MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION IN SCHOOLS

Introduction
The diversification of India's linguistic communities makes language planning flexible and
challenging because the number of languages taught in Indian schools is viewed as both a
drawback and a strength. Though its implementation has been criticised on a number of
occasions, India's language policy in school education, the three-language formula, which
emerged as a political consensus in the 1950s, has become the guiding principle in fostering
lingual unity among the languages and linguistic groups. The three-language formula strategy
promotes mother tongue-based multilinguists, where the children's mother tongue or home
language serves as the medium of instruction. It aims to provide students with functional
proficiency in at least three languages by the end of ten years of schooling.

What is a medium of instruction?

The language that the teacher uses to instruct is known as the medium of instruction. The student
is exposed to the language more often and has more possibilities to speak in it, which helps them
gain control over it. This is because the language is being taught or the educational material is
being presented in the target language. There has been much discussion over the years over
whether or not it is necessary for kids to learn in their mother tongues at school.

Legal framework
Section 29(f) of Chapter V under the Right to Education Act, 2009 clearly states that the
“medium of instructions shall, as far as practicable, be in child’s mother tongue”.1

Most of the schools fall within the jurisdiction of the States and UTs, and education is included
in the concurrent list of the Constitution. The home language, mother tongue, local language, or
regional language should, whenever possible, remain the medium of teaching until at least Grade
5, but preferably until Grade 8 and beyond, as stated in Paragraph 4.11 of the National Education

1
The Right to Information Act, 2009 (Act 35 of 2009), s. 29(f).
Policy (NEP) 2020. The home/local language will then continue to be taught as a language in all
circumstances.

The NIPUN Bharat Mission of the Government of India recommends that the creation of
teaching and learning processes and materials be done in the mother tongue in its Mission
Implementation Guidelines. Similar to this, NISHTHA FLN (Foundational literacy and
Numeracy) and Vidya Pravesh, a three-month play-based school preparation programme for
Grade I, have also reemphasized the same.

According to the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2020–21,
teaching and learning are conducted in grades(1-5) in 28 different languages. These are the
languages: Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri,
Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, English, Bodo, Khasi,
Garo,  Mizo, French, Hmar, Karbi, Santhali, Bhodi, Purgi.

Landmark cases

The Supreme Court of India determined that a government order imposing a mandatory language
policy for students in primary education was unconstitutional because it violated the right to
receive information in the format of one's choice. This decision was made in the case of
Karnataka v. Associated Management of English Medium Primary & Secondary Schools 2. The
Court came to the conclusion that "choice in the matter of speech and expression [was]
absolutely necessary for an individual to develop his personality in his own way," citing John
Stuart Mill among other references.

The choice of a student or parent to select a medium of instruction for primary education was the
most crucial issue. The Court determined that the word "freedom" in Article 19 refers to the
absence of state supervision, granting the freedom to choose, subject only to the prohibitions
listed in Article 19(2)(6). After taking into account the expansive interpretation of free speech
used by the Supreme Court, the Court reaffirmed the theories put forth in Secretary, Ministry of

2
(2014) 9 SCC 485
Information and Broadcasting v. Cricket Ass'n of Bengal 3 that Article 19(1)(a)4 includes the right
to both impart and receive knowledge and education. The Court, siding with the principles of
freedom of choice, flatly rejected the claim that the State may limit the medium of teaching if it
thinks that it will be more advantageous to the child.

The breach of many fundamental rights caused by the imposition of the mother language as the
medium of instruction was another significant issue before the Court. Articles 29 and 30, which
discuss the preservation of minorities' interests and educational rights, were put to the test in
such minority educational institutions by allowing students to "choose" their language of
instruction. The Court retained the right to choose the language of teaching in minority
educational institutions, citing D.A.V. College, Bhatinda, etc. v. The State of Punjab and Ors 5.
and in re The Kerala Education Bill, 1957. Similar to this, the Court determined that Article
19(1)(g), which contains the terms "Freedom" and "any" before the word "occupation,"
inherently grounds the freedom to choose one's own method of instruction for unaided non-
minority schools6.

School Management Development Committee v. State of Rajasthan

Facts
In School Management Development Committee v. State of Rajasthan 7, the village of Pilwa has
had a school called Shri Hari Singh Sr. Sec. School since 1980. Over 600 kids, including females
and youngsters from all sects, who live in this area and its neighbouring villages, have their
educational needs met by the school. Since its inception, the school has used "Hindi" as its
primary language of instruction. While petitioners 2 and 3 are parent members of the SDMC,
petitioner 1 is the School Development Management Committee, or "SDMC," as represented by
one of its members. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act of 2009, or
the RTE Act, established the SDMC as a legislative body in section 21.

3
(1995) 2 S.C.C. 161
4
The Constitution of India, art. 19(1)(a).
5
1971 SCR 677
6
The Constitution of India, art. 19(1)(g).
7
2022 SCC OnLine Raj 38
Issues
According to the Court, the fundamental right of a child to receive education in a particular
medium, which is guaranteed rather than protected by Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution,
cannot be curtailed by the current decision or the State's policy decision. Instead, the Court
observed that the fundamental right guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) is only subject to
reasonable restrictions by law to be enacted by the State8.

The Court noted that the right to freedom of speech and expression in India is derived from
Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution, which is the source of that right. A wide range of
rights is covered by Article 19(1)(a), including the right to receive an education in a specific
medium. Section 29 (2)(f) of the Act of 2009 9, which mandates that the medium of instruction
must be in the child's mother tongue, also grants the right to receive primary education in one's
mother tongue. Item No. 25 of the concurrent list of the VII Schedule contains the authority to
enact laws pertaining to education. Additionally, any law passed by the State without the
President's approval would be unconstitutional under Article 254 of the Constitution 10 because
the Act of 2009 occupies the area that unambiguously mandates that the child's mother tongue or
home language serve as the primary instructional language in elementary school, to the extent
that is practicable.

The Court stated that no law passed by the State Government, much less a policy decision, can
force English as a medium of instruction upon a child. However, that may be. Since petitioner
No. 1—the SDMC, of which petitioners Nos. 2 and 3 are members—made the decision to open
an English-medium school, the State's decision made at the present petitioners' request cannot be
reversed. More specifically, this is because neither the State's decision nor its policy as a whole is
being contested. The Court noted that the petitioners' and the student's rights to receive
instruction in Hindi are guaranteed by Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution, and that these
rights can only be curtailed by legislation passed in response to the situations listed in Cause (2)
of Article 1911.

8
The Constitution of India, art. 19(1)(a).
9
The Right to Information Act, 2009 (Act 35 of 2009), s. 29(f).
10
The Constitution of India, art. 254.
11
The Constitution of India, art. 19(2).
Held
This Court believes that such a right cannot be repealed or ripped away in the absence of any
legitimate law introduced by the State of Rajasthan. A meeting of the School Development
Management Committee, which was established under Rule 3 of the Rules of 2011, must be held
in the presence of the Sub Divisional Magistrate/Tehsildar and a representative of the District
Education Officer in question if the State wishes or proposes to convert the school in question to
Mahatma Gandhi English Medium School for the upcoming session, which is 2022–2023. The
proposed agenda and a notice of the meeting will be distributed well in advance. The State's
decision to convert the school in question to a Mahatma Gandhi English Medium School shall
only take effect if the School Development Management Committee decides by a majority of the
members present that the school in question be converted to an English medium school. The
school won't be changed to an English-medium school if this doesn't happen.

Conclusion
By reading Articles 19(1)(a)12, 19(1)(g)13, 29(1)14, and 30(1)15 in a highly liberal manner, the
Supreme Court's substantive jurisprudence has raised new rights and freedoms that the nation's
citizens desperately need. The Supreme Court's nuanced position supports its initiative to
guarantee greater access to primary education. Given the unique circumstances of India and the
widespread illiteracy that afflicts the nation, it is interpreting fundamental rights in light of those
circumstances.

12
The Constitution of India, art. 19(1)(a).
13
The Constitution of India, art. 19(1)(g).
14
The Constitution of India, art. 29(1).
15
The Constitution of India, art. 30(1).