Since the Philippines has been conformed to using both Filipino and English as medium of communication, it has brought confusion as to its usage in different offices and even in schools. While it is true that Filipinos are being commended for being fluent users of English at international settings, use of both languages at the local setting seemed to need clarity on when and where each language should be used.
Tagalog was launched as the national language in the 1935 Constitution. But looking back in history, it can be gleaned that English has been used as the medium of instruction since the American regime. After the constitutional mandate, however, the Bilingual Policy by virtue of Department of Education and Culture which specified the use of the national language, Filipino, as the medium of instruction in such domains as Work Education, Health Educational, Physical Education, and Social Studies was pushed through. English was then included in the curriculum as a subject and in teaching Science and Mathematics. This was later superseded by Department Order No. 52, series of 1987 which stipulated the use of Filipino and English as the media of instruction at all levels. Filipino citizens are expected to learn English skills to be able to meet the needs of the country in the universal scenario.
Requiring English competency among Filipino students was given reason by a statement of Pascasio (1981) stating that the role of English is for utilitarian purposes mainly in the domains of the school, business industry, and the judiciary courts. It is a universal language, the language of international relations for the Philippines. It remains to be the language of worship. It is preserved as the language of wider communication, trade, entertainment, and the language of instruction at all levels for Science, Technology, and Mathematics as provided in the bilingual policy.
Furthermore, Lyons (1983) stated that the country being frequented by tourists and where foreign students come to study or participate in symposia and conferences, holding lectures and seminars with distinguished professors in their offices and laboratories visited by foreign colleagues in research, hosting cultural events, and in commercial level of running restaurants and shops, needs to be proficient in the English language and their local language as well to appropriately and sufficiently adapt to these hosting to achieve their goals without sacrificing cultural values.
However, there are educators who claim that the poor academic performance of students is due to the fact that they have to study most of their subjects in the second language. With this, Filipino is now being used as medium of instruction in all subject areas especially Mathematics, which Ongoco (1989) exemplies to have spiral curriculum content. He proposed that because of this, students, if and when able to master skills necessary for them to learn such as obtaining information, processing data, effective discussion, and understanding surroundings, can learn the subject without difficulty.
The challenge is to still be able to retain the popularity that we Filipinos are fluent English-speaking people while keeping and utilizing our own national language proficiently.
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By: Ms. Mary Ann B. Calma | Teacher III | BEPZ Elementary School | Mariveles, Bataan
