Investigating the Perceptions of Sindhi Parents Towards Additive and Subtractive Bilingualism and Bilingual Education in Sindh, Pakistan

Abstract

Pakistan is linguistically and culturally diverse country where more than 70 languages are spoken. Primary education in mother tongue is a basic human right of every child and this right has been denied in private education sector of the country. The division of education among private and public sectors have further pulled the tensions and division among the masses. Language in education policies have been not been dealt with serious consideration in the entire history of Pakistan. Further proliferation of private schools in Pakistan has sidelined the role of indigenous languages in educational domain especially at primary schooling. Private schools are teaching through the subtractive bilingualism mode where one language is being preferred over other languages in teaching and learning context . This paper intends to explore perceptions of Sindhi parents towards additive and subtractive bilingualism in private schools at primary schooling and how this one language policy in schools is affecting their children. For this purpose, 16 semi-structured interviews have been conducted through maximum variation sampling. The data is collected from four districts of the Sindh; Dadu, Hyderabad and Qambar & Shahdadkot. The results showed that parents hold different perceptions about additive/subtractive bilingualism. Out of 16 participants, 6 supported additive bilingualism and rest supported subtractive bilingualism. Results showed that parents were curious that English rather than helping create confusion and frustration for children at this very young age. Therefore, additive bilingualism must be supported that it not only facilitates children but also helps them to grasp complex concepts easily. They demanded that Mother tongue teaching must be supported in private schools