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Bangkok Post
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Bangkok Post
Philippines sidelines local languages
In October 2024, the Philippine government, in its management of a linguistically rich and culturally diverse population, decided to make the then-existing Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) expire by not signing it. By leaving it unsigned, the passage of RA 12027 now mandates that: "The medium of instruction shall revert to Filipino and, until otherwise provided by law, English, pursuant to Article XIV, Section 7 of the 1987 Constitution. The regional languages shall serve as auxiliary media of instruction." The new legal mandate discontinued the use of the mother tongue as the medium of instruction for students in kindergarten through grade 3, thereby shifting educational approaches for early childhood learning in the country. Such a decision has removed the mandatory use of the mother tongue in the country's early education system. However, the change is more than a pedagogical pivot. This policy change is deeply political, signalling a quiet but callous erasure of the Filipino learners' cultural identity tied to their mother tongue. Notably, the reversal of MTB-MLE reflects the broader systemic neglect of the deaf learners, excluding the usage of Filipino Sign Language (FSL) for inclusive and equitable access to education. Mother Tongue Displaced Despite being perceived as an English-speaking nation in Asia and Asean, the Philippines is indeed home to some 183 living languages. These varied linguistic identities and inclusive national sign language correspondences are believed to carry the soul of a people and the wisdom of the different generations that continued to use them. MTB-MLE wasn't introduced as a policy for nothing. Considered as one of the first to have this kind of language education approach in Asia, the Philippines became a model for its Southeast Asian neighbours. Global research from UNESCO and other institutions points out how a mother tongue-based education, such as the MTB-MLE, "is a tool to improve foundational skills [particularly] in a diverse society [such as the Philippines]." It is indeed surprising why, despite the strong evidence that supports the pedagogical and cultural benefits of MTB-MLE, the current Marcos administration rolled it back. Currency of Labour Although almost six decades apart, Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr's decision to roll back MTB-MLE in 2024 was a move that tied in neatly with his own father's labour export policy, initially implemented in the 1970s. Having framed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) as "heroes" due to their crucial role in helping construct the Philippine economy via their cash remittances, both governments leaned, and continue to heavily do so, on the Filipino migrant workers. Fully recognising that this economic design would largely depend on the Filipino learners -- a future labour workforce with English language proficiency -- the Philippine government ensured that English language learning was fully enshrined in the country's curriculum. Given that English is not just a language but a currency in today's highly globalised world, allowing it to eclipse the Filipino learners' need for their mother tongue, it is clear that discontinuing MTB-MLE was a political move to produce a country of workers -- call centre agents, nurses, seafarers, among others. By ensuring that Filipino learners can compete with their counterparts in the global labour market, their own government was intentional in shifting the curriculum away from mother tongue education in broad daylight. Colonial Hangover Linguistic genocide emanates from cultural genocide, the move to deprioritise the mother tongue over English, a colonial language. Cultural genocide refers to a deliberate act of suppressing or eliminating a group's language, leading to a forcible assimilation into a dominant culture or economy. This eventually results in language death due to an institutional decision. It is important for the current Marcos government to realise that while it may simply seem that changing the language of instruction is but a matter of a curricular decision, language cannot and should not be simply dismissed as a medium of instruction alone. Every language is a vessel of memory, emotion, imagination and resistance -- one that the Filipinos fiercely fought for against their colonial aggressors. As such, by scrapping MTB-MLE and enacting RA 12027, the government is telling the people that their own language does not matter. When one's mother tongue is consistently excluded from formal institutions such as education, governance, and media, it eventually withers and finally dies. Once it happens, the memories, emotions, and imaginations that came with it will also fade away, never to be recognised and spoken about again by future generations. A cultural erosion as tragic as this policy ignores the Philippines' rich linguistic and cultural diversity. It is a direction that brushes aside the need for an education system that is deeply rooted in its cultural heritage, one that could have been further nurtured by being critical and inclusive. The Philippines celebrated its 127th Independence Day last month, commemorating the day when it was finally freed from colonial rule and foreign domination. However, putting in place RA 12027 serves as a constant reminder that an Independence Day celebration is but a hollow act if the country continues to demonstrate a colonial mentality by way of privileging English in its very own curriculum. Couldn't it have been wiser if the current administration, with a stroke of a pen, had instead prioritised its own country's linguistic sovereignty? Moving Forward Although RA 12027 has already been rolled out, if the current administration is indeed sincere in its effort to bring the country forward, it could still undo its earlier decision. Instead of abandoning MTB-MLE, the current administration could look into the challenges it had earlier met, improve its implementation, and enhance its monitoring and evaluation mechanism. It could also build a stronger, evidence-based multilingual exit model. By having a culturally grounded education system, the country could move forward by incorporating its mother tongue without sacrificing the level of global competence it aspires to have. If other countries are able to do it, why can't we? Because a mother tongue helps form the foundation for a strong cultural identity and a sense of belonging, it also results in people's effective learning and communication. But when communication is impeded because governance decides to kill it in favour of a foreign language, it does not just erase the mother tongue in a classroom. It also makes people illiterate in their very own language. Analiza Perez-Amurao, a recipient of the Linguistic Society of the Philippines' Distinguished Bonifacio P Sibayan Professorial Chair in Applied Linguistics, is an assistant professor at Mahidol University International College. Michael Thomas Nelmida is a transnational linguistic human rights activist and an MA candidate in Human Rights and Democratization at Mahidol University (Thailand) and Gadjah Mada University (Indonesia).
Hans India
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
DYFI demands solution for language volunteers' issues
Vijayawada: The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) urged the state government to address the long-standing issues faced by language volunteers, who have been providing crucial services for the past 18 years. G Ramanna, DYFI state secretary, highlighted the plight of 1,327 language volunteers across 7 ITDA (Integrated Tribal Development Agency) areas, who are struggling to support their families on a meager honorarium of just Rs. 5,000 per month. DYFI representatives submitted a memorandum to M M Naik, principal secretary of tribal welfare department and the additional director of tribal welfare on Monday at the Secretariat, pressing for immediate action. Ramanna stressed the urgent need for the state government to provide minimum wages of Rs 26,000 to these volunteers and ensure their job security. He also demanded the annual issuance of a Government Order (GO) for their renewal each academic year. Language volunteers are instrumental in implementing the Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) programme across Andhra Pradesh since 2007. They teach in tribal mother tongues such as Savara, Kuravi, Konda, Adivasi Oriya, Koya, and Sugali, in addition to Telugu, English, and Hindi, in schools ranging from MPPS, UPS, GES, and GUPS. This approach has significantly reduced student dropout rates and encouraged children to stay in school. Currently, 1,122 schools across the state conduct education in tribal mother tongues for grades 1 to 5, benefiting approximately 52,000 children. The DYFI highlighted the inconsistent renewal of these volunteers' services, noting that after a period of non-renewal post-state bifurcation in 2014, they were renewed briefly in 2019 but stopped again in the 2022 academic year. While the previous government renewed them from August to February in 2023 following protests, their services were discontinued in March and April. The volunteers have confirmed that their renewals have resumed from July this academic year under the new coalition government. Ramanna stressed that many language volunteers possess and qualifications, along with Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) certification. He demanded that they be recognised as CRT contract employees and called for the reinstatement of G.O. No. 3 and the release of a Special DSC notification for their regularisation. Kunj Naveen, State Secretary of the Language Volunteers Association, along with Lalitha, Nagamani, Kiran, Sagar, Bhavani, Roja, Uma Maheswari, Sai Vennela, and others were present.
