TTTTHE KKKKING’S SSSSSSPEECH by Adv. Jose Peter D’souza

This one may not receive any award, academy or otherwise, and on the contrary, the response by way of brick-bats will by no means be a surprise; but, by jove! it’s a free for all; and so I’ve decided to get off my throne, come down from Olympic heights, mix with the mundane, and mingle among commoners, argue myself hoarse, or, better still, stutter some more words to the ongoing ‘konklish’ debate on the medium of instruction which to date has been nothing more than words, words, words. 

As Shakespeare would have lamented, poured out by mere mortals dreaming to grasp immortality, however briefly, through the columns of a daily newspaper, whose editor in all probability is also one of those like me not knowing more than the absolutely essential words to get him to the loo in the nick of time if lost in any village in goa, and yet posing to be the great prophet for our children’s future seen through the tinted glasses of our own bastardized culture like those of the funny long lost Anglo-Indians now settled in some distant English speaking land and before I am condemned for my ungrammatical mode of writing, by some fanatical Wwren & Martin breed of English teachers to be found mushrooming in the modern new wave very elitist private schools which are determined to make more than a fast buck on the desperation of the parent’s longing for his child to learn English. I have to remind them that English is one of those few languages which has adopted the Roman script and thus doubled our problems with their famous ‘capitals’ more correctly referred to in chaste English as the ‘upper case’ – by Jupiter, and not the upper caste.

I’M ALL FOR THOSE PARENTS WHO ARE DETERMINED THAT THEIR CHILD SHOULD KNOW ENGLISH BY THE TIME HE IS OUT IN THE WORLD LOOKING FOR A JOB WHICH DEMANDS A COMMAND OF THIS LANGUAGE. AFTER ALL WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN THE MOST TRUSTED BANKERS, CLERKS & HEAD-CLERKS, PEN PUSHERS TURNED TO TYPISTS, AND NOT JUST COOKS & BUTLERS. YES, I AM ALL FOR THE KIDS LEARNING ENGLISH. BESIDES, AS SOME MAY SAY, PERHAPS I HAVE LEARNT FROM MY MISTAKES – I ACTUALLY HAD ALL MY FIVE KIDS COMPLETE THEIR PRIMARY EDUCATION THROUGH THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ‘SHALLAS’, FIRST TWO IN MARATHI, AND THE LAST THREE IN KONKANI. AND I REALLY DON’T KNOW WHAT THEY LEARNT, SINCE I KNEW AND STILL KNOW ONLY ENGLISH. BUT ATLEAST THERE WERE NO WORRIES ABOUT FAILING, AND THEY HAD A BALL OF A TIME TO SAY THE LEAST, WHILE WE, AS PARENTS, RELAXED, WITH NO FEAR OF FINDING HANGING SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET OR ANY OF THEIR BEDROOMS. OF THIS I AM CERTAIN: THEY LEARNT THE MEANING OF THE WORD ‘COPEABILITY’, IF NOT THE WORD ITSELF WHICH IS QUITE MYSTIFYING EVEN TO MANY AN ADULT AFTER ALVIN TOFFLER GAVE US HIS PROPHETIC ‘FUTURE SHOCK’ IF I HAVE GOT IT RIGHT.

And in between, I did experiment for some years in the field of education, managed to grab a B.Ed. with English as one of my specialities, and taught at all levels: the pre-primary, primary, middle, and secondary school. This is not mentioning myself being dubbed as the ‘St. Jude’ of logic for college kids caught on the horns of a dilemma, like being between the devil and the deep blue sea, desperately trying to understand the intricacies of a syllogism one or two days before the finals of their inductive or deductive exams, though not necessarily in that order. And, for all my efforts, I was knighted in the true English sense. ‘Sir Peter’ is what I was called by the kids. But to those outside the tiny world of the small ones, it was ‘hippie teacher’. Don’t ask me why. Those were the days which we thought would never end.

All this is many, many moons away in the distant foggy past. But, in short, I know what I am talking about. My propositions are quite simple: (1) English is the gateway not only to the world, but to any form of higher learning - as such it is a must; (2) For most of our kids, English is not their mother tongue or first language, which doubtless, is Konkani; (3) Also, for this majority, proficiency in the English language cannot be brought about through ‘English Medium’ primary schools; on the contrary, it is bound to prove self-defeating; (4) English has to be introduced from the very start of primary school education, though initially only as a spoken language, while the actual education in all subjects should be in the mother tongue of the child, which in Goa would be Konkani; (5) Teaching kids in their mother tongue increases their cognitive skills, their understanding of concepts, and overall emotional growth, which even then, and later, helps in their intellectual development, and not just being restricted to becoming clerks, glorified or otherwise; (6) Finally, the children could learn to read English through the middle school, and writing only at the final stages of school education. The proficiency in the last two skills are totally dependant on the spoken language, and will be enhanced with the intellectual growth of the children in their mother tongue.

Since this is meant for the layman, or commoner, as some upper crust English aristocrat would have said, I am avoiding all technical jargon and choose to communicate in plain old simple English. Yet, those who would prefer profundity to commonsense, like the Johnsonian version of asking for a ‘pinch of snuff’, will see a little of Jean Piaget and some of B. F. Skinner if they care to read between the lines. Unfortunately, the folks belonging to the new age of the comp and lap-top may be grateful never to have heard these names, which to all and sundry can safely be relegated to the realm of the ancient yesteryears.

Before proceeding, we will have to settle on a few fundas. As they say, when in Rome do as the Romans do - speak Italian. Similarly, in Goa, its Konkani which will be voted as the numero uno linga franca of the people. Though there will be the few ‘odd-men-out’ types, like yours truly – English-speaking men to the core with a sprinkling of Konklish added for local flavour; others from Karnataka - Kannadigas, and now the insidious Delhiwallas too with their Hinglish. And despite the silence of the lambs in the GBA and other similar one man/woman groups, the battle is on to save our culture from the vultures. It’s Konkani – hands down, though some are trying their best to rewrite the writing on the wall in another script though the same language – Konkani. Whatever the scribes may scribble, doubtless it will have to be spoken in Konkani if they want the majority to pay heed.

The next principle I am assuming is that primary education for the majority begins at the age of five on admission to standard one. Nurseries are for the few with too much money in their pockets and nothing on their minds. Hence, the assumption that at entrance point, the five year old is in a class full of other noisy five year olds. I bet, the chatter is in Konkani.

By five years of age, the kid is not tabula rasa, a clean slate to be written upon. No Man! He is definitely knowledgeable in many a thing. He has picked up a lot from his family and friends, including, perhaps, a few Fs’ and Bs’, and not just about the Birds and Bees. He knows the difference between his, hers, and theirs which he prefers was his. All this and much more – in his mother tongue, although funnily, he may never know the word ‘Konkani’. All that he does know is that he speaks, and when he does, others hear and respond. He also knows that five mangoes are more that four; three sweets are less than four; take away two rupees from five and he will tell you he still has three rupees left in his pocket; all and more as long as you communicate in the language known to him, his mother tongue. By five he can tell you what happened yesterday without realizing he’s speaking in the past tense; or what he plans to do tomorrow i.e. the future; he knows what is his and not his; he is literally a chatter-box continuously communicating with all around him in the language best known to him – his mother tongue. And he loves it like he loves the breast which fed him when he yelled in a language still to be developed into his first ‘mai’ and ‘pai’ later to be twisted into ‘ma’ and ‘pa’, or, the in vogue ‘mum’ and ‘dad’.

Not even the staunchest ‘primary-education-through-English-medium’ protagonist, like some week-end editors of English dailies here, would deny the universally accepted fact that you do it best when you do what comes naturally i.e. in your mother tongue. “Ek ani ek kitele?” to a class full of five year locals will have all hands up screaming for attention to give the answer “don”. Try “One plus one?”, or even the literal equivalent :One and one?”. The same bunch of kids are now wondering what the hell it’s all about! There are too many new unknowns in this apparently simple linguistic phrase. First there is a new name for the number: ‘one’. Then there is the conjunctive ‘and’ joining the two end terms. His English teacher has not yet reached this level of the language; after all it’s only the first day at school. Hence, day one, he is a failure. He learns to shut up. And he does.

But not all. There are a few hands up demanding to be noticed. They are the kids who have been through their pre-primary coaching classes where it took them two years through lower and then upper K.G. only to be able to learn English sufficiently to respond to what any Goan child knows in his mother tongue. It will be interesting to see how these of ‘English Medium Primary School’ kids of Konkani speaking families fare when there is no pre-primary school education to prop up their aims and ambitions. Factually, the demand for English medium primary schools is more to further the interests of those who have invested financially in the two year stint of English medium pre-primary education, which otherwise would go down the drain.

The raison de etre of those demanding primary education through English medium, is mostly in the mistaken belief that one learns English best this way. What they want is that their kids learn English with a fluency to be able to study through the higher levels of education. As stated earlier, the end is to be lauded, it shows a profound understanding for the need to be ‘educated’ at a higher level. But, at the same time, it fails to see the inherent contradiction in their approach to their aspirations. Instruction at the primary level starting at first standard is to learn science, maths, and a few other subjects in a language presumed to be known to the child. One does not learn a language (be it Konkani or English) through these subjects involving various concepts, whatever it may be. On the contrary, hopefully one learns the various subjects and the concepts involved through the language (Konkani or English) already known to the child. Thus, proficiency in the language is a pre-requisite for learning the various subjects through which it is taught. In other words, one does not have to learn mathematics, science, history or geography, in order to learn any language including Konkani and English. But one has to know a language, Konkani or English for example, in order to learn any of the above mentioned subjects.

Thus, if one does not have a command over the language through which the other subjects such as science, maths, history, geography, etc. are taught, then the terms used in those subjects will be meaningless gibberish. Needless to say that his learning the subjects will be zero, but it will also retard growth in the very language used as the medium of his failures. Thus, learning Maths, Science, Geography, History is done best through the language already known to the kids i.e. their mother tongue.

But provision has to be made for the child to learn the language of the future, which today would be English. This could and should be right from beginning - standard one. Initially it should be only spoken. Normally, a child should be able to speak in a second language without any problem if it is need based. Developmental models of language learning clearly distinguish between knowing a language and being literate. This latter is when the person can read and/or write using a set of accepted symbols known as the ‘script’. The stages are spoken first, followed by learning to read, and finally writing. The problem begins when we expect the child to learn the language and become ‘literate’ simultaneously.

At the younger ages, the child who enters standard one already has more than four years listening, followed by understanding and then speaking in his mother tongue. Hence, he is ready for becoming literate in Konkani immediately on entry at the primary level. If he has to become proficient in any other language, he has to have at least two to four years of experience and exposure in the second language, before we attempt to make him literate in it. This is one area, i.e. development of language skills in kids, where haste makes waste. Personally I would opt that the entire primary period be devoted to learning to listen and speak English. Though with the proper programmes, it should not take more that two years for any kid to pick up spoken English as a second language.

There is a lot to be said in support of the present move to have education in the mother tongue through the middle school also. This will give more time for the kids to assimilate the second language, English, while they start to get literate in it, i.e. are introduced to reading and writing preferably in the Roman script which is universally accepted for the language. Hence, by the time the child has reached standard eight, he is proficient and literate in English. At the same time, his education in the various subjects such as mathematics, science, history and geography has progressed to a very great extent, unhindered by any ‘switching over’ problems encountered as of now at standard five. His grasp of various concepts for intellectual growth is enhanced because it has been communicated to him in a language with which he is emotionally comfortable, not only at the head level, but also at the heart.

Thus, the last three years of schooling could be devoted to use of instruction either in the mother tongue or English according to the preferential choice of the children. In either case, English would continue to be taught till the end of school. If the child has been grounded in spoken English, then gradually grasped the intricacies of reading and writing, he will have absolutely no problem to deal with any mathematical or science issues in either language, though there will be a natural preference for Konkani.

What I have written in nothing new, and I cannot understand the reason for all the hullaballu. The problem is being faced all over the western and developing world, both in ex-colonial countries, and even in those which now feel the demand for English, like China which otherwise was insulated in its culture behind the bamboo curtain. Nearly all have devised programmes to teach English as a second language, the best of which to-date are those developed in the U.K.. These have been specially geared to teaching English as a foreign language to numerous emigrant communities in the U.K., and also as a second language abroad. The programmes as also tuned to the needs of the various age groups. They aim at making the person proficient in both Spoken English, as well as literate in reading and writing the language. None of them expect the medium of instruction to be changed to English. And none of them are known to teach Maths, Science, History, Geography etc. in English. This is left up to the tastes and preferences of the learner.

We in Goa seem to have an instinct for self destruction. Years ago immediately after liberation, many, if not most of our ‘catholic’ schools opted for ‘French’ as a second language from Standard eight. Even though there were no ‘French’ teachers available and no one knew the language. We refused to accept the fact that it would have been more apt to chose ‘Portuguese’ since this was still in vogue in many areas in Goa. And no one dreamed of Konkani at the time.

A lot could be written on every issue raised here, but that is for the pundits to ponder and pontificate upon. I have not said a word about the drop-out rate and the economic factors which would weigh on the scales when a Government is deciding its education policy. But, I am hopeful that better sense will prevail. Goans should understand that languages, like people, do die. We call them dead languages. Latin is one of them. Nearer home we have Sanskrit. Let us not add Konkani to the list. I am one of those living dead Goans, who could have read the King’s speech without a stutter in upper or lower case. How I wish I could do the same in Konkani, whatever be the script.