Teachers' group urges DepEd to prioritize Filipino over other languages
Published Dec 16, 2019 12:00 am
By Merlina Hernando-Malipot
A federation of teachers on Monday urged the Department of Education (DepEd) to “prioritize and strengthen” the use of Filipino, the national language, in teaching and in the curriculum instead of considering shifting the medium of instruction to English or focusing on teaching other languages.
Raymond Basilio, secretary general of ACT Philippines
(ACT / MANILA BULLETIN) Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines Secretary-General Raymond Basilio told the Manila Bulletin that the group is concerned that the DepEd said it is looking into the possibility of using English as the medium of instruction in schools. He also cautioned against the recent partnership of DepEd with the Confucius Institute to send 300 teachers to be trained in teaching Chinese Mandarin as part of its Special Program in Foreign Language (SPFL). “Nararapat naman ang pagkakaroon ng programs of cooperation sa ibang bansa para sa pagpapahusay pa ng edukasyon (It is worthy to have programs of cooperation with other countries to improve the quality of education),” Basilio said. “Ang nakakabahala, naaasikaso ng DepEd ang tulad ng training ng teachers sa Mandarin habang pinag-iisipan naman nitong mag-shift sa English as medium of instruction (What is alarming is that DepEd focuses on training teachers to teach Mandarin while it is considering shifting the medium of instruction to English),” he added. While ACT welcomes DepEd partnerships with various organizations, particularly in the SPFL, Basilio warned that the teaching of foreign languages in high school is not just focused on simple competencies of students. “Nakatuon ito sa labor export program na layunin ng K to 12 (This is also focused on the labor export program that is the goal of K to 12),” he said. Earlier, Education Secretary Leonor Briones said in a television interview that there is an “ongoing debate” between continuing the “Mother Tongue’” policy or switching back to English because this is the “language of the rest of the world.” DepEd, she noted, is “looking into this.” Basilio said DepEd’s priority when it comes to language concerns should be how to improve and strengthen the use of Filipino as a medium of instruction. “Ang priority dapat sa language concern sa edukasyon ay paano palakasin ang paggamit at pagpapaunlad ng pambansang wika bilang medium of instruction at bilang isang akademikong disiplina (The priority, when it comes to language concerns in education, should be how to strengthen and develop the use of the national language as a medium of instruction and as an academic discipline),” he added. The use of Filipino as a medium of instruction, Basilio said, would greatly help government efforts to uplift the quality of education in the country. “Nakasalalay nang malaki dito ang pagtataas ng kalidad ng edukasyon (Raising the quality of education depends on this to a large extent),” he said. “Nakasalalay dito ang mahusay na paggagap ng mga estudyante sa mga leksyon dahil itinuturo ito sa sariling wika, habang pinauunlad naman ang pambansang wika bilang disiplina sa prosesong ito (The students’ understanding of their lessons relies on this because they are taught in our own language, meanwhile, through this process, the national language is strengthened as a discipline),” he added. Basilio said the use of Filipino as a medium of instruction in schools “is just a formality” and is “not implemented fully” on the ground. “Makikita sa mga instructional materials at textbook na kiling pa din sa English ang pagtuturo (It is obvious in the instructional materials and textbooks that teaching is still slanted toward the use of English),” he said. Meanwhile, Basilio accused DepEd of violating the Constitution for not fully using Filipino as a medium of instruction in schools. “Hindi ginagampanan ng DepEd ang tungkulin nito sa pambansang wika na itinatakda ng konstitusyon. Dapat unahing harapin at harapin ng seryoso ng usapin ng pambansang wika (DepEd is not fulfilling its mandate to the national language as required by the Constitution. It should first seriously face the concerns on the national language),” he said.
Raymond Basilio, secretary general of ACT Philippines(ACT / MANILA BULLETIN) Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines Secretary-General Raymond Basilio told the Manila Bulletin that the group is concerned that the DepEd said it is looking into the possibility of using English as the medium of instruction in schools. He also cautioned against the recent partnership of DepEd with the Confucius Institute to send 300 teachers to be trained in teaching Chinese Mandarin as part of its Special Program in Foreign Language (SPFL). “Nararapat naman ang pagkakaroon ng programs of cooperation sa ibang bansa para sa pagpapahusay pa ng edukasyon (It is worthy to have programs of cooperation with other countries to improve the quality of education),” Basilio said. “Ang nakakabahala, naaasikaso ng DepEd ang tulad ng training ng teachers sa Mandarin habang pinag-iisipan naman nitong mag-shift sa English as medium of instruction (What is alarming is that DepEd focuses on training teachers to teach Mandarin while it is considering shifting the medium of instruction to English),” he added. While ACT welcomes DepEd partnerships with various organizations, particularly in the SPFL, Basilio warned that the teaching of foreign languages in high school is not just focused on simple competencies of students. “Nakatuon ito sa labor export program na layunin ng K to 12 (This is also focused on the labor export program that is the goal of K to 12),” he said. Earlier, Education Secretary Leonor Briones said in a television interview that there is an “ongoing debate” between continuing the “Mother Tongue’” policy or switching back to English because this is the “language of the rest of the world.” DepEd, she noted, is “looking into this.” Basilio said DepEd’s priority when it comes to language concerns should be how to improve and strengthen the use of Filipino as a medium of instruction. “Ang priority dapat sa language concern sa edukasyon ay paano palakasin ang paggamit at pagpapaunlad ng pambansang wika bilang medium of instruction at bilang isang akademikong disiplina (The priority, when it comes to language concerns in education, should be how to strengthen and develop the use of the national language as a medium of instruction and as an academic discipline),” he added. The use of Filipino as a medium of instruction, Basilio said, would greatly help government efforts to uplift the quality of education in the country. “Nakasalalay nang malaki dito ang pagtataas ng kalidad ng edukasyon (Raising the quality of education depends on this to a large extent),” he said. “Nakasalalay dito ang mahusay na paggagap ng mga estudyante sa mga leksyon dahil itinuturo ito sa sariling wika, habang pinauunlad naman ang pambansang wika bilang disiplina sa prosesong ito (The students’ understanding of their lessons relies on this because they are taught in our own language, meanwhile, through this process, the national language is strengthened as a discipline),” he added. Basilio said the use of Filipino as a medium of instruction in schools “is just a formality” and is “not implemented fully” on the ground. “Makikita sa mga instructional materials at textbook na kiling pa din sa English ang pagtuturo (It is obvious in the instructional materials and textbooks that teaching is still slanted toward the use of English),” he said. Meanwhile, Basilio accused DepEd of violating the Constitution for not fully using Filipino as a medium of instruction in schools. “Hindi ginagampanan ng DepEd ang tungkulin nito sa pambansang wika na itinatakda ng konstitusyon. Dapat unahing harapin at harapin ng seryoso ng usapin ng pambansang wika (DepEd is not fulfilling its mandate to the national language as required by the Constitution. It should first seriously face the concerns on the national language),” he said.