Published Paper Details:

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 recognizes the importance of preserving the rich linguistic and cultural diversity of India. The policy highlights that language is a powerful means of transmitting knowledge, values, and culture. In addition to promoting multilingualism and language diversity, the NEP also seeks to preserve the cultural heritage of different regions and languages. In a multilingual state like Nagaland, a state in the northeastern part of India, various dialects are spoken, and each dialect has its unique cultural significance. Nagaland is home to over 15 different regional mother tongue languages, making it a linguistically diverse state. The introduction of mother tongue language teaching would require significant resources and efforts to develop curriculum, materials, and trained teachers for each language. The objective of this research paper is to investigate the potential benefits of mother tongue as the medium of instruction for schools in Nagaland, in line with the NEP 2020, and suggest some ways forward for its implementation. Findings show that there is shortage of trained teachers, infrastructure, and funding to support the implementation of mother tongue language teaching. Standardizing the curricula and materials can also be challenging as there are variations in the dialects and scripts of each language, which may lead to discrepancies in teaching and learning across different regions. The study also shows a preference for English or other dominant languages over the mother tongue language among some stakeholders. This could result in resistance to the introduction of mother tongue language teaching and a lack of interest among students to learn their own language. The findings of this research will help policymakers and educators in Nagaland to improve and enhance the proper implementation of the mother tongue teaching learning process in schools, and ensure the holistic development of students, while preserving their cultural heritage. Keywords: Mother Tongue Education, Multilingual, Nagaland, Mother Tongue teaching and learning.