1. What is the meaning of language?

It is the foundation of every culture, an abstract system of word meaning and symbols for all
aspects of culture. It is speech, written characters, numerals, symbols, gestures, and expressions
of non-verbal communication. It is also responsible in shaping the reality of one’s culture based
on Sapir-Whorf’s Hypothesis.
2. Give UNESCO’s Principles on Language and Education?
a. UNSECO support mother tongue instruction as a means of improving educational quality by
building upon the knowledge and experience of the learners and teachers
b. UNESCO supports bilingual and/or multilingual education at all levels of education as means
of promoting both social and gender equality and as a key element of linguistically diverse
societies.
c. UNESCO supports language as an essential component of intercultural education in order to
encourage understanding between different population groups and unsure respect of
fundamental rights
3. What is Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education?
It refers to “first-language-first” education, that is, schooling which begins in the mother tongue
and transitions to additional languages. MLE is the use of more than two languages for literacy
and instruction. It starts from where the learners are, and from what they already know. This
means leaning to read and write in their first language or L1, and also teaching subjects like
mathematics, science, health, and social studies in the L1.
4. In your own words, how important is the use of mother tongue in instruction among Filipino
children?