Chandigarh: Several private schools in Chandigarh have begun restructuring their middle school curriculums ahead of schedule, quietly guiding students in Classes 7 and 8 toward Hindi, Sanskrit, or Punjabi combinations. This move is designed to prepare for the Central Board of Secondary Education's (CBSE) upcoming three-language mandate for Class 9. Under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 framework, secondary students must soon study three languages, at least two of which must be native Indian languages. This requirement is forcing an early academic recalibration before summer vacations commence this Saturday.
Early Adjustments in Private Schools
To ensure long-term academic continuity, multiple private academies have already asked students to drop formal foreign languages like French or German in favour of traditional Indian options. To mitigate backlash from parents, institutions are shifting European language education out of the core timetable and offering it strictly through extracurricular hobby clubs. Educators argue that preparing middle schoolers early is a functional necessity, as forcing students to abruptly master a new Indian language in Class 9 would cause significant academic distress.
Challenges and Legal Hurdles
However, systemic implementation remains uneven, as a formal legal challenge against the abrupt transition currently sits pending before the Supreme Court. Highlighting the friction, HS Mamik, chairman of Vivek High School, noted that these sudden mandates cannot be enforced overnight after annual academic calendars and student electives have already been finalised. He stated that administrators will reassess guidelines only after schools reopen from the summer break.
Government-run institutions face an entirely separate set of logistical roadblocks. Education officials warned that state schools are already grappling with acute teacher shortages across core subjects. Any forced expansion of language streams will fail without massive recruitment drives, specialised teacher training, updated textbooks, and synchronised timetables. Consequently, most city schools are maintaining a strict wait-and-watch approach, counting on either judicial intervention or fresh CBSE clarifications during the holidays to resolve the operational gridlock.
