Dear Editor,
While the Union Government is firm on replacing German with Sanskrit as the third language in Kendriya Vidyalayas, the Supreme Court has asked the government to change this pattern from the coming academic year. But the moot point is: Should Kendriya Vidyalayas give preference to Sanskrit or German as the third language ?
The government’s position is that while Sanskrit is the third language, German can be taught additionally, though not as a subject. Remember, State boards don’t offer foreign languages in upper primary classes.
Three years ago, Germany convinced the Indian Government to include German as a third language in the Central Board of Secondary Education curriculum for classes six to eight. However, Germany itself doesn’t practise what it preaches. Hindi and Sanskrit are nowhere to be found in the curriculum of German schools. Mandarin is the foreign language taught in German schools.
Hemavathi A
via-e-mail
