Key Insights from the Teaching Learning Practices Survey (TLPS) 2025
India’s classrooms are linguistically diverse. Children often come to school speaking a home language that is different from the school language. The Teaching Learning Practices Survey (TLPS) 2025 clearly shows this diversity by observing real classrooms across nine states. Instead of relying only on tests or reports, the survey went inside 1,050 classrooms to see how teaching and learning actually happen. This makes the findings especially important for people working on mother tongue–based multilingual education (MLE).
The survey finds that 73% of teachers know the children’s home languages, yet only about 9–10% use them regularly in the classroom. In fact, 61% of teachers do not use children’s home languages at all, and many correct or discourage children when they speak in their mother tongue. Even among teachers who know the home language, 77% avoid using it or allow it only minimally. Because of this, many children remain quiet during lessons. The report notes that in nearly two-thirds of classrooms, children have very few chances to speak freely, ask questions, or share their ideas, and classroom talk is often limited to choral responses.
Chapter 5 of the report explains that children learn better when teachers connect lessons to what children already know. This includes their prior knowledge, real-life experiences, and familiar language. However, classroom observations show that this happens in only a small number of classrooms. Only about 22–24% of teachers connect lessons to children’s real-life experiences, even though this is especially important in multilingual settings.
The survey also shows that only 14% of teachers ask open-ended questions or encourage children to explain their thinking. Most language activities are mechanical. Around 78–79% of teachers focus mainly on copying letters or words from the board or textbook, and very few children are given opportunities to express ideas in their own words. Overall, classrooms are largely teacher-led, with 66% of teaching time spent on teacher talk, while children have limited space to speak, think aloud, or use their strongest language to make meaning.
Importantly, the report recognises that teachers need support to do this well. It recommends that multilingual pedagogy be included in teacher education. It also suggests that teachers who do not speak the children’s home languages should be helped to develop basic conversational skills in those languages. The survey shows that when children’s home language is used, children are more confident, participate more, and understand lessons better. Home language is not a problem—it is a powerful resource for learning. The report also links home language use with other good practices, such as flexible grouping, differentiated instruction, and strong teacher–child relationships.
TLPS 2025 is important because it goes beyond policy and looks at what actually happens in classrooms. While policies like National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 support multilingual education, the survey shows that home language use is still limited in everyday teaching. By providing national-level evidence based on classroom observation, the report helps policymakers, teacher educators, and school leaders see what needs to change. The message is clear: improving foundational learning in India requires systematic support for multilingual education, starting with respect for and use of the child’s home language.
Regards,
Karsten, in collaboration with Upasana Lepcha
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Photo source: https://languageandlearningfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Full-Report_TLPS_2025_December.pdf