Gujarat HC seeks govt’s reply over GUJLISH project in Surat schools

Gujarat HC seeks govt’s reply over GUJLISH project: Tuesday in Ahmedabad, the Gujarat high court ordered the state education authorities to file a response to a PIL challenging the policy of teaching in the English language to Gujarati-medium students in Classes 1 through 10 in the Surat district.

Gujarat HC seeks govt’s reply over GUJLISH project in Surat schools

According to the petitioner, the implementation of the English requirement in Gujarati-medium institutions has led to a decline in student performance. During the hearing, Anand Yagnik, the petitioner’s attorney, complained that more than two years have passed since the state government was instructed to respond to the PIL, yet no response has been lodged. In the meantime, the government has also begun implementing the new education policy. The bench presided over by Acting Chief Justice A.J. Desai ordered the state government and education authorities to respond by August 10.

The PIL has objected to the implementation of Project GUJLISH in the Surat district in 2016, as recommended by the district education superintendent of Surat. The Gujarati-medium institutions have been instructed to teach in English the terminology and primary content of fundamental and elementary subjects such as mathematics, science, and the environment. The goal of the initiative was to preserve Gujarati as a mother tongue, enhance students’ comprehension, teach them English, and improve their performance on competitive and entrance exams. A small number of schools were selected for the pilot initiative, after which the model was to be replicated.

The petitioner asserted that none of the objectives have been met, and they are consequently quite dissatisfied. Students’ performance declined as a result of this endeavour, with some even failing. The pupils were incapable of visualising and comprehending the fundamental subjects.

The petitioner has argued that the concept of providing education in one’s mother tongue is inconsequential and has caused immeasurable hardship for parents and students, as there are numerous families in which no one speaks English. They demanded that the initiative be halted due to the lack of research that preceded its implementation.