“Only about 17 percent of Indian students study in English medium schools, and the bitter reality is that most modern edtech products are out of reach for these non-English students.”
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Language should not be a barrier when it comes to education, say education experts.
Talking to the Statesman, Sharad Bansal, co-founder, Tinkerly , an edtech startup, said, “Studies say that only about 17 percent of Indian students study in English medium schools, and the bitter reality is that most modern edtech products are out of reach for these non-English students.”
Bansal said the time has come when edtech companies are following the footsteps of brick-and-mortar coaching institutes.
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He said these institutes offer batches in vernacular content (Hindi/Tamil/Telugu, etc.) to give equal opportunities to all the students irrespective of their medium of instruction or socio-economic background.
“A student feels more comfortable learning in his or her native language. The demand for vernacular content in education is at an all-time rise, and will only go upward from here,” he said.
“The majority of this demand is coming from tier 2(such as Agra, Ajmer, Indore, etc) & tier 3 (Gwalior, Vadodara, Nashik, etc) cities, from where almost 90 percent of total students are asking for vernacular (mixed with English) solutions,” Bansal added.
Another education expert, Sandeep Bapna , MD, Khan Academy India, said, ”The efficiency of studying in regional languages is the reason why Khan Academy India supports the concept.”
He said priority number one for a learner of a regional language should be to establish a firm foundation from elementary school through middle school.
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