In Kyrgyzstan, where memories of last June’s ethnic violence are still raw, children’s futures risk being entangled in a flourishing nationalist impulse. As the country attempts to move beyond the tragedy, some officials are increasingly calling for education solely in the state language, Kyrgyz. Such a move risks not only hurting the development of minority children, but Kyrgyz kids as well.
Language is a delicate element of education policy across Central Asia, where newly independent nations understandably want to embrace their ancestral tongues and explore their identities. Education in the “titular” language is an important aspect to nation building. But high-quality learning materials in the region’s languages are in short supply. Sometimes provoking resentment, Russian-language schools, with better access to textbooks and an older generation of Soviet-trained teachers, provide better education.
The region is full of minorities. They make up approximately 30 percent of Kyrgyzstan’s population. Studies show that children whose native language is not the language of school instruction need educational support in their mother tongue to fully develop literacy and writing skills in the language of instruction. Without such support, minority language students are at a significant disadvantage that can lead to dropout and limited employment opportunities later in life. In schools without alternative languages, though, kids from the majority are hurt, too, cut off from news, information, and professional development opportunities in languages other than Kyrgyz – languages such as the regional lingua franca, Russian.
