Curbs on English medium in LP schools limit options in higher classes: Study

Says most students from poor households stick to Malayalam medium in higher classes

- SOVI VIDYADHARAN @T'Puram

OWING to the government policy that places certain restrictions on the creation of an English medium section at the Lower Primary (LP) level in government and aided schools, a high proportion of students from poor households continue to stick to Malayalam medium in higher classes and are left with limited options by the time they reach higher secondary level, a recent study has shown.

The study titled 'Separate & Unequal?', authored by Sajitha Bashir, former advisor, Office of the Global Director of Education Practice, World Bank, has called for adoption of a bilingual model from the LP section itself to arrest the "skewed social composition in government and aided schools".