Native Language: A Necessity or a Choice

Posted by -: Saswati Chatterjee

he surge in population influx, inter community marriages, and current globalization has caused the use of vernacular or local language as mother tongue to be diminished. Many vernacular languages are facing with the danger of extinction due to reduced number of native speakers. The values contained in the local languages are lost in transit and are rarely passed on to the following generations. The role the mother tongue plays in the early childhood has a significant impact on the future development of a child s psychology and academics. Here it must be understood that many parents residing abroad encounter several obstacles and constraints it trying to inculcate a sense of cultural identity among their children. Parents believe that when they leave their hometown the use of local language as mother tongue is considered unnecessary by most children. It also focuses on a strong correlation between the mother tongue with the environment where the children live in, parent-child attachment, as well as the children s love of their culture and homeland. Mother tongue plays a significant role in the healthy development of a child, to enhance his mental ability better and develop the ability to imagine and correlate.

As we progress more towards a world ruled by diversity and cosmopolitanism, our youth and the generations ahead are uprooting themselves from their nativity. More and more children and youth identify themselves with multiple ethnicity and cultural backgrounds; which is a positive trait towards a more reformed future. This exposure to multiple cultures at a very raw age has several social and educational advantages.

When kids growing up in a foreign country are exposed to multiple languages and cultures, they, there is an inherent urge in them to familiarize themselves with the language their parents converse in at home. Sometimes, this exposure to multiple cultures may act as vulnerability as children are unable to identify their roots. In school, and amongst peers, the vulnerability is more pronounced. Thus it becomes imperative for teachers and educators to ensure that children get a taste of their native language and culture at a very young age.

In several parts of the world, the affect of colonization has adversely affected many smaller communities and tribes, resulting in almost the extinction of their culture and ethnicity. It has been proved in the past that a child exposed to multilingual or bilingual culture will have better understanding of academics and may even be more intellectually sound. Most parents are aware of the need to implement the early seed of, specifically such parents who are settled abroad for the purpose of work. Children undermine the need to develop their spectrum of language development. The process of language learning is through a stimulus-response process and it becomes imperative for the parents and educators to arrange proper channels and ascertain that children correctly respond to the right source of language stimuli.