It has been said that no method of teaching reading and writing is so bizarre that someone cannot learn from it. That may or may not be so; and it is true that different children learn in different ways. But certainly we can expect that an approach based on some conceptual clarity can enable large numbers of children to learn to read and write in a reasonable amount of time.

In India discussions about teaching beginning literacy often deal with English and Indian languages in the same breath. While there are undoubtedly principles that are common to both, there are significant differences; and our discussions can become more intelligible if we talk about the two categories separately.

The primary difference is that the ‘fit’ of the script to the language is much better for Indian languages. This means that for every sound unit (phoneme) there is – by and large— one moolaakshar/basic letter, and for every moolaksharakshar there is only one sound unit. The traditional method of teaching reading and writing Indian scripts was based on this regularity— and it would be folly for us not to take advantage of it. At the same time, we have to acknowledge the fact that the traditional method required that the learner memorise all the moolaksharas (basic letters), then all the permutations and combinations of the moolaksharas with the matras (abbreviated vowel signs), as well as conjunct consonants before learning to read meaningful words and sentences. This was a time-consuming process, and probably worked because most learners came from high-caste families with at least some literate members who could help sustain the children’s motivation to learn. The challenge for us is to adapt the traditional method so that first generation school goers can succeed in reading or writing simple words and sentences early on.

In order to adapt the traditional method, it is extremely important that teachers clearly understand what is involved in teaching aksharjnan (knowledge of letter-sound relationships) and reading and writing with meaning. What we have to understand is this: in learning to read and write, a child has to master the three-part package shown below.[1]

                                                                    meaning

It is important to understand that this linguistic mastery is unconscious. The child uses the language for functional or expressive purposes, but does not think about his use of language. However, this is precisely what is required. The first stage is paying attention to the use of sounds.

Before trying to teach anything about aksharas, the teacher should help the children become aware of the sounds of words: beginning sounds, middle sounds, ending sounds, syllable divisions within words. Time spent on helping children become aware of sound units (phonological awareness) is time well spent.

Once children gain some degree of phonological awareness, the teacher can start formal literacy instruction. Where, then, does she begin? Traditionally teachers followed the order of the script as laid down by Sanskrit grammarians. (The version here is of the Devanagari script as used for Marathi.)

          अ आ इ  ई  ए  ऐ  ओ  औ  अं अः

          क  ख  ग  घ 

          च  छ  ज  झ

          ट  ठ  ड  ढ  ण

          etc.

Since our goal is to motivate children to learn to read as soon as possible, let us ask ourselves what words children would be happy to learn first— or, to put it differently, what words carry an emotional charge for them.

When Datta Ahivale, my colleague in the PSS, and I asked ourselves this question when we were working out an approach to teach beginning reading in Marathi, we agreed that children in our area at  least had a strong emotional response to words for close relatives – especially for mother (आई), mother’s brother (मामा), and mother’s brother’s wife (मामी). We felt that along with these words we could have मी (‘I’), हा (‘this’— m.), ही (‘this— f.), माझा (‘my’—m.), माझी (‘my’— f.) With these words we could construct the following sentences:

      हा मी.                                       This is me (m.).

      ही मी.                                      This is me (f.).

      ही माझी आई.                         This is my mother.

      हा माझा मामा.                       This is my maternal uncle.

      ही माझी मामी.                       This is my maternal uncle’s wife.

Now in order to read these sentences, what aksharas does a child need? Let us set aside आई as a sight word – a word to be learned as a whole, without breaking it down into its component parts. For the remaining words a child needs to learn  म  ह  झ, along with the kana, the abbreviated vowel sign for long /aa/ and the velanti, the abbreviated vowel sign for long /ii/.

Note what we have done here. To begin with, we have chosen emotionally charged words, and identified which letters are required to read these words. Each of these words also requires one or two matras—  abbreviated vowel signs— in this case, the kana and velanti. By introducing these signs from the first lesson itself, we have immediately started opening up the child’s reading vocabulary. After doing this for three or four lessons, we make it possible for a child to read a large number of words in a short time. In the case of the word आई we have included it as a sight word because it is essential for the context. However, introducing the moolaksharas आ and ई in the same lesson as we have the abbreviated signs (kana and velanti) could be confusing to the learner.

In the next blog I want to discuss briefly how one goes about teaching aksharjnan using this approach. I also want to stress that this systematic teaching of letter-sound recognition is only  part of the overall approach developed by the Pragat Shikshan Sanstha.

Note: Reader can also watch videos of the PSS approach to teaching literacy here. 

[1] Strictly speaking, we must distinguish between a moolakshar – a basic unit –  and an akshar which consists of a moolakshar with an abbreviated vowel sign: e.g. क (moolakshar) in contrast to का, कि, की, etc. For the purposes of this discussion (especially in the chart below), the term akshar will sometimes be used to cover both meanings.

Maxine Berntsen