Lesson 2 LANGUAGE IN EDUCATION POLICY EVOLUTION

Objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the students will be able to:

1. Discuss significant changes in Philippine Language Programs and Policies; and

2. Identify relevant issues in place that help government institutions in upholding and
propagating the national language.

LANGUAGE POLICIES IN THE PHILIPPINES

1. Spanish Colonization

Romanized letters were introduced.

The Decree in 1550 - issued by Carlos I in Valladolid in 1550 (June 7) and reissued
inJuly 17. It demanded the teaching of Castilian in the Spanish colonies which was
issued before the colonization of the Philippines.

Instructions in 1596 - the king of Spain (Felipe II) sent to Tello, Governor of the
Philippine colony, an instruction which stated that learning of indigenous languages by
the friars was inadequate for missionary, instead the friars should teach Spanish to
natives.

The Decree in 1603 - the above two decrees required the teaching of the Spanish
language, but at the same time the Crown government demanded of friars to learn
indigenous languages probably because some of friars were reluctant or incompetent
to master indigenous languages

The Decree in 1634 - Felipe IV issued a decree demanding that the colonial
government should teach Spanish to all the natives. The previous decrees stated that
the Spanish teaching should be given to natives who were willing to learn, not to all the
natives.

The Decree in 1686 - Carlos II issued a decree in which he complained that former
decrees (issued in 1550,1634 and 1636) had not been observed and stated there would
be punishment if not observed.

The Decree in 1792 - A similar type of decree was issued by Carlos IV in which he
evoked the previous decrees (May 10, 1770; November 28, 1772; November 24, 1774)

In compliance with decrees issued by the home government, the colonial

government also issued several laws concerning language policies. Compared to the
royal decrees, those laws presented more concrete methods. But they were equally
ignored by friars.

The Ordinance 1768 - Governor Solís issued the following law on October 19, 1752,
later it became Ordinance 52 in 1768. This ordinance asked the establishment of
schools and prohibited any other language than Spanish in schools. It stated that
official jobs could be given to those speaking Spanish as an incentive to learning of
Spanish.

Education Act in 1863 - prescribed that Spanish was to be the sole medium of
instruction in order to facilitate the need to learn Spanish, so that literacy in Spanish
appeared to be the major purpose of the curriculum. To this end, the decree provided
that natives who could not speak, read and write Spanish five years after its issuance
were not to be permitted to hold salaried government positions. This was the major
motivation to induce the Filipinos to study the language.

Failure of the Spanish Language Education

The reasons of the failure of the Spanish language education was multifaceted,
some of them being enumerated as follows:

a. The Philippines is geographically distant from Spain, so royal decrees were not so
forceful as in the homeland.

b. In order to prevent the impact of independence of Latin Americans, the

authority wanted the natives to be barred from news form outside, therefore, being
hesitant to spread the Spanish language.

c. The decrees being originally oriented for Americans, did not fit the realities in the
Philippines.

d. A lack of funds was another reason. Expenses for education were largely
defrayed by the clergy, not by the national treasury.

e. There were generally no incentives for natives to learn Spanish.

f. The Spaniards were forbidden to live in the native village except friars, therefore,
natives had few chances to practice Spanish.

g. Even though the colonial government planned to spread the Spanish language,
the friars in villages and towns wanted to monopoly the tools of communication and
ensure their own power base. The friars were categorically opposed the spread of
Spanish.

2. Education under the Americans

After the Spanish-American War, the US Government sent the Thomasites to the
Philippines. They made it a point to teach English to the Filipinos.

3. Education under the Commonwealth

An organized effort to develop a common national language was stared in

compliance with the mandate of the 1935 constitution.

To help counteract the American cultural influence among the Filipinos, President
Quezon greatly encouraged the revival of native culture as well as desirable Filipino
values (Code of Ethics).

4. Education under the Japanese

Nihongo and Culture were aggressively propagated. They were offered as

compulsory courses in schools and were included in civil service tests.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Imperial Forces ordered the prohibition

of the use of English and the Filipino people’s reliance upon Western nations particularly
the United States and Great Britain.
 The Filipino language bloomed. It was used as the official language of the country
in teaching Philippine History and Character Education (Executive Order No. 10 signed
by Pres. Laurel).

5. Article XIV, Sec. 6 and 7 of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines

Provided the legal basis for the various language policies that are being
implemented in the country

Resolved the issue on what the national language is, since the 1935 and 1973
Philippine Charters were not clear about this.

6. The Philippine Bilingual Education Policy (BEP)

Promulgated by DECS in accordance to the 1987 Constitution and a declared

policy of the National Board of Education on bilingualism Consistent with the 1987
constitutional mandate and a declared policy of the National Board of Education (NBE)
on bilingualism in the schools (NBE Resolution No. 73- 7, s.1973)

It was first implemented in 1974 when DECS issued Dept. Order No. 25, s. 1974 titled,
“Implementing Guidelines for the Policy on Bilingual Education.”

Bilingual education in the Philippines is defined operationally as the separate use of

Filipino and English as the media of instruction in specific subject areas. Filipino is used as
medium of instruction in studies/social sciences, MAPEH, home economics, practical
arts and character education. English, on the other hand is allocated to science,
mathematics and technology subjects

Aims at the achievement of competence in both Filipino and English at the national
level, through the teaching of both languages and their use as media of instruction at
all levels.

Regional languages shall be used as auxiliary languages in Grades I and II.

The goals of the Bilingual Education Policy

1. Enhanced learning through two languages to achieve quality education as called

for by the 1987 Constitution;

2. The propagation of Filipino as a language of literacy;

3. The development of Filipino as a linguistic symbol of national unity and identity;

4. The cultivation and elaboration of Filipino as a language of scholarly discourse, that is

to say its continuing intellectualization; and

5. The maintenance of English as an international language for the Philippines and as a

non-exclusive language of science and technology.

7. Executive Order No. 335

Signed by then Pres. Corazon Aquino on August 25, 1988

It enjoined all departments/bureaus/offices/agencies/instrumentalities of the

government to take such steps as are necessary for the purpose of using the Filipino
language in official transactions, communications, and correspondence.
 It was issued on the belief that the use of Filipino in official transactions,
communications and correspondence in government offices will result to a greater
understanding and appreciation of government programs, projects and activities
throughout the country, thereby serving as an instrument of unity and peace for
national progress.

All departments/bureaus/offices/agencies/instrumentalities of the government are

enjoined to do the following:

a. Take steps to enhance the use of Filipino in official communications, transactions

and correspondence in their respective offices, whether national or local;

b. Assign one or more personnel, as maybe necessary, in every office to take

charge of communications and correspondence written in Filipino;

c. Translate into Filipino names of offices, buildings, public edifices, and signboards
of all offices, divisions or its instrumentalities, and if so desired, imprint below in smaller
letters the English text;

d. Filipinize the “Oath of Office” for government officials and personnel; and e.
Make as part of the training programs for personnel development in each office the
proficiency in the use of Filipino in official communications and correspondence.

The Commission on the Filipino Language, formerly Institute of Philippine/National

Language, is ordered to formulate and implement programs and projects for the full
and effective implementation of the objectives expressed in the Executive Order.

8. The Language Policy of the Commission on Higher Education

In 1994, Republic Act No. 7722 also called as the “Higher Education Act of 1994”,
creating the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) was signed.

CHED shall be independent and separate from the DECS and attached to the
Office of the President for administrative purposes only. Its coverage shall be both
public and private institutions of higher education as well as degree-granting programs
in all post-secondary educational institutions, public and private.

CHED updated the General Education Curriculum (GEC) of tertiary courses leading
to an initial bachelor’s degree covering four (4) curriculum years. This was done to
make the curriculum more responsive to the demands of the next millennium.

Guidelines

1. Language courses, whether Filipino or English, should be taught in that language.

2. At the discretion of the HEI, Literature subjects may be taught in Filipino, English or any
other language as long as there are enough instructional materials for the same and
both students and instructors/professors are competent in the language. Courses in the
Humanities and Social Sciences should preferably be taught in Filipino.

9. K-12 program and the Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB MLE)

The K-12 program sought to build proficiency through language via MTB MLE,
introduced in 2012. The mother tongue or first language refers to languages or dialects
first learned by a child and with which the child identifies with.
 Kindergarten-Grade 3 – Mother Tongue is the medium of instruction

Grade 1 - Filipino and English will be taught as subject areas

Grades 4-6 - mother tongue transition program in which English and Filipino are
introduced as media of instruction

Junior High School and Senior High School – English and Filipino will become the
primary languages of instruction.

House Bill No. 5091 “An Act to Strengthen and Enhance the Use of English as the
Medium of Instruction in the Educational System”

Former President and Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo wants to

strengthen and enhance the use of the English language as the medium of instruction
(MOI) in the educational system, from the preschool to the tertiary level.

Under House Bill 5091, English shall be taught as second language, starting with the
First Grade and shall be used as the MOI for English, Mathematics, and Science from at
least the Third Grade level.

But, the Filipino language shall continue to be the medium of instruction in the
learning areas of Filipino and Araling Panlipunan, according to the bill.

Reference:

Estrada, Luzvie. (2018). Language Policies in the Philippines. Retrieved from

https://www2.slideshare.net/LuzvieEstrada/language-policies-in-the-philippines-
122135345