pashto educational language till intermediate grade however so far we have not succeeded in our goal and even Pashto has been included in word and spirit as compulsory subject in primary level syllabus in schools.

Dr Manzoor Khan Afridi,an Associate Professor Department of Politics & International Relations(IR)in International Islamic University, Islamabad said that no one can deny importance of Mother Language  we have evidences of China,Korea,France,Japan etc. who have made tremendous progress by declaring their mother language as their official one.

He maintained that Pashto is our Mother Language and prominence should be given by declaring Pashto as a compulsory subject in educational institutions from grade first till at least secondary class. 

It is a need of time to teach the curriculum to the students in their Mother language that is essential for the mental growth of learners.

Expressing his views on the matter, Dr Tawab Masroor said that governments and officials of the time were responsible for the negligence of turning down the long lasting demand of assuming Pashto (mother language) is learning one.

Pashto cannot be promoted till it announces market, schools and madrasa language, he added and said certain claims have been made by the provincial governments in past for announcing Pashto is education language for primary, middle and intermediate levels but to in avail.

It is to be stated here that 21 February was first announced as International Mother Language Day by UNESCO on 17 November 1999 while it was formally recognized by the United Nations General Assembly with the adoption of a UN resolution in 2002.