Multilingualism in pedagogical innovations in teacher education in India

This research document explores the adoption of multilingualism in pedagogical innovations within teacher education programs in India. The study focuses on how teacher education institutions are equipping prospective teachers to handle and capitalize on the complexities of multilingual classrooms in the context of India's linguistic landscape which boasts of over 1600 mother tongues and 22 official languages. The research examines current policies including NEP 2020 which advocates for education in the mother tongue and multilingual education policies, and assesses teaching methodologies such as translanguaging, technology use, and culturally relevant teaching approaches in the context of India’s multilingual realities. The article details essential instructional skills necessary for teaching in multilingual contexts and describes teachers’ education program projects from different parts of India. This study uses document analysis alongside qualitative research methods to explore innovative solutions, obstacles, and possibilities for training educators responsive to linguistic diversity. It then makes policy-informed recommendations for India’s policies, multidisciplinary curricula, and evaluation frameworks aimed at deepening multilingual teacher education and strengthening educational equity and quality for this diverse country.