Kerala to prioritise Hindi in school curriculum; Plans to start from Class 1

Thiruvananthapuram: Despite political opposition to the central government's directive, the state government has given priority to Hindi education in schools. The guidelines for quality education aim to ensure that students acquire high-level skills in Hindi, in addition to Malayalam and English. Schools should plan an academic master plan to enable children to learn Hindi, including computing.

There are also proposals to begin Hindi instruction from class I, shifting from the current class V.

Schools must actively promote activities to help students read, write, and speak Hindi. For this purpose, Hindi clubs should be functional, and students will be encouraged to watch Hindi films. The language program will ensure compulsory learning of Hindi for all students.

The National Education Policy (NEP) gives priority to Hindi in addition to the mother tongue and English. Despite opposing NEP in policy terms, Kerala has decided to move forward with the three-language program. Children of migrant workers are increasingly enrolling in public schools. Learning Hindi will also help attract them.

The government clarified that it opposes the imposition of Hindi, not the learning of the language.

Activities

Proposed activities include daily classroom conversations and discussions in Hindi. Screening of Hindi films, hosting Hindi theatre and skits. Promoting reading of Hindi books, student-created Hindi newspapers, and creative writing in Hindi