Education Undersecretary for Plans and Programs Yolanda Quijano said that public schools are allowed to use the language or dialect predominantly spoken in their communities as part of the new curriculum under the K+12 program implemented during this coming school year.
The use of the mother tongue is still being discussed with some private schools that have asked the permission of the DepEd to do so, Quijano said.
Some private schools have asked if they could retain their curriculum which put a premium on using the English language, she said.
Quijano said they acknowledged the position of the private schools, adding that instead of adopting the use of the mother tongue, private schools will look at models used by countries in the Asean region in their teaching curriculum.
“Public schools can use the Singaporean model with the main language still English but there are subjects being taught using the mother tongue or lingua franca. In this way, students also learn to appreciate and use the mother tongue,” Quijano said in an interview at her office.
Though the DepEd does not have a say in the day-to-day operation of private schools, it still has “supervisory” powers, especially in making sure that their curriculum complies with government standards.
As part of the K+12 program, the DepEd said teachers will be mandated to teach the new curriculum using lingua franca.
Education Secretary Armin Luistro said using the mother tongue is pursuant to earlier studies that schoolchildren learn faster if they are taught using the spoken dialect or language.
Luistro said this is in line with the DepEd’s intention to make learning more enjoyable and easily understood using the spoken language in the locality where the schoolchildren live.
Aside from using the mother tongue, the new curriculum will see Grade 1 pupils attending classes for only half a day while those for Grade 7 (first-year high school) would be more interactive and relevant in daily life.
Luistro said the new curriculum would also be less burdensome as it focuses less on memorization and more encouraging of critical thinking.
The K+12 program is part of the education reform plan of the Aquino administration which seeks to produce high-school graduates equipped with skills for the world of work, have better needed competencies for college education and ready for global opportunities.
As part of the program, the public-school system will have preschool for five-year old kids, six years in elementary, four years in junior high school and two more years for senior high school where students will have more time to sharpen their employable skills.
