Mother Tongue ECCE Curriculum “Nua Arunima” – Women & Child Development Department, Government of Odisha
Under the ‘Nua Arunima’ programme, AWWs and Children’s comprehension and participation increased to acquire Nua Arunima Curricular activities with better understanding.
Problem
- Less attendance in preschool education
- No parent participation
- First-generation of learner
- Learning continuity at a stake
- AWW and children were not using the same language of communication
- Knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of the ICDS functionaries were not clear on how children learn.
Solution
- Developed Mother Tongue Language ECCE “Nua Arunima” curriculum in 10 tribal languages
- AWWs are trained on supporting children to continue to develop proficiency in their mother tongue in a homogeneous AWCs
- Parents and Community participation accelerated in the identified AWCs and home visits were strengthened with a handful of pictorial IEC/SBCC materials on parenting.
- To leverage in a systematic way to provide a range of opportunities for a rich environment for the children of the first generation of learners to mainstream in ECE education
Outcomes
- The language and social barriers to early learning were addressed with the mother tongue curriculum and scaled-up initiatives
- AWWs and children’s comprehension and participation increased to acquire Nua Arunima curricular activities with better understanding
- It increased access to health, nutrition, immunisation, and also pre-school education in their home language
- Ensured learning continuity even after the pre-school education, improved school readiness, and smooth transition for formal primary education
Project Details
Category: Women & Child Development Department Government of Odisha
Sub-category: Child Development
Project: Mother Tongue ECCE Curriculum “Nua Arunima” in 10 tribal language and moving forward for transformation in early education and life of tribal children in Odisha
Organisation: Women & Child Development Department, Government of Odisha
Start Date: 08-Apr-2014
Problem
The poor educational performance of children from tribal communities is linked to the language barrier they encounter when they begin formal education. Children from tribal communities grow up speaking with their peers and families in their mother tongue. When they start preschool or primary school, they find that the teachers are speaking the official state language, Odia.
This means that tribal children are initially unable to understand much of what teachers say. The linguistic diversity of the State poses a number of challenges for early childhood educators. Similarly, the Anganwadi workers also had to cope with different languages at the same time in an early childhood setting for holistic development. To ensure optimal development for all children, there is a need to create a planned curriculum framework, encompassing developmentally appropriate knowledge and skills, with flexibility for contextualisation and the diverse needs of young children.
A curriculum framework is also required to ensure that important learning areas are covered, taking care of all the developmental needs of the young child. There is also an urgent need for community awareness and parental education initiatives so parents can be made aware of what is developmentally appropriate for their children.
Solution
The state implemented the Mother Tongue ECCE Curriculum “Nua Arunima” in 10 tribal languages. The language transition plan was developed to initiate learning in the mother tongue of the child and gradually introduce the second language Odia, and then the third language English. The MTL launched the curriculum in 10 Mother Tongue languages and their educators were trained by the State MTL/MLE experts. Various other initiatives were undertaken such as community awareness building, development of children’s learning abilities, and the ability to address the educational system with the adaptation of a theme-based curriculum and learning pedagogy.
On the other hand, AWWs trained by the ST&SC department’s MLE educators were linked with pre-primary schools of that village for the classroom transaction proficiency in collaboration with the S&ME (SSA) program supporting children to continue to develop proficiency in their mother tongue. Also, parents and community participation accelerated in the identified AWCs and home visits were strengthened with a handful of pictorial IEC/SBCC materials on parenting.
Outcomes
Under the ‘Nua Arunima’ program, AWWs and Children’s comprehension and participation increased to acquire Nua Arunima Curricular activities with better understanding. The project enabled children, parents, and the community to have access to health, nutrition, immunisation, and also pre-school education in their home language. The project ensured children’s education continuity even after the pre-school education and improved their school readiness. It Strengthened the skills and capacity of government policymakers, managers, and frontline workers to deliver high-quality mother tongue-based early learning programs; and enabled the use of Anganwadis as platforms for parental and community engagement focused on the holistic development of children.
