From dialect to standard (registered) language

 Name of the project – From Dialect to Registered Language

Our school is a government school which is near a 100% tribal population.

All the people live in the village belongs to schedule tribe i. e. Kolam, and the dialect they use is Kolami.

So the students in my school are 100% from schedule tribe, Kolam.

This dialect has Dravidian touch, so is very difficult to understand for new learner ( for Marathi/Hindi speaker)

As the textbooks are in Marathi/English/Hindi in but the students in my know the only language (dialect) Kolami, when they come to the school, they don't know Marathi/Hindi/English. And I didn't know their dialect Kolami, when I was appointed in the school.

There is no written literature this dialect ( language).

The communication couldn't take place between students and teacher ( i. e. Me) it was a problem

How did I solved the problem

The first thing, I did that I respected and accepted them (the students) with their language (dialect)

I permitted them to speak in their own language(dialect).

I tried to record their folk stories & song from them, gave them a chance to listen at very first when they  come to school.

 I tried to collect the words from the dialect…

by showing them things.

( ex. I show them a mango, they pronounced ‘Mamadi’ (मामडी) I noted the word ‘mamadi’ in my diary & told them in Marathi)

by doing an action..

(I did the action of ‘eating’ they pronounced ‘tinate'(तिणाते) I noted down the word & told them in Marathi )

by showing them pictures

( I showed them picture  of a dog they pronounced aate'(आते) I noted down the world & told them Marathi name)

by asking the elder people who goes out of the village & hardly know Marathi.. In this way I made a collection of words in the dialect.

I tried to understand the grammar of the dialect by listening them..( go – ‘se'(से) – जा. Goes – Satu (सातु) जातो went – sedden(सेद्देन) गला/ली

tried to understand construction of the sentences in the dialect by listening them.. (Seema palkul rakatu. सिमा पालकुल राकातु. ( s + o + v.)  Seema brushes the teeth. ( s + v + o.)

😊I started talking in their dialect. The student's faces started smiling because they could understand me.

😊I gave them instructions in their dialect ( language) they started following.( come here. – e wa. (इ वा..) इकडे य.े)

😊The students who were not coming to school started coming to the school.

✍🏻 I did many experiment to teach them Marathi & English (ex. showing videos in Marathi & English)

✍🏻While doing all this, I didn't only use only the dialect, I was using three languages at a time kolami(dialect), Marathi and English.

✍🏻Now I learn kolami from them & they learn Marathi and English from me.

😊Result – the students in my school are ready to learn the syllabus in Marathi/English.

😊because of using their own language (dialect) the understanding increased.

😊the students from 1st/2nd standard speak in their language and the students from 3rd/4th/5th standard translate them in Marathi.

💜💜Some sentences from the dialect💜💜

⚡I came. Aan watten. ( आन वात्तेन)

⚡Ram went to home. Ram ellan sedden. (राम एल्लान सेद्देन.)

⚡Pravin, bring the drinking water. Pravin, unen ir ko. (प्रविण, उनेण इर को.)

Your friend,

Pradip Jadhao,

(Assistant teacher)

Mobile no. 976548 6735.

Email- jadhaopg@gmail.com