NRI kids :Problems/solutions they face reg 2nd language

Hi all

I have created this thread mainly for those parents who face trememdous pressure when they return to India, especially regarding selecting best schools for their kids.

Especially when we try to seek admission for higher stds, we face this 2nd language problem. I feel so sorry and sad for those kids, who have to cope with their daily lessons as well as put extra effort to learn this 2nd language.

Myself as a NRI parent, currently I'm undergoing the same pressure, don't know whether what I'm doing is right or wrong for my kids. There will be so many parents out there and your VALUABLE information on this topic will be more informative to parents like me. Kindly pour your thoughts here, about, how you tackled this issue and how your kids/school were able to cope up/helpful with this 2nd lang problem.

thank you very much
geetha

Hi ,
I have a 3 year old son , so not been in the situation yet . But I have many friends with older kids . Every parent I know either teaches their kid hindi/tamil at home as a must .They devote special time for that ,they make their parents send text books of the corresponding grade in India and follow the same .
Off late many housewives have started taking coaching classes in second language here , almost all Indian kids out here attend these classes .So in every community if someone is well versed in Hindi/Tamil they can arrange such classes.
Also there are quite a few online sites which could be used as a guide -
www.tamilvu.org
http://faculty.maxwell.syr.edu/jishnu/hindi.asp

If the kids are returning to India to join 6th grade or higher the best option would be to opt for french .Many matriculation schools offer french from 6th std .
If we have failed to teach our children a second language , the initial period would surely be tough back in India ,but a positive,encouraging attitude from parents may help the kids face the situation with hope.To ease the situation we can appoint a special teacher initially to train them in the second language of your choice once back in India .

Thanks ,
Shobana

Hi ,
I have a 3 year old son , so not been in the situation yet . But I have many friends with older kids . Every parent I know either teaches their kid hindi/tamil at home as a must .They devote special time for that ,they make their parents send text books of the corresponding grade in India and follow the same .
Off late many housewives have started taking coaching classes in second language here , almost all Indian kids out here attend these classes .So in every community if someone is well versed in Hindi/Tamil they can arrange such classes.
Also there are quite a few online sites which could be used as a guide -
www.tamilvu.org
Hindi at Syracuse University

If the kids are returning to India to join 6th grade or higher the best option would be to opt for french .Many matriculation schools offer french from 6th std .
If we have failed to teach our children a second language , the initial period would surely be tough back in India ,but a positive,encouraging attitude from parents may help the kids face the situation with hope.To ease the situation we can appoint a special teacher initially to train them in the second language of your choice once back in India .

Thanks ,
Shobana

Dear Shobana,

Thank you very much for your response.

Yes, as you've mentioned, I'm sending my son (right now he's in 5th grade) to tamil class here. But, the problem is, they are very much at the beginners level only and when I compare the books of 5th grade tamil its so hi-fi. Its impossible to master that lang even within a year. We speak different lang at home and we are adopting a diff 2 lang. This also confuses him. You have mentioned that many matric schools are offering french as 2nd lang from 6th grade. Could you be more specific ? which school are offering french ? right now, I've got appl from Madras Christian College School which is offering french from 6th grade.

To conclude, how much ever we teach these kids at home, when it comes to syllabus, its very tough for them. I myself went through 5th grade tamil book. Oh God, it was too hard to read only.

bye
geetha

I know for sure St.Michael's at Adyar( Gandhi Nagar )offers french from 6th std .Will let you know about more schools after some research .

Thanks,
Shobana

Dear Shobana,

Again, thank you for your response.

Your suggestion will be very helpful to me as well as to other parents.
Take your time and let me know abt the schools.

I deeply appreciate your time and interest in this.

Thank you
geetha

Hi NRI parents,

The response to this subject seems to be very low. There has to be more NRI parents outside, who should have been come acrossed this situation. Kindly pass on your valuable suggestions & ideas regarding this subject. Even if you are not a NRI parent, that is also Okay. Just pass on your views. Sometimes, even a small idea may be of great help.
Dear parents, I greatly appreciate your response, and eagerly waiting to see you participating.

Thank you,
Geetha

Hi all,

Kindly make this post alive with your valuable suggestions.

geetha

hi geetha,

There were few il's with children going to higher classes discussing about second language problem... one person i remember is bagy...i have not seen her in any of these thread recently.

My solutions..which may or may not work....

Take the language you are conversant with. say tamil/hindi. bring in books, even before you are back in india, you can start teaching them a little, otherwise to make them pick up all the back log of the previous classes will be difficult.

when they are already introduced to a language, the kids will find it easy. kids can learn new language upto 5th standard(my opinion, as my daughter learnt arabic and french both from 5th). even afterwards is not a big problem unless we are worried about the kids emotions being trampled at school.

If you are sure of getting admission into a school which has alternative language, you can always try to give them classes of the same through tutors...

So the language will not look alien to them...and will not hit them hard.

All the best.....so when are you in chennai...???

Hi NRIs,

There are lots of reputed private institues who teach foreign languages to school students matching their academic syllabus. Most students take french and spanish.

One such centre in Adyar (Chennai) is "In a Word" in teachers colony. There are lots of student batches who are regular course students. Since tehy are tied up with schools nearby, these teachers do take foreign language in schools.
Most of the famous cities in India (BLR, HYD, CHENNAI, MUMBAI, DELHI) have such private institutes.

In india, there is lot of focus on learning a foreign language due to Global job opportunities. foreign language helps housewives, employees, students to manage their travel stay in foreign countries. Japaneese, chineese, spanish, french and german are the toppers.