Multilingual Early Childhood Education: A Case Study from Maharashtra

DOI: https://doi.org/10.63345/ijrhs.net.v13.i5.5

Deepraj Mehta

Independent Researcher

Gujarat, India

Abstract
Multilingual early childhood education has garnered significant attention in recent years due to its potential to enhance cognitive, linguistic, and socio‐cultural development among young learners. This case study examines the implementation and outcomes of a multilingual education program in selected pre‐primary schools across Maharashtra, India. Situated within a socio‐economically and linguistically diverse context, the program integrates Marathi, Hindi, and English as mediums of instruction, alongside local tribal and migrant community languages where relevant. Employing a mixed‐methods approach—combining classroom observations, teacher and parent interviews, and standardized language and cognitive assessments—the study documents both pedagogical practices and learner outcomes over an academic year. Key findings indicate that exposure to structured, scaffolded multilingual pedagogy fosters greater meta‐linguistic awareness, improves receptive and expressive vocabulary across languages, and supports emergent literacy skills in the dominant language of the community. Teachers reported increased engagement and enthusiasm among children, while parents noted improvements in children’s confidence and home‐school communication. Challenges included resource constraints, variable teacher proficiency in all target languages, and inconsistent parental support for non‐native languages. The study concludes with recommendations for policy and practice, emphasizing continued teacher training, development of localized multilingual learning materials, and community involvement to sustain and scale such programs.

Keywords
multilingual education, early childhood, Maharashtra, cognitive development, emergent literacy, socio‐cultural engagement

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