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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol.7, No.8
Publication Date: August 25, 2020
DOI:10.14738/assrj.78.8931.
Sharma, H. M. (2020). How Does The Placement Of A School Matter? Urban-Centred English-Medium Schooling And Its Impact On
Intergenerational Transmission Of Gurung Language In Nepal. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 7(8) 594-609.
How Does The Placement Of A School Matter? Urban-Centred
English-Medium Schooling And Its Impact On Intergenerational
Transmission Of Gurung Language In Nepal
Hari Maya Sharma
Gorkha Campus, Gorkha,
Tribhuvan University, Nepal
ABSTRACT
This paper explores how urban-centred English-medium private
schools in Nepal cause migration of young women with their children
from remote villages to urban and bring family as well as culture related
problems which, ultimately, affect in the transmission of their language
across generations. Visiting Hilekharka (i.e., a typical remote Gurung
village located in the southern part of Tanahun District), listening
stories of two migrant Gurung family cases in Aanboo Khaireni, and
exploring experiences of some villagers via semi-structured interviews,
this study found that English medium private schools which were
centralised to Aanboo Khaireni had become the chief pull factor for the
migration of Gurung young women with their children leading to change
in family structure and cultural fluidity. Finally, it has created rupture
in the intergenerational transfer of Gurung language across
generations.
Keywords: Intergenerational language transfer; Urban-centred private
school; Ghetto; Gurung language; Nepali language.
INTRODUCTION
English not only affected the traditionally practised Sanskrit, Gumpa and Madrasa education
systems, but also has replaced the position of Nepali language as a medium of instruction in mass
education since Jung Bahadur Rana became the Prime Minister of Nepal in 1850 (Bhattarai, 2018,
p. 42). The space of English in Nepalese education remained more or less same during the Rana
rule except during the short-lived time of Dev Samsher.
However, the situation was changed with the dawn of democracy in 1950. The newly formed
governments as well as national authorities were not much interested in giving much space for
English in national education (see NNEPC, 1956). This attitude of the then national authorities
towards English in education continued during 1960s to 1970s and also remained until 1990s. As
the main step to meet the national education objectives, the Nepali monolingual school education
system was enacted throughout the country by narrowing down the space of English in curricula.
Thus, Panchayat system remained almost unfruitful for English in Nepalese school education.
However, it regained its status after the restoration of multi-party democracy in 1990.
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URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.78.8931 595
Sharma, H. M. (2020). How Does The Placement Of A School Matter? Urban-Centred English-Medium Schooling And Its Impact On Intergenerational
Transmission Of Gurung Language In Nepal. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 7(8) 594-609.
Multiple governments after the 1990 encouraged privatisation in education and also recognised
private schools as the centre of quality English medium education. It encouraged business-minded
elites to invest their money in the opening of English medium schools. As a result, a number of
English medium private schools were established (or have been established) throughout the
country in an overwhelming way. However, they were dominantly urban-centred. The government
authorities as well as educated elites advocated the contribution of private schools in national
education and placed them in higher rank in the national index of education.
As a result, firstly elites from urban; later from periphery; and gradually ordinary people regardless
their socio-economic, linguistic, cultural status, and residential distance from the urban,
were/are highly motivated to admit their children to private schools assuming that these schools
enhance their children's knowledge and English proficiency. A number of research have been
carried out on the roles of English medium schools in national standardised tests (Thapa, 2015),
English teaching and learning strategies (Bista, 2011); medium of instruction and its practices
(Baral, 2015; Khati, 2015; Shrestha, 2016; and many others) examining how English as a medium
of instruction is practised in local contexts, sometimes showing the lack of proficiency of some
teachers in teaching. Giri (2009, 2010, 2011) discusses the status of English in context of Nepalese
education, language politics and its discrepancies in linguistic mosaic of Nepal.
These studies have great contribution to shape understanding of policy-practice incongruities,
opportunities and challenges in using English as a medium of instruction. However, tension, fluidity
and dislocation in cultural practices and languages of indigenous communities that have occurred
due to the overwhelmingly urban-centred English medium private schools have
remained unnoticed and unstudied. Therefore, illustrating the case of Hilekharka, Tanahun, and
portraying the village and family ethnography of Gurung children who were migrated from their
village to urban to get English medium education in the urban-centred English medium private
schools, this paper explores how urban-centred English medium private schools can
directly/indirectly create incongruities in family, fluidity in cultural practices, and in turn language
use and intergenerational transmission of Gurung language.
THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES
The scholarships reveal that family has a key role for preserving children’s mother tongue
(Schewartz & Verschik, 2013). Drawing examples from Cameroon, Anchimbe (2013) states that the
life of indigenous language is directly connected to “a stable ancestral home.” Moreover, the
attachment of children to indigenous residence in villages, their relations and interaction with
people from their home land play a decisive role for the survival or extinction of ethnic language ....
But, if indigenous languages leave their homelands, family has a key role in maintenance and loss of
their ethnic language. Advocating the importance of family, Fishman (1991) argues that use of
ethnic language at home involving children is the most important starting point of its
intergenerational transmission. But, unfortunately, almost all of the migrant families in urban areas
have stopped using their mother tongue, and finally have lost bonding with it. Instead, they have
become a conducive institution to enhance globalisation (Fishman, 2001).
With slightly different focus, Haugen (1972) advocates the role of both family and community in the
creation of the initial platform for the child’s language socialisation and language ecology viewing
language as “an environment-dependent phenomenon.” Yet, he claims that family is the
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most pivotal environment for mother-tongue maintenance. The discontinuity in
the intergenerational transmission of a language in the family can be the key grounds of language
loss (Spolsky, 2012) where parents have the key role (Lanza, 1997, 2004) as they often conceive
the use of their language as a cultural pride and a tool for strengthening family bond and children’s
cultural socialisation (Schewarz & Verschik, 2013, p. 6). The use of different languages by adults and
children within the family can have negative effects on family relations (Caldas & Caroll-Caldas,
2002; Hua, 2008).
Highlighting the role of peer group pressure along with the family in children's language
maintenance and loss, Harris (1995) explains that a child’s socialisation is “highly context- dependent form of learning.” According to her, children are influenced by family members in
their childhood, however; in their adolescence, they become a part of sub-cultures created by their
cohort outside home. Generally, the ethnic minority children are inclined to acquire the language of
their peers rather than that of their parents. Consequently, their ethnic language is confined to be
the heritage language (p. 462). Showing the importance of family location in acquisition and use of
a particular language, Schwartz and Verschik (2013) discuss that which language (i.e., ethnic or
dominant) a child acquires depends upon where the given family is located: in heterogeneous
neighbourhoods or in their own speech community.
Irrespective of multiple theories on the key role of ancestor home, homeland and community for
the maintenance of ethnic language and culture, the flow of migration in the globe is increasing
among different age groups for various reasons. Different INGOs’/NGOs’/GOs’ reports show that the
motivation of youths for quality education is the main reason for their migration; whereas, the chief
cause for the migration of adults is the desire of getting employment. Notwithstanding whatever
reasons are underlying for migration, it has created complexities in the community for migrant
children which ultimately affect the use and attitudes of migrant people towards their language.
When families migrate from their original village, their cultures as well as languages go with them
leading to greater linguistic and cultural diversity in the destination as well as linguistic and cultural
fluidity in ancestor village. In this sense, there is a close relationship between migration and
language; language ecology, use and indexing of a particular language.
Portes and Hao (2002) describe two main relationships between migration and language. On the
one extreme, in large-scale migration in multiple destinations, the new migrants might not learn the
dominant language. On the other extreme, the migrant children from different backgrounds might
be motivated towards the new dominant language used in the destination. Ultimately, it results in
the loss of native language skills across generations, especially the children confining their
languages as a heritage language (Su ́arez-Orozco, Darbes, Dias, & Sutin, 2011). Furthermore, as
Rumbaut (2005) states, the acculturation process in new environments can create linguistic and
cultural gaps between parents and children of migrant families which can cause and escalate
intergenerational conflicts in the migrant families.
Linking these theoretical lenses, in this piece of work, my focus is to explore how the urban-centred
English medium private schools in Nepal have been one of the principal pulling factors for migration
of Gurung youths, especially women with their children, from remote villages to the near-by urban
areas and, in turn, it has caused discontinuity in intergenerational transfer of their
languages.Drawing the illustration from Hilekharka and migrant families in Aanboo Khaireni, this
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three sides facing towards Chure region with the coordinates of 27053’12.3” N latitude and of
84028’09.7” E longitude. It had both sloppy and terraced landscapes, but the main residential area
was terraced. From this perspective, it was a geographical ghetto.
Previously, livelihood-oriented agriculture was the main source of running livelihood of the
villagers: Cattle and goats tending, bee keeping, poultry farming and growing crops like maize and
millet were their principal occupations. Besides this, some male youths used to join Indian/British
Army leaving their wives and children at home in the village. Kinship's responsibilities to care for
each other were the main principles to strengthen family bonds. In almost all of the cases, the
household chores used to be distributed in terms of age and needs. Mostly adults and youths who
were physically strong used to work in the farm/field, go to forest, look after cattle and goats
and do other activities which needed more physical efforts. Almost all of the families would consist
of three generations i.e., grandparents, parents and children; some of which included uncle/aunt
and cousins, too. Generally, physically capable members would work on farms and outside
home but elders with very small children would live at home. Because of this, the bond between the
first and the third generations would be stronger.
Each member used to learn the culture of respect and love, understand kinship responsibilities,
acquire the ability of living in a larger family with support and cooperation, love and peace. The
children would get an opportunity to learn their culture and language from grandparents.
Therefore, intergenerational transfer of their culture and language was possible. Gurung was
spoken in the community and at home, although most of the people could speak Nepali language,
too. Children had opportunities to take part in cultural activities, listen to folk tales, and understand
values and mores. In this way, there was smooth intergenerational transfer of their language and
culture, in turn, their language and also the culture were preserved.
This village was known as a typical Gurung village; as language and cultural hub. Each festival was
celebrated with great importance that could offer new generations the opportunity to internalise
their practices. Such typical characteristics of the ghetto were alive for centuries, but due to the
migration of women with their children for different reasons, especially, for admitting their
children to urban-centred English medium schools, the face of the village has been changed today.
TODAY’S HILEKHARKA
The previous shape of Hilekharka has been changed today. Firstly, the village consists of single
generational families consisting of old couples at home due to the temporary migration of their sons
and daughter-in-laws with their children. Sons' mobility was for jobs in or out of the country and
migration of daughter-in-laws was supposed to admit their children to English medium schools
located in urban areas. Secondly, the number of households are decreasing because of permanent
migration of some of those families. Following the footsteps of their husbands' migration for jobs,
migration of wives with their children has become a culture in this community.
Elderly couples have been continuing their traditional occupation to make their livelihood.
Regardless they are not strong enough for physical work, they have to rear cattle, grow and harvest
seasonal crops. But, they can neither get sufficient support from their family members nor can
they get it in the community to cultivate their entire land. Because of lack of sufficient human
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hidden among tall trees embedded with cattle shed, heap of dung besides, barn of hay, pen of goats
and poultries, bee-hives, open fields/farms and rough roads, and frequent use of languages other
than Nepali gave the glimpse of Old-style Area of Aanboo Khaireni (Sharma, 2020).
Within such faces we could not only observe the Aanboo Khaireni divide in terms of socio-economic
structure, but also could see the spaces of Gurung, Nepali, and English languages in the community.
Despite Gurung language being the mother tongue of Gurung people, Nepali was dominantly used
in different domains such as business, offices, banks and schools and informal communications.
Both private and community schools in Aanboo Khaireni theoretically adopted English as medium
of instruction in education, however, Nepali was the dominant language of communication and
classroom interactions.
I observed that migrant children from different linguistic backgrounds also would use Nepali while
talking with classmates, teachers, and friends in the schools in and out of the classroom. Not only in
the schools, the migrant Gurung speaking families would use Nepali dominantly at home and in
neighbourhoods (Sharma, 2020).
DEMOGRAPHY OF SELECTED SCHOOLS
The rhetoric behind overwhelming opening of English medium private boarding schools in
different parts of the Tanahun district was to support national development by promoting social
harmony and cooperation among people, and by nurturing skilful and knowledgeable citizenship.
The high motivation of people to admit their children to private schools resulted rapid increase in
the number of students in those schools. Therefore, almost all of the private schools in Aanboo
Khaireni had a greater number of students from various socio-cultural and linguistic
backgrounds compared to that of the community schools with the similar status.
Chhimkeshwari School (pseudonym), one of my study sites, was established in 1988 as an English
medium school which was hidden behind the busy market area of Aanboo Khaireni. It had been
running from Nursery to Grade 10 for some decades. During my fieldwork, there were 776 students
from various ethnic, linguistic and religious backgrounds. Among them, 552 (i.e., 71.1%) were from
Janajatis/Dalits (Here, in the category of Janajatis/Dalits, I have counted all the students except
Brahmin/Chhetries backgrounds). The number of students from Gurung ethnic background was
111 (i.e., 20.1%) of the total.
Out of the total students in this school, the dominant number (i.e., about 80%) was from Aanboo
Khaireni; some were from villages in the lower periphery, and some were from remote villages. The
number of students in lower grades were greater than that was in higher Grades.
Similarly, Manakamanaa School (pseudonym), established in 2003, was located in the newly- expanded residential area i.e., about 100m away from the main busy market area of Aanboo
Khaireni. About 460 students from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds were studying in
this school. Out of them, 88.5% were from Janajatis/Dalits background. Among the Janajatis/Dalit
groups, about 36.3% were from Gurung ethnic group. While talking about the residency, the
dominant number of students were from Aanboo Khaireni, some were from villages in the
periphery, and some were from remote villages.
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URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.78.8931 603
Sharma, H. M. (2020). How Does The Placement Of A School Matter? Urban-Centred English-Medium Schooling And Its Impact On Intergenerational
Transmission Of Gurung Language In Nepal. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 7(8) 594-609.
There was one friend when we were at Grade Seven whose mother tongue was Gurung. She got
back and was left in the same class. Later, she didn’t show her interest in using it. There are 40
students in our section and most of them are from Nepali language background. They use Nepali
each other during the class and in leisure periods. Therefore, we also use Nepali all the time except
while we want to share our secrets.
The above excerpt of Riya exposes her cohort's attitude towards using Gurung language. Riya and
her friends from Gurung language background seemed unwilling to speak Gurung even among
them. It was because Nepali was dominantly used by her classmates and teachers in the classrooms
and school premises which had created pressure for not using Gurung in the school classroom and
school periphery. Beside this, they had community pressure which led to discontinue
intergenerational transfer of Gurung language across generations. According to Riya, Nepali was
dominantly used in her localities, although migrants from various socio-linguistic backgrounds
lived there. The following excerpt shows this fact:
Nowadays almost all of the people in this locality speak Nepali. They do not give priority
to Gurung language. It is because all the people adopt modernisation. Even though they
have migrated from villages to urban areas, they do not value their own language.
It discloses the community pressure that had affected the continuation of use of Gurung language at
home as well as supported to change the attitude of migrant parents and children. Instead of taking
it as their ethnic and cultural pride, they did not value it for different perceptions i.e., it had no work
for modernisation and no work for communication in the mixed community. In addition to the story
of Riya's family, I also interviewed Taka's (pseudonym) grandfather to understand the attitudes of
the older generation towards their language and also the language use in their family.
Taka's family
Taka's family also migrated from Hilekharka about three decades ago. The family included three
circles of Gurung speakers; in the first circle Taka’s grandparents were the native speakers
of Gurung language and had strong bonds with their language and culture. The second circle
included Taka’s parents whose mother tongue was Gurung and used to speak Gurung when they
were in the village, but after they migrated to Aanboo Khaireni they stopped speaking it. So, their
bond with Gurung language and culture had gradually been weaker. The third circle was of Taka
and his siblings who were completely influenced by the dominant language and culture of Aanboo
Khaireni. So, their mother tongue and language of everyday use was Nepali and Gurung language
was heritage language for them. The following excerpt of Taka's grandfather reveals this fact:
I migrated from Hilekharka 20 years ago. Twenty years ago, Hilekharka was a linguistic
ghetto, where all the people used to speak only Gurung language, although some of them
were bilingual in Gurung and Nepali. Two-third of my life was spent in Hilekharka, my
language was Gurung, my culture was Gurung. I used to feel proud to speak Gurung and
to celebrate each festival there. Gurung language and culture were our ethnic identity.
So, Hilekharka was the hub of Gurung culture and language. But, the context is different
now. Regardless of my strong bond with Gurung language, I dominantly use Nepali not
only in localities, but also at home. It is because almost all of the communication at home
and in the community is held in Nepali. Even those migrant Gurung people whose
mother tongue is Gurung also speak Nepali dominantly.