Written by : Jester P. Manalastas ( journal.com.ph ) - A militant lawmaker is calling for an inquiry into the alleged reports that some schools are imposing penalties on students for speaking in Filipino and other native languages in school.
Kabataan Rep. Raymond Palatino filed House Resolution 1567 which calls for an investigation into the various means employed by schools to promote the use of English including penalizing students for speaking in Filipino and other native languages.
“Our country has a rich collection of languages that should be preserved. We understand the importance of English in today’s world, but our country’s attempt to integrate in this globalized community of English tongues should not be done at the expense of our vernaculars,” Palatino said.
“Penalizing students for speaking their native language in schools is a crime to our culture and it should be stopped,” he added.
There are at least 150 languages that were suppressed by the “misdirected’’ giving of priority to the English language, the solon lamented.
Palatino condemned the prevalent penalizing of students in the form of fines and demerits for using their mother tongue even during extra-curricular conversations.
He stressed that this “colonial attitude” towards the English language affects the learning process and self-appreciation of students, most of whom begin their early development with the use of their mother tongue.
“Language is not just a means for communication; it is likewise a double-edged weapon used for repression and emancipation. I am afraid that with the current English teaching practices in our schools, we are unwittingly reinforcing the colonial setup that treats our local cultures as inferior to that of the West,” Palatino said.
“There is no doubt that we should teach English in our schools, just like we should teach other foreign languages. But we should do so in a manner that does not trample on our native languages and the learning development of our students. The high functional illiteracy among our people, where language plays a crucial role, is enough for us to rethink our teaching methods with regard to English,” he added.
