The Win-Win in teaching Tamil to kids in the diaspora

Win-Win

Our students ask “why should I learn Tamil?” This is a great question and important question too. We adults have our own answer, but it does not seem to satisfy the students. If students think, even if they don’t ask, “if I give so much of my time and effort, what is in there for me” they are not unreasonable. So, what is our response to this very fundamental question? The win-win paradigm comes to my mind.

The kids here have too many things in their plate. Let us be sensitive to their needs and see how we can make them feel they are winning and also learn Tamil. An ideal situation would be that the students get plenty of conversation opportunity at home and they come and develop their literacy skill at school. But, the reality is different.

This writeup looks at this issue and tries to make a proposal to address these concerns. The students feeling that they are getting something is a win. If they acquire Tamil then it is a win-win.

Here is age based proposal.

Age Group	What they enjoy	What we can do
3-4	Play, play, and play. What else can we expect from these little kids!	Let them play in the class and let the medium of instruction be Tamil
5-7	They are still playful. But they enjoy stories, games, and songs.	If these kids can understand, recite, and act out a story in Tamil, what else do we need from them!
8-10	Want to enjoy something. Want to learn a new skill.	Stories, movie songs, create something.
11-15	Want to learn a new skill. Want to develop cognitive skill.	Teach a life skill. Let them produce something using their creative skill. Let them use their critical thinking skill.

The chart above is based on my rough understanding of what they enjoy doing.

“The kids don’t care about learning another language; they just want to have fun!” - Dr. Krashen. So, let us give them what they want and let us do that in Tamil. Dr. Krashen also says “when the kids are enjoying something in a Target language, they forget that it is in a different language.”

Conclusion

Do what the kids think are important to them and using Tamil as medium of instruction. That is progressive; kids learn the best when they are involved in real life situations that are meaningful and important to them.