CHAPTER 7 THE TEACHING OF THE LANGUAGE SUBJECTS

CHAPTER 7

THE TEACHING OF THE LANGUAGE SUBJECTS

This chapter is all about the frameworks of Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education, Filipino and English teaching in the K-12 Curriculum.K-12 Curriculum is a program that covers Kindergarten and 12 Years of Education and provides sufficient time for mastery of concepts and skills.

Three Languages used in K-12 Program:

Mother Tongue- Introduced in Grade 1 to Grade 3

Filipino & English - Introduced in Grade 4 to Grade 10 (except in the subject Filipino and English)

The Learning Areas are:

Filipino

English

Mother Tongue

Science

Math

AP

EPP/TLE

MAPEH

EsP

Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE

It is education in several languages based on the mother tongue. The beginning language of teaching mother tongue, termed as language 1 (L1). This leads to the learning of a second language, called Language 2 (L2) and a third language called Language 3. In the Philippines, Language 1 may differ across the country. Section 4 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 10533, otherwise known as the Enhance Education Act of 2013 defines Mother Tongue as “the language or languages first learned by a child, whom he/she identified as exclusive language user by others, which he/she knows best, or uses most.” The End Goals of MTB-MLE are Cognitive Development, Academic Development and Second Language Development that aims to a Lifelong Learning Communication Competence.

Learning Area Standard of MTB-MLEis what the DepEd Curriculum Guide of MTB-MLE states: Use Mother Tongue appropriately and effectively in oral, visual and written communication in a variety of situations and for a variety of audiences, contexts and purpose including learning other context subjects and languages, demonstrative appreciation of various forms of literary genres and take pride in one’s cultural heritage. Key Stage Standard is the DepEd K-12 Curriculum Guide spells out the standards for each learning areas in each key stage. The key stages referred to are at the end of grade 3, at the end of Grade 6 and at the end of Grade 10. Mother Tongue as subject is taught only until Grade 3, hence has only one key stage standard, at the end of Grade 3. By the end of Grade 3 students will enjoy communicating in their first language on familiar topics for a variety of purposes and audiences using vocabulary and phrases; read L1 texts with understanding and create their stories and texts in L1.

Guiding Principles for Teaching and Learning in MTB-MLE

Effective language learning proceeds from the known to unknown. This means that you begin with what the learners know and used what they know to learn what they do not yet know. This is building on what students know and gradually proceeding to the unknown. Language learning, and all other kinds of learning for that matter, is an active process. Learners must be actively involved in the learning process in order to learn. To learn to speak, read and write a particular language, learners must speak, read and write the language. There is no other way to learn a language except to speak, read and write the language. Successful language learning focuses on meaning, accuracy and fluency not either fluency or meaning or accuracy but both meaning, accuracy and fluency. The second language known as the L2, should be taught systematically to the learners can gradually transfer skills from the familiar language to the unfamiliar one.

The Bridging Process

Bridging is the process of “transitioning from learning one language to another. It also refers to the use of L1 as the initial medium of instruction, gradually introducing increasing amounts of instruction in L2, until either L1, or both L1, and L2 are used as media of instruction.

Why Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education?

 “Are we progressing or retrogressing? Why we are back to the mother tongue?”

The Department of Education, however, claims that they have overwhelming evidences from national and international researches that tell us that children who were first taught in their mother tongue learned a second language faster and better than children who were not taught in their mother tongue. Children who were first taught in the mother tongue performed much better than those who were not first taught in the mother tongue.

Lesson 2

The Teaching of Filipino Language

—  Explain the conceptual framework for the teaching of Filipino.

—  Examine the alignment of learning area, key stage, and grade level standards.

—  Determine learning area standards, key stage standards and grade level standards are aligned in spiral progression.

What is the Conceptual Framework In Teaching Filipino Language?

The end goal of the k-12 curriculum is the development of a “buo at ganap na Filipino na may kapaki-pakinabang na literasi (wholistically developed and functionally literate filipino). The teaching of Filipino contributes to the formation of the students to have:

1. Communicative competence
2. Reflective and Critical Thinking

3.    Literary Appreciation

The 5 Macro skills in Teaching Filipino

—  Pakikinig (Listening)

—  Pagsasalita (Speaking)

—  Pagbasa (Reading)

—  Pagsulat (Writing)

       •    Panonood (Viewing

To implement the intended Filipino curriculum is must have well-trained teachers, adequate instructional material, supportive School Administrators, cooperative parents and support from mass media, public and private sector, local government officials are also necessary.

To make the Filipino curriculum responsive and relevant it was based on the following:

—  Kalikasan at pangangailangan ng mag-aaral (Nature and Needs)

—  Pangangailangang panlipunan at global na pamayanan (Needs of Society and the Global Community).

The framework of the Filipino Curriculum was based on the Philosophical, legal and psychological bases Theories of the nature of language teaching and learning, philosophies of education and educational theories.

The learning Area/ Program Standard- this describes the intended outcomes that are expected to be realized in the teaching of Filipino as a subject in the entire K-12 Curriculum

The intended Outcomes of the learning area/program standard- Naipamamalas ng mag-aaral ang kakayahang komunikatibo, replektibo/mapanuring pag-iisip at pagpapahalagang pampanitikan sa pamamagitan ng iba’t ibang babasahin at teknolohiya tungo sa pagkakaroon ng pambansang pagkakakilanlan, kultural na literasi at patuloy na pagkatuto upang makaagapay sa mabilis na pagbabagong nagaganap sa daigdig.

Key Stage Standards (Pangunahing Pamantayan ng Bawat Yugto)- These are the intended outcomes of Filipino teaching at each key stage in the whole stretch of the K-12 Curriculum Guide.

THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH IN THE K- 12 CURRICULUM

End Goals of English Language Teaching

Communicative competence

Ø  is the students ability to understand and use language appropriately and correctly to communicate in authentic situations.

Multiliteracies

Ø  implies that the text is not the only way to communicate.

Ø  Text is combined with sounds and images.

Multimedia world; movies, billboards, any site on the internet and television

THE SIX MAIN PROCESSES THAT FORM PART OF THE CORE OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING ARE:

—  Construction

—  Spiral progression

—  Integration

—  Interaction

—  Contextualization

—  Learner-centered instruction

LEARNING AREA STANDARD

The learner demonstrates mastery of basic skills in the English Language Arts, communicates appropriately, fluently and orally and writes for a variety of purposes in different social and academic context at his/her level while carrying out real life tasks as necessary to cope with the demands of a functionally literate and competent, local, national and global citizen.

Communicative Competence: The Goal of Language Teaching
 (Mother – tongue, Filipino, English)

Communicative Competence define as the learner’s ability to understand and use language appropriately to communicate in authentic (rather than simulated) social and school environments.

Four Aspects of Communicative Competence
Michael Canale and Merrill Swain (1980) identified four components of Communicative Competence and these are:

1. Grammatical competence-  concerned with mastery of the linguistic code (verbal or non- verbal) which includes vocabulary knowledge as well as knowledge of morphology, syntactic, semantic, phonetic, and orthographic rules

Components of Grammar

Morphology – the study of the internal structure of words;

Syntax – the arrangement of words in sentence;

Semantics – the study of meaning of linguistic expression

.Phonetics – a branch of linguistic that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech or –in the case of sign .

Orthography – the methodology of writing a language; it includes rules of spelling, hyphenation, capitalization, word breaks, emphasis, and punctuation.

2. Sociolinguistic competence- This refers to possession of knowledge and skills for appropriate language use in a social context.
3. Discourse competence- This is so-called interactional competence that includes textual and rhetorical competence
4. Strategic competence - This refer to “ a speaker ability to adopt his/her use of verbal or non-verbal language to compensate for communication problems caused by the speaker’s lack of understanding of proper grammar that used or insufficient knowledge of social behavioral and communication gaps.

The Principles of Language Learning

Cognitive Principle

—  Anticipation of Reward- Learners are motivated to perform by the thought of a reward, tangible or intangible, long or short-term.

—  Meaningful Learning- Providing a realistic context to use language is thought to lead to better long term retention, as opposed to rote learning.

—  Automaticity- This is subconscious processing of language for fluency.

—  Strategic Investment-  Success in learning is dependent on the time and effort learners spend in mastering the language.

—  Intrinsic Motivation- The most potent learning “rewards” to enhance performance are those that stem from the needs, wants and desires within the learner (Brown, 1994).

Linguistic Principles

—  Native Language Effect- A learner’s native language creates both facilitating and interfering effects on learning.

—  Communicative Competence-  Fluency and use are  just as important as accuracy and usage.

—  *Interlanguage- In  second language learning, learners manifest a systematic progression of acquisition of sounds and words and structures and discourse features.

Socioaffective Domain

—  Language-Culture Connection-  Learning a language also involves learning a complex system of cultural customs, values and ways of thinking, feeling or acting (Brown, 2000).

—  Self-Confidence-  This is self-esteem or “I can do it” principle.

—  Risk- Taking- Students who are self-confident take risks and accomplish more.

—  Language Ego- “the identity a person develops in reference to the language he or she speaks” – Alexander Guiora

APPROACHES, METHODS             AND ACTIVITIES IN LANGUAGE TEACHING

HISTORY OF METHODS OF LANGUAGE TEACHING

Nothing is taken as gospel; nothing is thrown out of court without being put to the test. This “test” may always change its mechanics, but the fact remains that the changing winds and shifting sands of time and research are turning the desert into a longed-for oasis.” (Brown, 2004)

GRAMMAR TRANSLATION METHOD

THE CHARACTERISTICS ARE :

q  Classes are taught in the mother tongue with a little active use of target language.

q  Much vocabulary is taught in the form of lists of isolated words.

q  Long elaborate explanations of the intricacies of grammar are given.

q  Grammar provides the rules for putting words together and instruction often focuses on the form and inflection of words.

The direct method

—  Classroom instruction was conducted exclusively in the target language.

—  Only everyday vocabulary and sentences were taught.

—  Oral communication classes were built uo in carefully traded progression organized around question-and-answer exchanges between teachers and students in small, intensive classes.

—  Grammar was taught inductively.

AUDIOLINGUAL METHOD

—  New material is presented in dialog form.

—  There is dependence on mimicry, memorization of set phrases and over learning.

—  Structures are sequenced by means of contrastive analysis and taught at one time.

—  Structural patterns are taught using repetitive drills.

—  There is little or no grammatical explanation. Grammar is taught by inductive analogy rather than deductive explanation.

The designer methods

1. Community Language Learning

-          This is an effectively-based method. This reflect Carl Rogers’ view of education in which learners in a classroom are regarded as a “group” rather than a “class” in need of certain therapy and counselling.

2.    Suggestopedia

Total Physical Response

—  This method demands listening and acting. The teacher is the ‘director’ and the students are the ‘actors’ (Asher, 1977)

The natural method

—  In this method it is believed that learners would be benefited if production is delayed until speech emerges.

Communative Language Teaching

The primary goal of CLT is for students to acquire proficiency through pragmatic uses of the target language in speaking, listening, reading and writing. To make that happen, teachers make informed use of authentic materials and contexts.