A Study on Awareness and Importance of Mother Tongue in NEP 2020 among College Students in Bhavnagar District

Abstract:

In India, Ministry of Human Resource Development of Government has formulated and elaborated all encompassing National Educational Policy (NEP 2020). The National Education Policy-2020 is aiming to develop creative potential, skill and analytical thinking which the need in the global job market is. One of the significant elements that have been identified from the draft is the importance of mother tongue in teaching learning process. Thus present study focuses on to find the Awareness and importance of mother tongue in New Education Policy (2020) among the students from higher educational institutions in Bhavnagar District. Descriptive research design has been adopted and total 100 sample size has been drawn using non probability convenience sampling method. Necessary secondary data collected from websites, past studies and NEP draft 2020. Further primary data collected from the survey method for the present study through structured questionnaire which tried to measure the awareness and importance of mother tongue in NEP among college students. The study may be useful to students, teachers, principals, policy makers etc. for further decision making.

Key Words: New Education Policy 2020, Mother Tongue, College Students

INTRODUCTION:

The term education in the broad sense is not only a pedagogical one punctuating down to the basic meaning of the term, it means to elunge a man’s body, mind and soul of ignorance. It enhances an individual’s personality and provides him confidence to reach out the world. Education is important not merely as means to other end but it is an attribute that is valued in itself by the most individuals. Education is to complete the socialization process though family is great source of socialization yet in modern times it leaves much in done in the socialization process. A sociologist explains the failure of the family to develop attitudes of responsibility in children in the following words.

The situation has arisen partly because of our shift to urban life and to what the sociologist called secondary group organization of the society that is society marked by the disappearance of home and garden, the predominance of specialization of occupation, individualization of choice as to friends religious life and forms of Recreation and a general touch and go impersonal kind of social contact. Education should transmission of cultural heritage, by culture heritage we mean that knowledge of the past its art literature, philosophy, religion and music. Through history textbook and indirectly through celebration of patriotic holiday the child is acquainted with his culture heritage. However it is only the higher level of education that any serious attempt is made to realize.

A National Education policy is a comprehensive structure to guide the development of education in India. The need for a policy was initiated in 1964 when Congress MP Siddheshwar Prasad disparaged the then government for requiring a vision and philosophy for the reform in education. During the same period, a 17 member Education Commission, led by the UGC Chairperson D S Kothari, was founded to draft a national and harmonized policy on education. Based on the proposals of the Commission, Parliament approved the first education policy in 1968.

General Factors to Successfully Implement the NEP

To implement NEP effectively at all levels the government will be required to create stakeholder incentives so that the execution is smooth and uniform
Formulate gadgets in the form of institutional mechanisms, legal, policy and regulatory authority.
Build reliable information repositories.
Develop flexibility across HEIs, regulatory bodies and also government agencies.
Develop reliability through transparent actions and contribution of all stakeholders.
Develop sound moralities of management.

LITERATURE REVIEW:

Kaur, Sonpreet (2021). World-class ancient Indian institutions like Takshashila, Nalanda, Vikramshila, and Vallabhi established the highest standards of transdisciplinary teaching and research and attracted academics and students from all over the world to study and teach there. Here, you’ll find an outline of what the 2020 education strategy will look like. It emphasized the reasons for the necessity for a new policy and the arguments put up by the administration in support of NEP 2020’s adoption. The majority of the chapter was devoted to schooling.

The two of, Kalyani and Pawan (2020) worked on the future of a country and the fate of its people are largely determined by the quality of its educational system. It will have a long-term effect on the nation’s and citizens’ growth and development. In today’s world, education’s significance and relevance are indisputable. There has been a lot of progress and development since the country gained independence. This is the third time in 34 years that the Indian government is changing the way we learn. The new National Education Policy 2020 proposes a wide range of measures that will have an impact on all stakeholders. National Education Policy 2020 and its consequences on stakeholders are examined in this study, as well as an attempt to raise awareness of the policy’s long-term impact by asking a series of questions on social media and evaluating the responses.

Maruthavanan, M. M. (2019). Teachers, teacher educators, administrators, and policymakers were given two months by the Government of India to submit their thoughts on the National Education Policy (2019) draught. Secondary school teachers in Madurai District are being asked to participate in a survey on the National Education Policy (2019). As a result of his research, he concludes that the degree of awareness is below average.

P. S. Aithal & Shuhrajyotsna Aithal (2019) Systematic education policy is essential for offering school and college education in a country due to the reason that education leads to progress in society. Different countries use different education systems with different stages during its life cycle of school and college education levels. Recently, the Government of India received a draft Education policy suggested by an expert committee headed by Dr. K. Kasturirangan, former chairman of India Space Research Organization (ISRO).

Deep Kumar ( Assistant Prof. Research Scholar Aryabhatta knowledge University Patna 2020, analyzed all the key point of the New Education Policy that should be known by a teacher a student and higher educators. He focused on every aspect of the policy. He said that the policy is nothing new but is centered on the basic concept of Gandhiji who talked of education that helps a person to earn his livelihood. He analyzed that his policy focuses on the skill development of a person so that he is eligible to earn his bread and butter.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

The present study focuses on to find the Awareness and importance of mother tongue in New Education Policy (2020) among the students from higher educational institutions in Bhavnagar District. Descriptive research design has been adopted and total 100 sample size has been drawn using non probability convenience sampling method. Necessary secondary data collected from websites, past studies and NEP draft 2020. Further primary data collected from the survey method for the present study through structured questionnaire which tried to measure the awareness and importance of mother tongue in NEP among college students. Questionnaire consisted of total 11 questions including demographic profile of the students such as age, gender, stream, type of college, medium of college, their current mother tongue, mother tongue proficiency, and improvement importance. Further instrument was extended towards awareness for National Education Policy and their opinion towards importance of mother tongue. The employed frequency distribution and one sample non-parametric chi-square test to fulfill the aforesaid objectives.

DATA ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATIONS:

Frequency Distribution:

Table 1 Frequency Distribution for General Profile of Students

Gender				Mother Tongue
		Frequency	Percent			Frequency	Percent
Gender	Male	36	36.0	Mother Tongue	Gujarati	99	99.0
	Female	64	64.0		Punjabi	1	1.0
	Total	100	100.0		Total	100	100.0
Stream				College Type
		Frequency	Percent			Frequency	Percent
Stream	Commerce	15	15.0	College Type	Government	57	57.0
	Science	1	1.0		Grant-in-aid	3	3.0
	Arts	79	79.0		Self-Financed	33	33.0
	Other	5	5.0		Other	7	7.0
	Total	100	100.0		Total	100	100.0
Medium of Instruction
		Frequency	Percent
Medium Instruction	Gujarati	66	66.0
	English	34	34.0
	Total	100	100.0

(Source: SPSS Output)

The above table number 1 indicates the general profile of students who have responded to the research questions regarding National Education Policy. The study consists more of female students i.e. 64 while remaining 36 are male students out of total 100 respondents. Further maximum number of students are from Arts faculty i.e. 79 followed by commerce faculty which are 15. There is only 1 student from science stream and 5 from other stream such engineering or medical students.

Moreover, medium of instructions was asked to students and surprisingly 66 students are from Gujarati medium colleges while remaining 34 are from English medium colleges where their courses are running on different languages. However, Hindi medium was also asked but no one was found studying in Hindi medium colleges. Very obvious results found for mother tongue of a student asked and 99 students out of 100 responded to Gujarati as their mother tongue. Being in Gujarat, Gujarati mother tongue is expected results for the study.

Furthermore, type of college was also asked because mother importance of tongue plays vital role amongst type of colleges such as government, granted and self financed institutions. 57 students found from government colleges while 33 students are from self financed and only 3 students found from granted colleges. Others are 7 which may be from private universities or university department students.

Awareness Level:

Table 2 Frequency Distribution for Awareness towards NEP 2020

	Basic Structure	Purpose	Flexibility to students in choosing subjects	Skills enhancements Curriculum	Ability enhancements curriculum
Not at all Aware	23	17	14	17	17
Slightly Aware	31	28	27	24	24
Moderately Aware	20	17	20	19	23
Very Aware	17	22	24	24	23
Extremely Aware	9	16	15	16	13
Total	100	100	100	100	100

(Source: SPSS Output)

Basic Structure:

Not at all aware (17%) respondents are there and a notable portion of respondents reported any awareness of the basic structure of the curriculum. This indicates that a significant number of individuals may lack information about the overall framework or organization of the curriculum. Slightly Aware are found to be 28%. A higher percentage of respondents have some level of awareness of the basic structure, but it is still relatively low.

Purpose:

Further there are 14% not at all Aware and a considerable percentage of respondents stated that they are not at all aware of the purpose of the curriculum. This suggests that many individuals may not have a clear understanding of the overarching goals or an intention of the curriculum.There is Slightly Aware students 27%. A larger portion of respondents have some level of awareness regarding the purpose of the curriculum, but it still falls into the category of relatively low awareness.

Flexibility to Students in Choosing Subjects:

A substantial number of respondents i.e. 17% are not at all Aware and expressed any awareness of the flexibility offered to students in choosing subjects within the curriculum. This indicates that many individuals may not be informed about the options available to students in selecting their coursework. Further Slightly Aware (24%).

Skills Enhancement Curriculum and Ability Enhancement Curriculum:

Awareness levels for these two aspects appear to be somewhat higher compared to the previous categories. However, the majority of respondents still fall into the categories of “slightly aware” or “moderately aware.”

Table 3 Frequency Distribution for Awareness towards NEP 2020

	Bharatiya Knowledge System	Multiple entry and exit	Multilingualism	Overall awareness of NEP 2020
Not at all Aware	18	21	23	21
Slightly Aware	23	26	26	17
Moderately Aware	16	21	12	20
Very Aware	25	20	25	26
Extremely Aware	18	12	14	16
Total	100	100	100	100

(Source: SPPS Output)

Bharatiya Knowledge System:

Further there are 18% of respondents are not at all Aware. A significant portion of respondents reported having no awareness of the Bharatiya Knowledge System as outlined in NEP 2020. This suggests that a notable number of individuals may not be familiar with this concept. Slightly Aware (23%): While more respondents are slightly aware of the Bharatiya Knowledge System, it still falls into the category of relatively low awareness.

Multiple Entry and Exit:

Not at all Aware (21%): A notable percentage of respondents indicated that they have no awareness of the concept of multiple entry and exit points in education, as per NEP 2020. Slightly Aware (26%): A slightly higher percentage of respondents have some level of awareness regarding multiple entry and exit points, but it remains in the category of relatively low awareness.

Multilingualism:

Moreover, there are 23% of students who are not at all Aware and a significant number of respondents reported having no awareness of the concept of multilingualism in education, which is a part of NEP 2020. Slightly Aware (26%): A slightly higher percentage of respondents have some level of awareness regarding multilingualism, but it still falls into the category of relatively low awareness.

Overall Awareness of NEP 2020:

Moderately Aware (20%): The highest percentage of respondents falls into the category of “moderately aware” of the overall awareness of NEP 2020. This indicates that a significant portion of respondents has a moderate level of knowledge about the policy. Very Aware (26%): The second-highest percentage of respondents falls into the category of “very aware” of NEP 2020. This suggests that a substantial number of individuals are well-informed about the policy. Extremely Aware (16%): While a lower percentage, a significant number of respondents are extremely aware of NEP 2020, indicating a high level of knowledge and awareness.

Opinion towards Importance of Mother Tongue:

Table 4 Opinion of Students towards Importance of Language in NEP 2020

	Provide equal opportunity	Learner-centered	Training in language lab	More lectures of mother tongue
Strongly Agree	58	47	39	36
Agree	36	40	41	39
Neutral	3	8	10	14
Disagree	1	3	7	7
Strongly Disagree	2	2	3	4
Total	100	100	100	100

(Source: SPSS Output)

The above table number 4 shows the opinion of students towards importance of languages in National Education Policy 2020.

Provide Equal Opportunity:

Strongly Agree with providing equal opportunity is 58% and the majority of respondents strongly agree that there should be an emphasis on providing equal opportunities. This suggests a high level of support for policies or practices that promote fairness and equity. Agree (36%): A significant portion also agrees with the notion of equal opportunity. This reinforces the positive sentiment toward ensuring fairness in various contexts.

Learner-Centered:

Strongly Agree (47%): A substantial percentage of respondents strongly agree with the idea of a learner-centered approach. This indicates a strong preference for educational or training methods that prioritize individual learning needs and preferences. Agree (40%): Additionally, a considerable number of respondents agree with the concept of a learner-centered approach. This highlights the widespread support for tailoring educational experiences to the learner.

Training in Language Lab:

There are 39% of respondents who are Strongly Agree. A notable portion of respondents strongly agrees with the inclusion of training in a language lab. This suggests that many see the value in utilizing language labs for language acquisition and improvement. Agree (41%): An almost equal percentage agrees with the idea of training in a language lab. This indicates broad agreement on the benefits of this educational approach.

More Lectures in Mother Tongue:

39% of respondents are aware and a similar percentage agrees with the preference for lectures in their mother tongue. This underscores the preference for native language use in educational settings. Strongly Agree (36%): A significant proportion of respondents strongly agrees with the preference for more lectures in their mother tongue. This suggests a strong attachment to their native language as a medium of instruction or communication.

Table 5 Opinion of Students towards Importance of Language in NEP 2020

	Functional and business correspondence	Focus on Unique Skills	More practical knowledge	More business jargons
Strongly Agree	34	38	41	45
Agree	42	41	41	41
Neutral	11	12	10	9
Disagree	5	4	5	2
Strongly Disagree	8	5	3	3
Total	100	100	100	100

(Source: SPSS Output)

The above table number 5 indicates the opinion of students towards importance of languages in National Education Policy 2020.

Functional and Business Correspondence:

Functional and business correspondence importance created by 34% students and is strongly agree with the statement. A significant portion of respondents strongly agrees that there should be an emphasis on functional and business correspondence.

This suggests that clear and effective communication in a business context is highly valued by this group. Agree (42%): Additionally, a substantial number of respondents agree with the importance of functional and business correspondence. This further highlights the consensus on the significance of this aspect of business.

Focus on Unique Skills:

There are 38% of students who are Strongly Agree and a notable percentage of respondents strongly agree that unique skills should be prioritized. This indicates that they believe fostering individual talents and expertise is crucial in a business context. Agree (41%): A similar percentage agrees with the focus on unique skills. This suggests that most respondents believe in the value of nurturing and utilizing distinct abilities within a business environment.

More Practical Knowledge:

Furthermore, Strongly Agree students are 41%. A considerable portion of respondents strongly agrees that practical knowledge should be emphasized. This signifies a strong preference for hands-on, applicable knowledge and skills. Agree (41%): An equal percentage agrees with the importance of practical knowledge. This indicates a widespread consensus that practicality is highly valued in a business setting.

More Business Jargon:

Finally talking about more business jargon i.e. use of technical terms, Strongly Agree 45% students. The majority of respondents strongly agree that the use of more business jargon is favorable. This suggests that many respondents believe that incorporating specialized terminology into business communication is beneficial. Agree (41%): A substantial number of respondents also agree with the idea of using more business jargon. This underscores the prevalence of a positive attitude toward the inclusion of industry-specific language.Top of Form

CONCLUSION:

The National Education Policy-2020 is aiming to develop creative potential, skill and analytical thinking which the need in the global job market is. One of the significant elements that have been identified from the draft is the importance of mother tongue in teaching learning process. Thus present study focuses on to find the Awareness and importance of mother tongue in New Education Policy (2020) among the students from higher educational institutions in Bhavnagar District.

The study concludes that National Education Policy is making more skillful and enhancing the ability of students and making them for bright future. The survey results indicate that respondents, in general, have varying levels of awareness about the different aspects of the curriculum, with many falling into the categories of “not at all aware” or “slightly aware.” This suggests that there may be room for improving communication and transparency regarding curriculum components, their purposes, and the options available to students. Educators and institutions might consider efforts to enhance awareness and understanding of these aspects among their stakeholders. Further the levels of awareness among respondents regarding specific aspects of NEP 2020. While awareness levels are relatively low for certain components like the Bharatiya Knowledge System, multiple entry and exit points, and multilingualism, respondents generally have higher awareness of the overall NEP 2020. This suggests the need for targeted efforts to increase awareness and understanding of the individual components of the policy among stakeholders and the public.

Overall, the survey results indicate strong support for equal opportunity and a learner-centered approach in education or training. There is also substantial agreement on the value of training in a language lab. In the context of language preference, respondents generally express a preference for lectures delivered in their mother tongue, highlighting the importance of linguistic familiarity in the learning process. These findings can inform decisions in educational institutions and training programs, particularly regarding language instruction and learner-centric approaches. Further the survey participants generally favor a strong emphasis on effective communication, unique skills development, practical knowledge, and the use of business jargon within the business context. These insights can inform decisions related to training, communication strategies, and skill development in a business or organizational setting.

REFERENCES:

Aithal P.S & Shubhrajyotsna Aithal (July 2020). Analysis of the Indian National Education policy 2020 towards Achieving its objectives, International Journal of Management, Technology, and Social Sciences (IJMTS), 5(2), 19-41. (2020). ISSN: 2581-6012.
Aithal P.S, (2019). “Analysis of Higher Education in Indian National Educational Policy Proposal 2019 and its Implementation Challenges.” International Journal of Applied Engineering and Management Letters, Vol. 3, No 2, 2019, pp. 1-35.
Aithal, Sreeramana &Aithal, Shubhrajyotsna. (2019). Analysis of Higher Education in Indian National Education Policy Proposal 2019 and its Implementation Challenges, International Journal of Applied Engineering and Management Letters (IJAEML) 3(2) 1-35.
Kalyani, Pawan. (2020). An Empirical Study on NEP 2020 [National Education Policy] with Special Reference to the Future of Indian Education System and Its effects on the Stakeholders: JMEIT. 7. ISSN: 2394-8124. 10.5281/zenodo.4159546.
Kaur, Sonpreet. (2021). A Note on-National Education Policy 2020: With Special Reference of School Education.
Ms. Sujatha Ramesh & Dr. K. Natarajan 2019. New Educational Policy of India, A comparative study with the Education System with the Education System of USA. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science invention (IJHSSI) ISSN (Online): 2319-7722, ISSN (print): 2319-7714, Vol. 8 issue 06 Ser. III, 2019, P 01-09.
Maruthavanan, M. “A Study on the Awareness on New Education Policy (2019) among the Secondary School Teachers in Madurai District.” Shanlax International Journal of Education, vol. 8, no. 3, 2020, pp. 67–71.
Deep Kumar ,Assistant Professor Research Scholar, Aryabhatta Knowledge University, Patna ” A Critical Analysis and a Glimpse of New Education Policy -2020″

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