19-175 - Yanagi 2
19-175 - Yanagi 2
19-175 - Yanagi 2
Yumiko YANAGIHARA *
Introduction
Following the implementation of a bilingual education policy
i n 1974, pu blic e ducatio n h as bee n provid e d i n t h e
The Keiai Journal of International Studies, No. 19, July 2007 175
Philippines from grade I of elementary school to the 4th year
of high school ( intermediate school )o n the basis of using
English as the language of instruction for science courses
(such as mathematics and science, in addition to English )
and using Filipino for liberal arts classes(such as Filipino,
social studies, civics, and physical education ). However,
as is pointed out by the Master Plan for Basic
Education(DECS: 1995, p. 5), the learning of
mathematics and science is cur-
rently not proceeding smoothly due to a lack of ability in
English, which is used for instruction in those courses, thus
resulting in a need to re-examine bilingual education policy
and improve the teaching of English. In addition, under the
Estrada administration in 1999, the use of a lingua franca
( here referring to the three languages of Tagalog, Cebuano,
and Ilokano)as the language of instruction was proposed and
actually implemented at several schools ( Kim: 2004, p.
104). Thus, although there have been some steps taken to re-
exam-
ine the language of instruction used in the Philippines, the
direction to be taken has yet to be determined.
In light of the present state of bilingual education in the
Philippines, this study was conducted for the purpose of(1)
verifying differences in degree of understanding between the
use of Cebuano ( regional language ) an d English as the lan-
guage of instruction, ( 2 ) verifying the effects of introducing
animated images ( video ) an d providing words essential for
learning in advance as means for enhancing the level of
u n derstan ding when English is used as the language of
instruction, an d(3)examining the acquisition of unknown
words by pupils themselves during the course of learning,
during mathematics instruction targeted at 480 public ele-
mentary school 3rd graders, 4th graders, and 6th graders
(160 pupils in each grade ).
An overview is first provided of elementary education in
the Philippines, particularly some issues to be raised, as part
of the background of this study. Discussions are then pro-
vided regarding the geographically and historically complex sta-
tus of language usage in the Philippines along with problems
176
currently encountered in bilingual education in that country.
This is followed by an experiment on the degree of under-
standing of mathematics learning according to differences in
the language of instruction and a description of a question-
naire survey given to the 480 pupils. Finally, an attempt is
made to verify the hypotheses, and a discussion is provided.
178
historically complex. In terms of the number of languages,
there are said to be 171 spoken in the Philippines. 4
To begin with, from a geographical viewpoint, Tagalog is
the most prominent language. It is used in an around metro-
politan areas and is the basis of the Filipino language desig-
nated as the national language in the 1987 Constitution.
Ilokano is spoken in the north, while Cebuano is spoken in
the south, and both are used as common languages in their
respective regions. Kawahara(2003, p. 67)lists eight major
la n g u ages i n t h e P h ilippi n es— Iloka n o, Pa mp a n ga
n,
Pa n gasi n a n , Tagalog, Bicol, H iligayn o n , Wa r ay, a n
d Cebuano—and states that after these eight major languages,
there are other languages spoken by several hundred thou-
sand speakers, and lying on the outermost edge of these lan-
guages, t h ere are la nguages sp oke n by min ority races
referred to as cultural minorities. These indigenous lan-
guages are described as not being equally and uniformly dis-
t r ib u te d a n d as h avin g social lin guistic sup eriority
or inferiority. They are most accurately perceived as being
divided among multiple levels. The geographical condition
of being an island country is primarily responsible for the
formation of this linguistic situation.
Next, from a historical perspective, the languages of the
Philippines can broadly be divided into four languages,
namely,(1)regio nal languages(local languages such as
Tagalog a n d Ceb ua n o ),(2)colo nial la n guages(suc h
as
Spa nish a n d English),(3)immigra n t la nguages(suc h
as C h i n6ese a n d Ca n to n ese ), a n d(4)p i d gi n 5 a n d
C reole
(Kawahara: 2003, p. 67).
The most commonly used languages at present consist of
the regional languages and English. In Japan, Japanese is the
national language, official language, and language of instruc-
tion. For many Japanese, the use of three languages consist-
i n g of a regio n al la n g u age ro u t i n ely use d i n local
communities, English, considered to be the official language
essential for advancing to higher education and acquiring a
professional occupation, and Filipino, designated as the offi-
A Study of Bilingual Education in the Philippines 1
cial national language by the Philippine government, is virtu- ally
unimaginable and effectively illustrates the complexity of the
language situation in the Philippines.
3. Bilingual Education in the Philippines
Table 2 shows the changes in the usage of the language of
instruction and auxiliary languages of instruction in public
education from the 1st year of elementary school to the 4th
year of high school ( intermediate school )from the time of
American colonization to the present. At present, in elemen-
tary education, the three subjects of mathematics, natural sci-
e nce, an d English are taught in English, while th e five
subjects of ethics, civics, MSEP(music / arts / physical educa-
tio n ) , life scie nce, a n d Filipi n o a re ta u g h t i n
Filipi n o. However, as shown in Table 1, the scholastic
achievement
rates for the subjects of mathematics, science, and English taught
in English are low at less than 50%, and the cause of this has been
indicated as being a problem with the language of instruction.
Problems with the language of instruction become more
serious in farming villages and other rural areas. The situa-
tion is not that serious where the native language of the pupil
is a relatively frequently spoken language like Tagalog, since
this only involves switching from Tagalog to English. Where
the native language of the pupil is a language spoken by a
cultural minority, however, it means that the pupil must be
fluent in not only his or her native language but also other
common regional languages, English, and Filipino in order
to matriculate to higher education and secure a professional
occupation. Thus, children of farming villages and other
rural areas end up being confronted with a social structure
that prevents them from matriculating to higher education
and joining the upper echelons of society.
The following summarizes the fin dings described in “The
Philippine National Assistance Research Report—Analysis of
Current Conditions”( JICA: 1999, p. 98): “With regard to
the
effect of the language of instruction on pupils’ or students’
180
Table 2 Legally Adopted Languages of Instruction and Auxiliary Languages of Instruction
in the Philippines
National Regional
English Native language
language languages
1. Objective
The objective of this experiment was to clarify the following four
hypotheses during mathematics instruction at an elementary
school in Cebu:
(1) Providing instruction in a regional
language (Cebuano ) is more effective than instructing
in English in terms of
the degree of understanding of mathematics.
(2) Even if the language of instruction is English, if
pupils are familiar with the minimum essential words for
a par- ticular class in advance, the degree of
understanding of
mathematics is the same as when taught in a regional lan-
guage(Cebuano).
(3) The presentation of animated images(video)is a sig-
nificant aid to understanding in the case of lear ning
mathematics. Th us, the degree of u n derstan ding of
mathematics is low when taught only in English without
presenting animated images.
(4) Eve n if pupils are u nfamiliar with certain English
1
Figure 1 Arrangement of Equilateral Triangles
2. Experiment Hypotheses
The following hypotheses were established in line with the
objective of the experiment. The VE, VC, E, and C groups
indicate four experiment groups who learned mathematics in the
form of “Triangles and Their Perimeters” using the meth- ods
indicated below:
(1) VE group: Instructed using an English video
(2) VC group: Instructed using a Cebuano video
(3)E group: Instructed using oral explanations in English
(by an instructor )an d shown only Figure 1 above
(4)C group: I nst r ucte d usi n g oral ex pla n atio ns i
n Cebuano (by an instructor )an d shown only Figure
1 above
Hypothesis 1:
The VC group has a higher degree of understanding of
“Triangles and Their Perimeters” than the VE group. In
addition, the C group has a higher degree of understand- ing
than the E group.
Hypothesis 2:
The degree of understanding of pupils in the VE group
1
who are thought to have progressed considerably in their
English ability.
(3) Fifth graders were not included in the study due to
cir- cumstances at the school on the day of the
experiment.
The four experiment groups ( VE, VC, E, an d C )were
assig n e d to classes alrea dy bei n g h eld at t h e sc h ool.
According to the instructors, the pupils in those classes were
grouped in alphabetical order and not according to scholas-
tic ability, and their overall scholastic ability was reported to
be about the same. In this experiment, however, the pupils
were given an English test and mathematics test to determine
homogeneity among the four experiment groups. The details
are described in section 4. 1)entitled “Test of Homogeneity
of the Four Experiment Groups,” and homogeneity among
the groups was confirmed. In addition, when the instructors
at this elementary school were asked about the native lan-
guage of the pupils prior to the experiment, it was found that
the regional language, Cebuano, was the native language for
nearly all of the pupils.
4) Experiment Procedure
The experiment was conducted by following the learning
procedure(cf. Figure 2)for each of the experiment groups.
①Explanation
Learning
(5 min.)
(7 min.)
②English Test (All subjects were ①Word
(3 min.) given “Triangles Test(Post)
� and Perimeters”
③Word � with each (2 min.)
Test(Pre) learning � ②Math
(2 min.) method)�
Test(Post)
④Math (10 min.)�
1
Table 3 Analysis of Variance on English Pre-Test Scores
Source of Sum of Mean
Grade d.f. F calc.
variation squares square
Among groups 8.07 3 2.69 1.53
III Within groups 274.27 156 1.76 (NS)
Total 282.34 159
Among groups 11.85 3 3.95 2.10
IV Within groups 293.25 156 1.88 (NS)
Total 305.10 159
Among groups 24.67 3 8.22 1.08
VI Within groups 1,182.10 156 7.58 (NS)
Total 1,206.77 159
5) Analytical Methods
Analysis8 of variance, Tukey’s multiple range test ( Tukey
HSD), and the T-Test were used to analyze the results.
4. Experiment Results
1) Test of H o m oge n eity Am o n g t h e Fo ur Exp erim
e n t Groups
As shown in Table 3, the result of analyzing the variance of
the English pre-test scores indicated the absence of a signifi-
cant difference among the four experiment groups in each
grade at the 1% significant level. In addition, the result of
analyzing the variance of math pre-test scores as shown in
Table 4 again indicated the absence of a significant differ-
ence among each experiment group at the 1% significant
level. Thus, the four experiment groups of each grade were
able to be treated as being homogeneous.
1
3.57
1
Table 7 Means of Math Post-Test Scores of the Subjects Who Knew
Minimum Essential Words Before Math Learning and All Subjects
VE VC E C
Means of the subjects (15) (23)
who knew the three words 16.93 ― ―
6.78
Grade III before learning
(40)
Means of all subjects ―
(40)� ―
18.78 8.48
Means of the subjects (28) (29)
who knew the three words 18.43 ― ―
10.21
Grade IV before learning
(40)
Means of all subjects ―
(40)� ―
18.90 11.80
Means of the subjects (38) (32)
who knew the three words 24.58 ― ―
20.13
Grade VI before learning
(40)
Means of all subjects ―
(40)� ―
21.75 13.65
Note: Number inside each parenthesis is subjects.
Table 8 Word Test Score Differences Before and After Learning and
Means of the Differences in Each Grade and in Each Group
Means of the
VE VC E C differences
in each grade
Differences
Grade III +11.40 +6.20 +9.60 +11.20 9.60
before and
after Grade IV +5.20 +3.30 +11.10 +8.00 6.90
learning Grade VI +3.60 +7.40 +5.00 +6.30 5.58
Means of the
differences in each 6.73 5.63 8.57 8.50
group
from the means before and after learning, along with the means of
the differences in each grade and the means of the differences in
each group.
4th Grade
78% 22%
3rd Grade
83% 17%
4th Grade
41% 59%
3rd Grade
47% 53%
6th Grade
11% 89%
4th Grade
38% 62%
3rd Grade
39% 61%
■ Cebuano ■
4) Questionnaire Results
The results of a questionnaire given to the 480 pupils(160
subjects × 3 grades)are shown in Figure 3.
1
5. Verification of Hypotheses and Discussion
1) Hypothesis 1
Hypothesis 1 was not supported in this experiment. As shown
in Table 6, there were no significant differences between the
VE and VC groups or between the E and C groups observed
in any of grades III, IV, or VI for supporting the hypothesis
that using Cebuano instead of English for the language of
instruction when learning mathematics results in a higher
degree of understanding.
However, the difference of 2.73 between the VE and VC
groups in grade III(cf. Table 6)approaches the value of HSD =
2.98(α= 0.05). In addition, the differences in means in
the
math tests(between before and after learning )for the E and C
groups in grade III shown in Figure 4 indicate that, although
both groups demonstrated a low level of understanding, use of
Cebuano for the language of instruction resulted in a degree of
understanding more than twice as high as that in the case of
using English. This most likely suggests that learning about
“Triangles and Their Perimeters” may be difficult for 3rd
graders. In the case of having to understand based solely on
words without being assisted by a video, as in the VE and VC
groups, 3rd graders would be expected to encounter difficulty
in learning using English alone, since only one year has passed
since they were using a regional language as an auxiliary lan-
guage of instruction. The use of auxiliary materials such as
videos and illustrations to aid learning and understanding and
the use of a regional language as an auxiliary language of
instruction at the minimally required level are desirable when
teaching mathematics to 3rd graders.
In addition, what is interesting about Table 6 is that in con-
trast to the math post-test means for grades III and IV being
highest for the VC group followed by the VE group, C group,
and E group in that order, in the case of grade VI, the means
were highest for the VE group followed by the VC group, E
group, and C group, with the rankings for English and Cebuano
being inverted. Moreover, the relationship between the C and E
25.00
19.85
20.00 18.65
16.50
15.20 14.98 15.15
15.00
11.10 11.55
10.00 9.50
5.80
4.83
5.00
2.25
0.00
VE Group ( 40 )� VC Group ( 40 )� E Group ( 40 )� C Group ( 40
3rd Grade ■ 4th Grade6th Grade
2) Hypothesis 2
Hypothesis 2 was supported in this experiment. Namely, in the
case of using English for the language of instruction when
learning mathematics, being familiar with the minimum essen-
1
tial words for learning mathematics in advance was verified to
be effective for understanding. According to Table 7, there
were hardly any differences observed in the means of math
post-test scores between the VE and VC groups and E and C
groups in grade III, between the VE and VC groups and E and
C groups in grade IV, and between the VE and VC groups in
grade VI. Namely, there were no differences in the degree of
understanding regardless of whether English or Cebuano was
used for the language of instruction provided that the pupils
already were familiar with the three minimum essential words
(“triangle,” “perimeter,” and “twenty” )for learning the mathe-
matics used in this experiment.
However, there was a large difference of 6.48 between the
means of the E and C groups in grade VI(Table 7).
When these results were tested with the T-Test, a significant
differ- ence was observed between the means of both
groups(both-
sid e d test: (t 78)9 = 3.38, P < 0.01). T his m ea ns t h at
the
pupils of group E who knew these three words before learn-
ing had a higher degree of understanding than the pupils of
group C and does not mean that the pupils of group E had a
lower degree of understanding than group C despite having
been familiar with these three words. This in dicates the
opposite phenomenon, namely, as was previously described
with respect to hypothesis 1, that the use of English for the
language of instruction is better for learning mathematics for
pupils who have a high English ability.
In the case of using English for the language of instruction
for 3 rd an d 4th graders wh o do n ot yet have adequate
English ability, it is important to learn English words thought
to be important for a particular class prior to learning and to
create a schema in their minds, so as to not to cause an
obstruction to learning and understanding due to interrup-
tion of the thought process as a result of not understanding
the words.
3) Hypothesis 3
Hypothesis 3 was supported by the experiment. Significant dif-
A Study of Bilingual Education in the Philippines 1
ferences were observed between the VE and E groups for
grades III, IV, and VI at the 1% significant level(cf. Table
6 ) . Namely, the presentation of a video was verified to be
effective
for enhancing the degree of understanding of pupils in the
case of learning mathematics using English as the language of
instruction. This finding is also prominently indicated by Figure
4. In the case of 3rd and 4th grade pupils in particular who still
have inadequate English ability, the presence or absence of a
video was found to be intimately related to degree of under-
standing. Although differences were still observed among 6th
graders, they were not as pronounced.
In addition, although only groups VE and E were assessed
to demonstrate hypothesis 3, there were also significant dif-
ferences observed in the learning methods between groups
VC and C and between groups VE and C for grades III,
IV,
and VI at the 1% significant level ( cf. Table 6 ) . This
indicates how important the presentation of animated images
is for the
degree of understanding when learning mathematics.
Although a TV monitor, videocassette deck, computer, and
other expensive equipment are required to use videos as aux-
iliary teaching materials, and it may not be possible to imme-
diately provide all classrooms with such equipment, it is felt that
such equipment is required to be installed in schools in the future
through budgetary allocations and international aid programs.
4) Hypothesis 4
Hyp ot h esis 4 was also supp orte d by t h e ex p erim e n t
.
According to the values shown in Table 8, although there
were differences in the degree of understanding in grades
III, IV, and VI, the pupils clearly learned words that they did
not know prior to learning through the learning of mathe-
matics in this experiment. The unknown words are under-
stood, learned, and used to achieve the learning objective.
Krashen ( 1985 ) mentioned the input hypothesis in a moni-
tor model of his second-language learning theory, and these
results accurately reflected that hypothesis. 10
1
Figure 5 Differences of Means of Word Test Scores in Pre-Test and Post-Test
12.00 11.40
11.10 11.20
10.00 9.60
8.00
8.00 7.40
6.20 6.30
6.00
5.20 5.00
4.00 3.60
3.30
2.00
0.00
VE Group ( 40 )� VC Group ( 40 )� E Group ( 40 )� C Group ( 40
3rd Grade ■ 4th Grade6th Grade
5) Questionnaire Results
According to Figure 3, roughly 80% of the pupils of the 3rd, 4th,
and 6th grades responded that they speak Cebuano rather than
English at home(question(1). In response to question(2),
it is interesting to note that the number of pupils who responded
that
English was their preferred language gradually increases,
although only slightly, from 3rd grade to 4th grade to 6th grade in
that order. As is clear from question ( 1 ) and ( 2 ) , in
contrast to
many of the pupils having spoken Cebuano since they were very
young, are more familiar with it, and understand it better, more
than half of the pupils indicated that they prefer to speak English.
This may indicate that pupils naturally become aware of the fact
that being able to speak English provides various advantages for
the future in Philippine society. A question should have been
asked regarding the reason for their preference for English.
Although roughly the same number(about 60%)of 3rd
and 4th graders responded that they wanted their teachers to
speak English in response to questio n(3), roughly 90%
of the 6th graders indicated English. This is believed to
indicate
that, as pupils progress in school and their English ability
develops, they begin to sense less difficulty in using English
for the language of instruction and conversely welcome the
use of English by their teachers. These results are thought to
be t h e ac h ieve m e n ts of bili n g u al e ducatio n i n t h e
Philippines. However, in looking at the results of lingua fran-
ca education started in 1999 and the results of a question-
naire to instructors conducted by Kim ( 2004: 107 ) ,11
whether or not this is truly the case remains somewhat
questionable,
1
and further studies will be required in the future.
2
relating to public elementary education in 2003 in Table 1,
or considering the fact that, although an experiment was
conducted involving the use of Tagalog, Ilokano, or Filipino
as the language of instruction at elementary schools starting
in 1999 in the Philippines(lingua franca education ),
that project has currently been terminated due to lack of
funding
(Kim: 2004), additional verification would be desirable.
It is also considered necessary to verify the following mat-
ters:
(1) Verificatio n of the school age at which it would
be appr o priate to switch from a regio n al la nguage
to English during the course of bilingual education.
(2) Verification of the appropriate time when the use of
a regional language for the language of instruction
should
be discontinued during the course of bilingual educa- tion,
along with the manner in which the use of that regional
language should be implemented.
(3) Verification of effective measures for assisting in
under- standing of subject matter by pupils who lack
ability in
the language of instruction during the course of bilin- gual
education.
(4) Verification of which unknown words are learned
easily during the course of learning, which words are
difficult
to learn, and if they are learned easily, what type of learn- ing
environment facilitated their learning.
(5) Verification of whether video presentations are effec-
tive in learning unknown words and the types of situa-
tions in which they function effectively.
Acknowledgements
I would like to express my deep appreciation to Mr. Koichiro Katsurai, for- mer
JICA expert member, Dr. Antonino Ogdoc, former chief of the sec- ondary
education division of DepED-Region VII, and Mr. Kazuyoshi Nakai, technical
advisor for SBTP, to the teachers and pupils of Guadalupe Elementary School in
Cebu for their kind cooperation in the experiment, and to Ms. Sol Torres for her
assistance in conducting the experiment.
Notes
1. The education system in the Philippines is intimately related to that in the United
States, as a result of the establishment of the modern public education system in
2
of students that was lacking(8).
10. Krashen emphasized that learning of a second language is not the result of
speaking language but rather the result of inputting language that is able to be
understood and stated that inputs can be understood by being assisted by the con-
text. Krashen further stated that the ability to communicate in a second language
is not acquired directly through guidance but rather the result of a student who is
learning the language naturally acquiring the language structure when he or she
has received an understandable input, resulting in the second language occurring
spontaneously during the course of understanding input of the second language.
11. According to a questionnaire conducted by Kim ( 2004: 107 ) , among all
instruc- tors at an experimental lingua franca school in the Caraga region, nearly
90% of
the instructors replied that they recognized the efficacy of native language educa- tion,
75% were in favor of native language education, and 75% indicated they desired to
teach using the native language.
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