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INTRODUCTION
Hello there pre-service teachers. Are excited for your new course for this
second semester? Let’s get along well ok? No worries! I will be there for you
every step of the way! Good luck on your new journey!

OVERVIEW
Have you ever heard of Mother Tongue? What are your thoughts about it?
In this course, you will learn the whole concept of MTB-MLE which mainly
constitutes its Content and Pedagogy.
This course includes both the content and the pedagogy of the mother tongue as
well as its underlying theoretical assumptions and frameworks that support its being a
foundation for learning of the additional languages of Filipino and English and
developing stronger literacy skills of learners. The subject matter content includes the
structure of the mother tongue as a language, literature in the mother tongue, methods
and techniques of teaching the language, development of instructional materials and
assessment. Ultimately, the course will develop prospective teachers’ pedagogical
content knowledge of the mother tongue which is necessary for the effective
implementation of the Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE)
Program of the Department of Education.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this module, every learner is expected to:
 Define key concepts like Mother tongue, MTB-MLE, Language policy, Language of
instruction
 Identify the national and official languages in the Philippines
 Discuss cultural rootedness as one of the reasons behind the use of mother tongue as a
medium of instruction.

PRE-TEST
Are you still following learner? You will be needing your dictionaries or Google to
understand deeply the meaning of different concepts. But before that, let’s check first
how well you know our course. Do you enjoy games? You got to try this! Enjoy and
break a leg!
 This game is called WORDALOT. It is a picture-crossword game where in, instead of
using group of words as hints, you will use a picture.

Did you complete the puzzle? If yes, Hooray! then you know a lot about
this module, if you didn’t finish it completely, it is still ok, you can still finish it as
we go on with our module. Keep reading!
 LECTURE/DISCUSSION
What is Mother Tongue?
The term “Mother Tongue” refers to a person’s native language – that is, a
language lea red from birth. Also called a first language, home language and
native language (although these terms are not necessarily synonymous).
It is also defined as the first language that a person learns and the language
used in that person’s home country.
Contemporary linguists and educators commonly use the term L1 to refer to a
first or native language (the mother tongue) and the term L2 to refer to a second
language or a foreign language that’s being studies.
Use of the Term “Mother Tongue”
The general usage of the term mother tongue denotes not only the language
one learns from one’s mother, but also the speaker’s dominant and home
language; i.e., not only the first language according to the time of acquisition, but
the first with regard to its importance and the speaker’s ability to master its
linguistic and communicative aspects. For example, if a language school
advertises that all its teachers are native speakers of English, we would most
likely complain if we later learned that although the teachers do have some
vague childhood memories of the time when they talked to their mothers in
English, they, however, grew up in some non-English-speaking country and are
fluent in a second language only. Similarly, in translation theory, the claim that
one should translate only into one’s mother tongue is in fact a claim that one
should only translate into one’s first and dominant language.
The vagueness of this terms has led some researchers to claim…that
different connotative meanings of the term ‘mother tongue’ vary according to the
intended usage of the word and that differences in understanding the term can
have far-reaching and often political consequences.
Myth and Ideology
The notion of ‘mother tongue’ is thus a mixture of myth and ideology. The
family is not necessarily the place where languages are transmitted, and
sometimes we observe breaks in transmission, often translated by a change of
language, with children acquiring as first language the one that dominates in the
milieu. This phenomenon concerns all multilingual situations and most of the
situations of migration.
Mother Tongue-Based of Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE)
It is a formal or non-formal education, in which the children’s mother tongue is
used in the classroom as a bridge in learning Filipino and English.
It refers to a “first-=language-first” education that is, schooling which begins in
the mother tongue and transitions to additional languages particularly Filipino and
English. It is meant to address the high functional illiteracy of Filipinos where
 language plays a significant factor. Since the child’s own language enables
him/her to express him/herself easily, then, there is no fear of making mistakes. It
encourages active participation by children in the learning process because they
understand what is being discussed and what is being asked of them. They can
immediately use their mother tongue to construct and explain their world,
articulate their thoughts and add new concepts to what they already know.
Currently, there are twelve major languages or lingua franca that shall be
language of instruction. The major languages are Tagalog, Kapampangan,
Pangasinense, Iloko, Bikol, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Waray, Tausug,
Maguindanaon, Maranao, Chabacano. With this challenge posted about MTB-
MLE, Capitol University, College of Education plans to institute the MTB-MLE
teachers Development Program through its Center for Professional and
Continuing Education (CPCE) with focus on teaching reading in the mother
tongue and production of reading materials. Local stories, poems, biographies,
folktales, legends, jokes, riddles as well as the traditional oral literature will be put
into writing that will become part of the teaching-learning repertoire. The plan is
to localize the Cebuano/Visayan materials to Cagayan de Oro context and
linguistic use. Next focus will be the production of materials of the indigenous
peoples found I the region.
MTB-MLE programs serve learners of non-dominant language communities
who do not understand or speak the language of instruction when they begin
their formal education.
MTB-MLE policy in the Philippines involves implementation of local mother
tongue as the language of instruction in Kindergarten to year three (K-3), with the
official languages (Filipino and English) being introduced as the language of
instruction after grade three. Previously, the early years of schooling used
Filipino and English as the language of instruction, with local languages being
used to assist teachers and students in the classroom. MTB-MLE is being
implemented across the country from the 2012-2013 school year. While a very
small number of schools previously implemented MTB-MLE, many schools and
teachers are now learning how to use a local mother tongue as the language of
instruction, and in the coming years this will be taken up by more schools,
teaching a wider variety of languages.

Language Policy
Language policy is an interdisciplinary academic field. Some scholars such as
Joshua A. Fishman and Ofelia Garcia consider it as a part of sociolinguistics. On
the other hand, other scholars such as Bernard Spolsky, Robert B. Kaplan and
Joseph Lo Bianco argue that language policy is a branch of applied linguistics.
As a field, language policy used to be known as language planning and is
related to other fields such as language ideology, language revitalization,
language education, among others.
 Many countries have a language policy designed to favor or discourage the
use of a particular language o set of languages. Although nations historically
have used language policies most often to promote one official language at the
expense of others, many countries now have policies designed to protect and
promote regional and ethnic languages whose viability is threatened. Language
policy is what a government does either officially through legislation, court
decisions or policy to determine how languages are used, cultivate language
skills needed to meet national priorities or to establish the rights of individuals of
individuals or groups to use and maintain languages.
Language of Instruction
The language of instruction may be the mother tongue of students (a
language they speak at home and in their community), the official or national
language of the country, an international language such as English or a
combination of these.
A medium of instruction is a language used in teaching. It may or may not be
the official language of the country or territory. If the first language of students is
different from the official language, it may be used as the medium of instruction
for part or all of schooling.
National and Official Languages
The 1987 constitution designates Filipino, a standardized version of Tagalog,
as the national language and an official language along with English. Filipino is
regulated by Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino and therefore serves as a lingua
franca used by Filipinos of various ethnolinguistic backgrounds. Spanish and
Arabic are to be promoted on an optional and voluntary basis. Filipino also had
the distinction of being a national language that was to be “developed and
enriched on the basis of existing Philippine and other languages.” Although not
explicitly stated in the constitution, Filipino is in practice almost completely
composed of the Tagalog language as spoken in the capital, Manila; however,
organizations such as University of the Philippines began publishing dictionaries
such as the UP Diksyunaryong Filipino in which words from various Philippine
languages were also included. The present constitution is also the first to give
recognition to other regional languages. The constitution also made mention of
Spanish and Arabic, both of which are to be promoted on a voluntary and
optional basis.
Usage
Filipino is standardized version of Tagalog, spoken mainly in Metro Manila.
Both Filipino and English are used in government, education, print, broadcast
media and business, with third local languages often being used at the same
time.
On October 30, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law Republic Act
11106, which declares Filipino Sign Language or FSL to be the country’s official
sign language and as the Philippine government’s official language in
communicating with the Filipino Deaf.
 While Filipino is used for communication across the country’s diverse
linguistic groups and in popular culture, the government operates mostly using
English. Including second-language speakers, there are more speakers of
Filipino than English in the Philippines. The other regional languages are given
official auxiliary status in their respective places according to the constitution but
particular languages are both specified. Some of these regional languages are
also used in education.
The importance of mother tongue in education
Research indicated that having a strong mother tongue leads to a much better
understanding of the curriculum as well as a more positive attitude towards
school, so it’s vital that children maintain their first language when they begin
schooling in a different language
“Language and culture cannot be separated… Our language and culture.. tell us
who we are, where we came from and where we are going. (Task Force on
Aboriginal Languages and Cultures, 2005).
Language is the primary tool for understanding and communicating, and indeed,
for creating the world. As stated, it is in and through language that one can
access to culture and humanity. Linguist Hale, K., who spoke more than 75
languages, put it this way:
“When you lose a language, you lose a culture, intellectual wealth, a work of
art…
Here are 5 reasons why it is important to know your mother tongue well.
1. Intellectual Development
Studies have shown that cognitive development as well as intellectual
development is comparatively faster in those who are fluent in their mother
tongue. It has also been noted that if a student is educated in his/her mother
tongue, the rate of his/her educational success is higher than someone who is
taught in a different medium other than their mother tongue.
2. Better connection with your culture
Languages are the most important way of keeping our culture alive. Often the
direct translation of one language to another might not carry the same essence as
it is in the source language. Thus, the best way to thoroughly know about the
culture is to know the language. Mother tongue helps us stay connected to our
culture and our roots.
3. Second language learning
If one has a firm grasp of their mother tongue, it is easier for him or her to master
and language. When a child reads out in their mother tongue since childhood, he
or she would have stronger literacy skills in other languages.
4. Commercial benefits
As the businesses go the local way, the importance of mother tongues has
exponentially increased. Thus, in such a scenario, having a firm understanding of
your mother tongue where you know how to read and write is immensely helpful if
you are interested in becoming an entrepreneur. The opportunities related to
 monetizing with the help of one’s mother tongues are vast in today’s market
scenario.
5. The pride
Knowing your mother tongue well is a matter of pride. It boosts one’s confidence
and creates awareness in the individual’s mind while also helping them connect
with their cultural identity in a better manner.

ACTIVITIES
Activity 1: Define the following terms in your own words.
1. Mother Tongue
2. MTB-MLE
3. Language of Instruction
4. Language Policy
5. Filipino
6. Tagalog
Activity 2: Identify the national and official languages in the Philippine
Constitution and tell something about it. ( 5points each)

EVALUATION
Discuss comprehensively the cultural rootedness behind the use of mother
tongue as a medium of instruction in one paragraph with 5 sentences

REFLECTION
Reflect on the following statements/topics/quote:
1. “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to
him in his language, that goes to his heart”.
2. “If one’s mother tongue is forgotten; one’s value will also be forgotten”.
–Pramukh Maharaj

ASSIGNMENT
Do advance readings on the following topics:

1. Theories relevant to MTB-MLE

2. Journal articles providing empirical evidence for these theories.

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