The Bangladesh Initiative of Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education: Exploring the Significance, Challenges, and Way Forwards

This paper explores the significance, challenges, and potential way forwards for Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) in Bangladesh, particularly for Indigenous ethnic minority communities. MTB-MLE is recognized globally as an approach to enhance inclusive and equitable education by utilizing a child’s mother tongue as the primary medium of instruction. While Bangladesh adopted MTB-MLE in 2012 and began piloting it in 2017 with five languages (Chakma, Marma, Tripura, Garo, and Santal), the initiative faces obstacles such as resource allocation, teacher training, and curriculum development. The paper argues that MTB-MLE is vital for improving academic outcomes, preserving cultural identities, and promoting cognitive development. It emphasizes the theoretical underpinnings of MTB-MLE, drawing on the work of Piaget and Vygotsky to highlight the role of the mother tongue in thought processing and language acquisition. Using a policy analysis methodology, the research evaluates the impact of the National Education Policy 2010 and the Chittagong Hill Tracts Accord 1997 on MTB-MLE implementation. While acknowledging the limitations of relying on textual documents, the study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the ongoing project, highlighting its achievements, challenges, and potential to address ethnolinguistic diversity and promote socio-economic development in Bangladesh. The paper also acknowledges the roles of UNDP, SIL Bangladesh, Save the Children, and UNICEF in the implementation of MTB-MLE in Bangladesh.