Language Barrier in Education: A Fieldwork based Study at Dariyakata Primary School, Hura, Bankura

 

Language Barrier in Education: A Fieldwork based Study at Dariyakata Primary School, Hura, Bankura

Experience of Priyambda Samanta Ray, Sem III, 2025 fieldwork

The school building

Introduction:

Education is a fundamental human right and a crucial tool for social and economic mobility. However, access to quality education is often hindered by various factors, including socioeconomic disparities, infrastructural limitations, and, significantly, language barriers. This report presents the findings of a fieldwork study conducted at Dariyakata Primary School, a small primary school located in a predominantly Santhali-speaking village near Hura, in the Bankura district of West Bengal, India. The study focuses on the challenges posed by the language barrier between Bengali-speaking teachers and Santhali-speaking students, the strategies employed by teachers to mitigate these challenges, and the broader context of student attendance, cultural differences, and the role of the Mid-Day Meal scheme.  

Background:

Bankura is a district in West Bengal with a significant tribal population, primarily belonging to the Santhal community. Santhali is an Austroasiatic language distinct from Bengali, the dominant language of the state. Many Santhali children entering primary school come from homes where Santhali is the primary, and often only, language spoken. This creates a significant communication gap when they encounter teachers who primarily use Bengali in the classroom.   

Dariyakata Primary School serves the local Santhali community. The school's infrastructure is basic, reflecting the resource constraints often faced by schools in rural and tribal areas. The teaching staff comprises primarily Bengali-speaking teachers, a common scenario in many such schools. This linguistic mismatch forms the core of the problem explored in this report.

Methodology:

The fieldwork involved a combination of qualitative research methods. These included:

• Classroom observation: Observing classroom interactions between teachers and students to understand the nature of the language barrier and the strategies used by teachers.
• Interviews: Conducting semi-structured interviews with teachers to gather their perspectives on the challenges they face and the methods they employ to overcome the language barrier.
• Informal conversations: Engaging in informal conversations with students and community members to gain a broader understanding of the context surrounding the language issue.

Findings:

A. Language as a Problem in Communication:

The most prominent finding of the fieldwork was the significant communication gap created by the language barrier. Santhali-speaking students entering Dariyakata Primary School often struggle to understand the Bengali used by their teachers. This difficulty manifests in several ways:

• Difficulty understanding instructions: Students often fail to grasp the instructions given by teachers, leading to confusion and hindering their ability to participate in classroom activities. Simple instructions like "open your book," "write on the board," or "read aloud" can be incomprehensible to a child who only understands Santhali.
• Limited participation: Due to their inability to understand Bengali, students are often hesitant to participate in class discussions. They may feel embarrassed or afraid to speak up, fearing that they will not be understood or will be ridiculed. This leads to passive learning and limits their engagement with the learning process.
• Struggling with curriculum: The curriculum is primarily designed and delivered in Bengali. Students who do not understand the language struggle to grasp the concepts being taught, making it difficult for them to progress academically. This can lead to frustration, demotivation, and ultimately, dropping out of school.
• Communication breakdown: The language barrier not only affects academic learning but also creates a general communication breakdown between teachers and students. Teachers may find it difficult to understand the needs and concerns of their students, while students may feel alienated and disconnected from the school environment.

A few classroom activities Photographs

B. Strategies Employed by Teachers:

Despite the challenges, the teachers at Dariyakata Primary School are actively trying to bridge the language gap. Several strategies were observed during the fieldwork:

• Use of visual aids: Teachers frequently use the blackboard to draw pictures, diagrams, and other visual aids to explain concepts. This is a particularly effective strategy for teaching younger children who are still developing their language skills. For instance, when teaching about animals, the teacher might draw a picture of a cow and write "Goru" (Bengali for cow) next to it, hoping that visual association will aid comprehension.
• Gestures and actions: Teachers use a lot of gestures and actions to communicate with students. They might point, mime, or use facial expressions to convey meaning. While helpful, this approach has limitations and can be insufficient for explaining complex concepts.
• Simple Bengali: Teachers try to use simple Bengali words and phrases, avoiding complex grammatical structures. They may also repeat words and phrases frequently to reinforce learning.
• Code-switching: Occasionally, teachers attempt to incorporate a few basic Santhali words they have picked up, although this is limited due to their own lack of fluency. This attempt at code-switching, however minimal, demonstrates an effort to connect with the students in their language.
• Peer learning: Teachers encourage more advanced students, who may have acquired some Bengali, to help their classmates who are struggling. This peer learning approach can be beneficial, but it also places a burden on the more advanced students.

C. Student Attendance and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme:

Student attendance at Dariyakata Primary School is a significant concern. Irregular attendance is a common issue in many rural and tribal areas, often due to factors such as poverty, household chores, and lack of parental awareness about the importance of education. The fieldwork revealed that student attendance at Dariyakata is also affected by these factors.

The Mid-Day Meal scheme, under the PM Poshan Scheme, plays a crucial role in encouraging student attendance. The provision of a free, nutritious meal at school acts as an incentive for families to send their children to school. Teachers acknowledged that the Mid-Day Meal scheme has had a positive impact on attendance, particularly among younger children. However, it is not a silver bullet, and other factors, including the language barrier, continue to affect attendance patterns.   

D. Cultural Differences:

Beyond the language barrier, cultural differences also play a role in the educational challenges faced by Santhali children. The cultural context of Santhali society, with its own traditions, values, and beliefs, can sometimes differ significantly from the mainstream culture reflected in the school curriculum. This can create a sense of disconnect for students and make it difficult for them to relate to the content being taught. Teachers, often coming from different cultural backgrounds themselves, may not be fully aware of these cultural nuances, further complicating the communication and learning process.

E. Teachers’ Perspectives:

The teachers interviewed for this study expressed a deep commitment to their students and a strong desire to overcome the language barrier. They acknowledged the challenges they face but emphasized their efforts to adapt their teaching methods and create a more inclusive learning environment. They highlighted the importance of visual aids, simple language, and patience in working with Santhali-speaking students. However, they also emphasized the need for more resources and training to address the language issue effectively. Some teachers suggested that learning basic Santhali would be beneficial, but they lacked the time and opportunity to do so.

F. A day at the school

Here, the primary school is a mid-day meal school. The total strength of the school is 53. On my visit, the attendance was 35. The students/children primarily speak the santhali language. They are learning Bengali as their second language. For the teachers and students, language cannot work as a tool but as a hindrance. The teachers are well-versed in Bengali language but cannot speak the santhali language and students first learn santhali language from their parents and neighbourhood. This arises as a problem for teachers to communicate and teach as the children (age- 5-6) only speak santhali language. However, the scene changes with the children studying in standard 3^rd and 4^th (age 7-8) by this time they learn how to converse in Bengali still unacquainted with words, but after seeing the picture or drawing they understand. For instance, the teacher was talking about ‘Gulti’ which the students weren’t able to understand so he drew the drawing on the blackboard after which they shouted in unison ‘batuli’. when I talked with the headmaster, he said it is one of the reasons that they are lagging behind an urban student. Children are very lively and love to come to school as they play many games there and get relief from their household chores. Before coming to school, I saw many children taking water from the pond. The assistant teacher is familiar with the locality and children, so she teaches the children, which are harder to deal with the 1^st and 2^nd standard students. Language becomes a problem for hiring teachers too and, as children can’t speak and well understand the language (Bengali) they are very shy to talk and some of them cannot talk. If Language becomes a barrier rather than a tool realities can become different.

Discussion:

The findings of this fieldwork study highlight the significant challenges posed by the language barrier in education. The communication gap between Bengali-speaking teachers and Santhali-speaking students hinders effective teaching and learning, leading to limited student participation, difficulty in understanding the curriculum, and ultimately, impacting academic progress. While teachers are employing various strategies to mitigate the problem, these efforts are often insufficient to fully bridge the language gap.

The issue of irregular student attendance, influenced by factors like poverty and household chores, further compounds the problem. While the Mid-Day Meal scheme provides an important incentive for attendance, it cannot address the core issue of language and cultural barriers.

The study underscores the need for a more comprehensive and nuanced approach to addressing the language issue in education. This could include:

• Bilingual education: Implementing a bilingual education program where Santhali is used as the medium of instruction in the initial years of schooling, gradually transitioning to Bengali. This would allow students to develop a strong foundation in their mother tongue while simultaneously learning Bengali.
• Teacher training: Providing teachers with training in Santhali language and culture. This would enable them to communicate more effectively with their students and create a more culturally sensitive learning environment.
• Community involvement: Engaging with the Santhali community to raise awareness about the importance of education and to bridge the gap between the school and the community.
• Development of learning materials: Creating learning materials in Santhali to support bilingual education and to make the curriculum more accessible to Santhali-speaking students.

Conclusion:

The language barrier in education is a complex issue with far-reaching consequences. Addressing this challenge requires a multi-pronged approach that includes bilingual education, teacher training, community involvement, and the development of appropriate learning materials. Investing in these areas is crucial for ensuring that all children, regardless of their language background, have access to quality education and the opportunity to reach their full potential. The case of Dariyakata Primary School serves as a microcosm of the larger challenges faced by tribal communities in accessing education and underscores the urgent need for policy interventions and targeted support to overcome the language barrier and promote inclusive education. Further research is needed to explore the long-term impact of the language barrier on student outcomes and to evaluate the effectiveness of different intervention strategies.

Ethnographic experience