Indigenous kids yet to have textbooks in mother tongue
Absence of textbooks in mother languages and lack of teachers from own communities hamper schooling of indigenous children in Chapainawabganj district.
Failing to follow the classroom instructions and textbooks in Bangla, eight-year-old Sumitra Maddi of Jugidaying village in Chapainawabganj Sadar upazila dropped out of school last year.
"This incident reflects the hard reality faced by the indigenous children in different areas of the district," said Laxman Kole, a resident of a cluster village under Amnura union of Sadar upazila, and a teacher of a primary school meant for indigenous children.
Most of the indigenous children of different villages in Sadar, Gomostapur and Nachole upazilas in Chapainawabganj district have hardly any scope to use their mother tongue outside their community. At school they learn Bangla and English but not their mother language. Language barrier affects their learning as well as relationship with Bangla speaking students.
Local people established Atahar Shishu Shikkha School in Sadar upazila for indigenous children with the help of non-government organisation Caritas last year. Now 50 children from play group to class two read there. Douloti Murmu and Milon Saren teach them.
Beauty Maddi, Dilip Hemrom and Rajina Soren of class one and Sumitra Maddi, Smitara Tudu and Sanjit Hemrom of class two in Atahar Shishu Shikkha School, are lucky enough to receive lessons in mother tongue as their teachers belong to indigenous Santal community. However, they are far from getting a smooth learning atmosphere as textbooks are in Bangla and English.
Condition of most other indigenous learners in the district is worse as they have to learn with Bangla speaking teachers.
"Only a few of the Santal indigenous children of Jugidaying, Jamipara and Boupara areas under Jhilim union of Sadar upazila understand Bangla language," Douloti Murmu.
"Indigenous children are deprived, as there is a lack of textbooks in mother languages. Our Santali language is being taught with the help of Roman alphabet, but there are no books in Santali language," said Milon Saren.
During a visit to a government primary school at Atahar village that also comprises Jugidaying, an area inhabited by indigenous Santal community, on Tuesday, this correspondent saw that the indigenous children did not understand Bangla which is the medium of education there.
Shaym Tudu, an indigenous leader of Jalahar village in Sadar upazila, said, many indigenous children drop out of primary school every year mainly due to lack of textbooks in indigenous languages.
According to indigenous leaders in Chapainawabganj, at least 25,000 indigenous people belonging to Santal, Kole, Oraon, Mahato and Rajbangshi and a few other small indigenous communities live in the district. The Santals are the largest community among them.
"The government should take initiative for providing primary education in mother languages of indigenous people to encourage our children to attend school," said Anil Marandi, president of Jatiya Adivasi Parishad, central committee.
"We have failed to bring all indigenous children to primary schools," said Rafiqul Islam, assistant monitoring officer of district primary education office.
The government's education policy emphasises introduction of indigenous people's languages as medium of instruction for their children at the primary level in line with the target to ensure basic education for all by 2015.
Bangladesh is a signatory to the United Nations charter that gives all communities of the world the right to receive education in their mother language.
A bill ratifying the charter was passed in parliament in 1997, but the law is yet to see full implementation in case of indigenous people.
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