Chapter 1
THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING
Background of the Study
There are many factors involved in delivering quality basic education.
Linguistic competence is the key factor for a better understanding in
communication. But the introduction of mother tongue-based multilingual
education (MTB-MLE) which mother tongue is used as a medium of
instruction brings challenge to the linguistic competence particularly in oral
communication competence.
In some South Asian countries, MT-based MLE includes four
languages—the students’ mother tongue or first language, a regional
language, the national language and an international language (Kathmandu,
2007). Among these four languages, first and second language are used as a
communication medium in educating students. However, second language is
still the most common medium of communication in terms of profession. Many
professionals are using the second language in providing paper works,
proposals to different countries and also as a communication tool in
communicating diverse individuals. Western African countries experienced
developments and difficulties of having mother tongue used in multi-lingual
society (Bangbose, 2005). There are developments and difficulties happened
not just in Western Africa but also to some parts of the world. Development in
terms of speaking using second language can help to communicate other
nations to have new innovations and better relationship. Difficulties happened
because most of the individuals who usually speak the first language cannot
adapt easily the second one. They still need time to practice and have
confident in using second language.
In Guatemala, they initiated mother tongue-based schooling to remedy
the situation where only about 40 percent of its rural Maya language-speaking
population enrolled in school and half of them dropped out by the end of the
first grade (Dutcher,1995). This 40 percent of students enrolled are those who
have the capabilities of using second language as their communication
medium in school while half of them dropped out because their language has
no place inside the classroom. The culture of the classroom, the textbooks,
and the approach of the teachers are on its dominant society wherein they
uses second language as a medium. By initiating mother tongue based
education, it helps to lessen the issues lies in the institution and helps the
learners to express their ideas by using their own language.
Nationally, Young (2010) stated that many Filipino people prefer to use
English as their communication tool. However, many Filipino children started
their education in a language that they do not understand as well as their first
language or also known as Mother Tongue. Education starts at home. Parents
have responsibilities in educating their child in many ways. First language
must be taught at home. Do not forget the language that will recognize of who
you are. A conversation which involves the parents and the child using the
first language will create a great impact to the learning of the child. By making
conversations using first language daily can help to retain in child’s mind the
importance of communication involving the mother tongue language. Kaplan
and Baldauf (1998) depict the Philippines as “linguistically heterogeneous with
no absolute majority speakers of any given indigenous language.” Our nation
is comprises of various cultures molded in different kind of language. These
languages were already used during the time of our ancestors such as
chavacano in Zamboanga; bisaya in Cebu, Davao and in some parts of
Mindanao. But in order to become one, in terms of communication, most of us
used tagalog as a communication medium to other people in the society.
Language learning is a continuous process. The focus must be the
learners’ need, level, background and the teachers’ knowledge in teaching the
language. Teachers must know what language will suit to the learners’ need.
Therefore, it is important to consider using appropriate language in a class.
Statement of the Problem
The aim of this study is to determine the effect of the implementation of
Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education on the oral competence among
the grade one pupils of the University of Mindanao. Specifically, it sought to
answer the following questions:
1. What is the extent of implementation of Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual
Education in Grade 3 in terms of:
1.1 subject matter, and
1.2 medium of instruction.
2. What is the level of Oral Competence of Grade 3 pupils in the Department
of Education schools in Davao City in terms of:
1.1 fluency,
1.2 pronunciation,
1.3 grammar awareness, and
1.4 phonological awareness.
3. Is there significant relationship between the factors affecting the success of
mother tongue-based multilingual education and the oral competence of
Grade 3?
Hypothesis of the Study
The study will test the hypothesis that the factors affecting the success
of Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education in Oral competence does not
affect the Oral Competence of Grade 3 pupils in the Department of Education
schools in Davao City.
Review on Related Literature
To provide a background and framework of the research, selected
literatures related to the study are presented in this section. The review
includes concepts and views discussing the subject of the research.
Mother Tongue
One of the changes in Basic Education Curriculum brought about by
the
new
K-12 program
is the
introduction of Mother Tongue- Based
Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) specifically in Kindergarten, Grades 1, 2
and 3 to support the goal of “ Every Child- A- Reader and A –Writer” by Grade
1.” Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) refers to “firstlanguage-first” education that is schooling begins with the mother tongue and
transitions to additional languages particularly Filipino and English. It is meant
to address the high functional illiteracy of Filipinos where language plays a
significant factor. It encourages active participation by children in the learning
process because they understand what is being discussed and what is being
asked of them. They can immediately use their mother tongue to construct
and explain their world, articulate their thoughts and add new concepts to
what they already know.
Throughout much of the history of research into second language
acquisition (SLA), the role of learners’ first language (L1) has been a hotly
debated issue. Prodromou (2000) refers to the mother tongue as a ‘skeleton
in the closet’, while Gabrielatos (2001) calls it a ‘bone of contention’. Such
views are but a mere reflection of the different methodological shifts in English
Language Teaching, which have brought about new and different outlooks on
the role of the mother tongue.
Intuitively, a good number of teachers feel, partly based on their own
experiences as learners of a second language, that the mother tongue has an
active
and
beneficial
role
to
play
in
instructed
second
language
acquisition/learning. In the literature, an increasing number of teacherresearchers stress the growing methodological need in TEFL/TESOL for a
principled, systematic and judicious way of using the mother tongue in the
classroom. And yet, for some of us, there seems to be a generalized feeling of
guilt that we are acting counter to the principles of good teaching when we
use the learners’ mother tongue as a tool to facilitate learning.
Moreover, the choice of the language is a recurrent challenge in the
development of quality education. Speakers of mother tongues which are not
the same as the national language, are often at a considerable disadvantage
in the educational system (UNESCO, 2003).
Throughout the world and in developing countries no one can deny the
spread and success of English language. For such purpose everyone is
craving for the means to get proper command over this language and to gain
the ability to use it properly just like its fluent native speakers. In connection
with that, Baker & Westrup (2003) says that there is a need for people who
speak English well not only throughout the world but also in the developing
countries as well.
Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education
Mother instruction in early childhood and primary education has been
promoted and encouraged by UNESCO since 1953. But monolingualism in
official or dominant languages still widely used and preferred around the world
(Arnold, Bartlett, Gowani, & Merali, 2006; Wolff & Ekkehard, 2000). As what
the Strong Foundations: Early Childhood Care and Education‘, UNESCO
(2007a) reports the overlooked advantages of multilingual education in the
early years. According to Konsen (2005), when children have the chance and
opportunities to learn in their mother tongue, most likely they succeed in
school and their parents will more likely to communicate with the teachers and
participate in their children learnings (Benson, 2002). Also, mother tonguebased multilingual education benefits the disadvantaged groups, especially
those children from rural area (Hovens, 2002), and girls who tend to have less
exposure to an official language, have found out to stay in school longer,
achieve better when they are taught in their mother tongue (UNSECO
Bangkok, 2005). Children who are enrolled in multilingual education tend to
develop better thinking skills compared to those are not (e.g., Bialystok, 2001;
Cummins, 2000; King & Mackey, 2007). There are some educators who argue
that only those countries where the student’s first language is the language
used in instruction will more likely to achieve the goals of Education for All
(Ball, 2010). Research also proposed that engaging marginalized children in
school though mother tongue-based multilingual education (MTB-MLE) will be
a successful model (Benson & Kosonen, 2013; Yiakoumetti, 2012).
According to the research, young children have unique style that
matches their development. Thus, their environmental education needs to be
designed and create matching their needs, interests and learning styles that
will help them eventually with effective learning outcome (White & Stoecklin,
2008). This findings call for the mother tongue instruction (Khosa, 2012) which
will help learners to learn through the language they are most familiar.
According to Senadeera (2010), when you encourage young children to learn
through their mother tongue it will help them develop confidence, self-esteem
and their unique identity within a multicultural society. When children are
forced to learn and acquire unknown language in an unknown cultural pattern
at a young age, they are likely to experience anxiety causing them to react
differently to such experiences (Menhyuk & Brisk, 2005).
The Republic of the Philippines is home of more than 180 individual
languages (Lewis, 2013), but most of the people speak only three or more
languages. Philippines is a diverse country especially in terms of the
languages. Philippines is the only country in the Southeast Asia who
implement the mother tongue instruction in the primary years of the
children. The Filipino government through Department of Education
(DepEd), create an order known as DepEd Order 74 Institutionalizing
Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education (2009). It is an order of
national implementation of the policy into public schools began in 2012-13.
The DepEd introduced twelve major languages; Tagalog, Kapampangan,
Pangasinense, Iloko, Bikol, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Waray, Tausug,
Maguindanaoan, Maranao, and Chabacano.
Currently MTB-MLE is being implemented into two areas; first as a
subject area and second as medium of instruction (Luistro, 2013).
Mother tongue as a Learning/Subject Area
Learning concerns whether first language learning is enhanced by the
use of the students’ mother tongue. Naturalness relates to whether students
prefer the use of their mother tongue rather than the first language regarding
certain topics. The language areas for which teachers would prefer to use the
Mother Tongue should also be considered. Previous studies indicates that
teachers use the Mother Tongue in EFL classrooms to explain the new
vocabulary and grammatical structures, organize tasks and give instructions
(Cook, 2001), and maintain discipline in class and create rapport with
individual students.
As to Getu (2006), apart from the medium of instruction we ought to
consider the teaching of specific language as subject in the curriculum and
the effect they have in the cultural awareness and psychological sense of the
subject. Therefore, in educational curriculum, where mother tongue is a
medium, the teaching of other language as it broadens the students’
awareness reading cultural values.
Forcing students to speak English in the classroom may prevent them
from participating in the conversation. It is essential that students volunteer to
speak. Zahide (2013) indicated that the use of L1 removes the barriers on
language and it can be useful tool to facilitate learning. Also, it helps to
motivate the students to participate the group and pair work activities and
discussions. Children are encouraged to describe, explain, analyze, ask
questions, exchange ideas – to talk rather than sit passively while the
teachers talks at them.
The curriculum for mother tongue teaching for language minorities is
structured into four main subject areas, with competence aims formulated for
each area. Except for the main subject area Language and culture, the main
subject areas Listening and speaking, Reading and writing (DedEp 2013)
The main subject areas complement each other and must be viewed in
relation to one another (DepEd Sec. Luistro,2014). Pupils who follow this
curriculum may be at different levels when the teaching begins, and it may
take some longer than others to reach the competence aims, depending on
their previous knowledge of their mother tongue.
This subject is a common core subject for all the upper secondary
education programmes. Learning in this subject shall therefore be made as
relevant as possible for pupils by adapting each subject to its education
programme as much as possible.(UNESCO, 2012)
Listening and speaking
The main subject area Listening and speaking concerns oral
communication in one’s mother tongue – that is, using the language orally in a
variety of situations and when working with different subjects (DepEd, 2013).
A key aspect of this main subject area is the development of concepts and
vocabulary.
Reading and writing
The main subject area Reading and writing concerns developing
reading and writing skills. It also covers text comprehension and text
production within a variety of genres. Working with literary, technical and
composite texts in one’s mother tongue is also included in this main subject
area. Key elements are promoting the love of reading and experience in
reading literary texts(UNESCO, 20012).
Language learning
The main subject area Language learning includes knowledge about
one’s mother tongue and insight into one’s own language learning. The main
subject area is about knowing the language as a system and being able to
choose strategies and work methods that are appropriate for learning the
language( CHED, 2010). A comparative perspective of one’s mother tongue
and Norwegian is also an integral part of this main subject area.
Language and culture
The main subject area Language and culture is about looking at
language and literature from a historical and international perspective. Also
included is an awareness of appropriate language use in a variety of social
contexts
Medium of Instruction
“It is increasingly obvious that the language of instruction at the
beginning of one’s education at such a crucial moment for future learning
should be the mother tongue” (UNESCO, 2001). From these statement made
by UNESCO that pertain to mother tongue-based multilingual education, first
language or mother tongue of the young children must be used to attain the
goal which is to entail meaningful and best learning to the children. Most of
the countries on Southeast Asia do not use first language (mother tongue) as
a medium of instruction. Young children enters primary school with the need
to learn through using the second language which is not familiar to them and
obviously new. This set up a challenging task to the children’s learning.
According to Baker (2001), if children are forced to learn in a second
language they are not familiar with, it will result to poor mastery of cognitive
task required in a language. From a recent World Bank Note (Bender et al,
2005) says that using the target language or second language and not the
mother tongue is not a productive practices that will affect the learnings of the
young children. Those students whose first language is not used as a
language of instruction generally have lower academic achievements.
Children are not engaged in meaningful learning. Hornberger and Chick
(2001) illustrate the teacher-student interaction in South African and Peruvian
submersion education settings, where the class discussion is limited and is
like of parroting of expected answer yes/no answers.
Using English as the medium of instruction in such an early learning
stage makes learners meet a barrier in classroom. Hallberg (2010) says that a
language barrier is a kind of psychological barrier that affects the
communication being put across. According to the South African Department
of Education (2005), language barriers are caused by forcing learners to
communicate and learn using a language they are not yet familiar and they do
not use in their home are not likely to learn effectively. This is supported by
Owen-Smith (2010) who claimed that those children who cannot use their first
language or the language they use in their home will not succeed in learning
effectively. Therefore, until young children cannot developed their first
language and be competent enough, they will have difficulties in cognitive and
in their second language acquisition (Thomas & Collier, 2004).
The World Bank estimate that almost half of the world’s out-of-school
children do not have the chance to learn using their first language or the
language they used at home (Bender, 2005). Many children speak their first
language that is different from the medium of instruction in education
program. Research confirms that children lean best using mother tongue
children familiar with (Ball, 2010). Those students who enter school with less
exposure to the majority language use as medium of instruction attain only
few verbal skills of the language (Dekker & Young, 2005). As a result,
students’ content knowledge and literacy skills will suffer. This situation call for
the change in language of instruction. Change in medium of instruction to
mother tongue that is familiar to the children will bring a lot of benefits to the
young children. As what Benson (2008) said that using mother tongue of the
children as a medium of instruction will lead us closer reaching Education for
All goals.
Medium of instruction pertains to the language use by the teacher in
teaching. It might be teaching the language or even the content of the subject
itself through using the target language. In this case, medium of instruction
that must be used inside the classroom as we frame it in the mother tonguebased multilingual education, is the mother tongue or first language of the
children. Thus, it is called mother tongue instruction which the first language
or mother tongue use as a medium of instruction in the classroom setting.
Now let us discuss how does mother tongue-based multilingual
education affects the oral competence of the young children in grade 3. Baker
(2003) stressed that MTB-MLE can barely affect to the student oral
competence.
Therefore
he
characterized
the
following:
Fluency,
Pronunciation, Grammatical awareness, and Phonological awareness.
Fluency
Fluency refers to the smoothness or flow with sounds, syllables, words,
and phrases joined together when speaking quickly. Reading fluency, on the
other hand, is defined as smooth effortless reading, precise and speedy
reading, and steady and natural oral production of written texts (Oakly, 2005;
Rasinski, 1989; Welsch; 2006). In order for the students to develop fluency in
reading, teachers must employ and use interactive activities (Oakley, 2005;
Welsch, 2006). According to Oakley (2005), reading fluency is made up of
many components: speed, accuracy, automaticity, appropriate phrasing, and
expressiveness are all characteristics of fluent reading. Fluency is considered
as the foundation of proficient reading (Hiebert & Fisher, 2005). Since fluency
is considered as one of the important component in reading, it is also included
in the five literacy areas which one whole section is devoted to fluency
(Cowen, 2003). Additionally, the link between fluency and comprehension is
another reason to consider teaching fluency lessons, especially fluency
explicit lessons (Oakley, 2005). Even if fluency is now accepted and known as
an important aspect of reading, we cannot deny the fact that it is not being put
into consideration in reading instruction. But instructors will be able to give
feedback and guidance in order to help students progress in a critical area by
monitoring them using informal assessments of fluency and word recognition
(Cowen, 2003). Through employing variety of classroom fluency strategies,
teachers will be able to help everyone develop their fluency.
However, researchers argue that the definition stated above is
incomplete without considering the role of comprehension (Oakley, 2005;
Stahl & Heubach, 2005). One of the goals of fluency oriented reading
instructions includes comprehension: “Lessons will be comprehension
oriented, even when smooth and fluent oral reading is being emphasized”
(Stahl & Heubach, 2005). Thus, it is needed for activities designed to develop
fluency to result in improved comprehension (Oakley, 2005). Comprehension
also improves word recognition, which is another important aspect of fluency
(Stahl & Heubach, 2005).
Activities and strategies are all around the place that will help and
develop both oral and non-oral reading fluency. The first step in designing a
fluency lesson is to choose a piece of literature that is appropriate in the level
of readability (Hiebert & Fisher, 2005; Oakley, 2005; Rasinski, 1989; Stahl &
Heubach, 2005; Welsch, 2006). Welsch (2006) suggest rhythmic, predictable,
and repetitious literature has been found to aid in fluency. Lessons on
concepts and vocabulary fits well with the challenging texts, while the easier
texts that can be read with high accuracy rate of 90&-95% or more are ideal
for enhancing fluency (Oakley, 2005; Welsch, 2006). This will make it hard in
looking for a good literature since there are a lot of easy texts that might be
too boring to read. Thus, it is much better to allow your students to determine
their own readability level and choose their desired texts (Oakley, 2005).
In addition, Kopponen and Riggenbach (2000) define fluency as a
performance based phenomenon which is related to the flow, continuity,
automaticity or smoothness of the speech. DimitraHartas (2005,) in his book
Language and Communication Difficulties emphasized upon children’s need
to acquire both linguistic and social knowledge in order to become effective
communicators.
People can easily make their mother tongue fluent. But Linguists have
not come to an arrangement mother tongue language fluency. Faerch et.al
(2000) thought that fluency is a relative concept. In SL learning it often refers
to express their thoughts easily automatically. Sajavaraa (2001) suggested
that according to communicative acceptability of language behavior. At this
aspect, they emphasize communicative environment.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is the way or act which a word or a language is spoken,
or the manner of utterances of words. Lund (2003) point out that
pronunciation is the only aspect of language that calls for a close interaction
between the cognitive and physiological processes. We cannot deny the fact
that when a person is good in pronunciation, people will easily understand him
or her unlike when she or he is poor in pronunciation there will be a difficulty
in understanding what she or he is trying to say. We might use simple words
and grammar structures in order for us to be easily understood by those
people around us but we cannot compromise the pronunciation. Vitanova &
Miller (2002) found out that students usually link the mastery of pronunciation
with improved communicative abilities, reflected on the value of learning both
segmentals and suprasegmentals, and the importance of pronunciation in
achieving confidence in communication. According to Gelvanovsky (2002),
pronunciation plays an important role in social value, which means that it is
very important in intelligence, professional competence, persuasiveness,
diligence, and social privilege. Through pronunciation we can identify the
speaker’s geographical and social origin. As what Norton & Tohey (2001)
reported that social factors may influence children’s second language
acquisition. But, it has not been examined the specific effects of social identify
on language learners’ second language pronunciation.
Pronunciation instruction is a prominent factor in foreign language
teaching. Since sounds play an important role in communication, foreign
language teachers must attribute proper importance to teaching pronunciation
in their classes. In Mexico, pronunciation is described as “the Cinderella of
language teaching”; meaning that there is a low level of emphasis on this very
important language skill (Dalton, 2002). It is evident that communication is a
mutual relationship between the speaker and the hearer. This means that one
must comprehend what he/she hears in the target language and must
produce the sounds of the language he/she is trying to learn accurately.
Unless he has sufficient knowledge of the sound patterns of the target
language, he can neither encode a message to anybody nor decode the
message sent by another person by learning the sounds of the target
language within his mother tongue. Therefore, pronunciation instruction is of
great importance for successful oral communication to take place since it is an
important ingredient of the communicative competence (Hismanoglu, 2006).
Pronunciation is a set of habits of producing sounds. The habit of
producing a sound is acquired by repeating it over and over again and by
being corrected when it is pronounced wrongly. From foregoing so far, the
importance of mother-tongue in the learning of English cannot be
overemphasized. Language is said to be universal. Errors may occur due the
fact that some of the English sounds are not found in their mother-tongue. It
has rightly been observed that in the first language learning, the learner is
highly motivated and is surrounded by a conductive linguistics environment,
the kind that the second language lacks. This implies that though language
learning is generally difficult, second language learning has greater problems
which results in the greater number of errors in performance of second
language users (Vitanova, G., & Miller, A. (2002).
The learner begins the learning task of learning a second language
from point zero (or close to it) and, through the steady accumulation of the
mastered entities of the target language, eventually amasses them in
quantities sufficient to constitute a particular level of proficiency.
According to Richards and Rodgers (2006), effective communication
mostly rely on comprehensible pronunciation or being intelligible. Intelligibility
is a notion that has become central to the teaching of pronunciation (Field,
2005). Field defines intelligibility as the “extent to which the acoustic-phonetic
content of the message is recognizable by the listener”. Derwing and Munro
(2005) define intelligibility as the listener’s perception of how different a
speaker’s accent is from that of the first language community. Derwing and
Rossiter (2003) focused on how to attain intelligibility through explicit
pronunciation instruction.
Grammatical Awareness
The concise and structure of the sentence is one of the factors in oral
communication. In connection with, Sams (2003) says that grammar defines
the way language forms are assigned their meaning. He believes that
communication cannot happen within grammatical knowledge. On the other
hand, Ferrer (2002) stresses that even within the framework of CLT grammar
had its place and in the absence of structure or grammar communication
cannot take place. What Revlyn Doman (2005) recommends is that grammar
is used as an instrument to build communicative abilities and to stress skills
that are required for authentic communication to occur. Grammar should be
used as the basic foundation for building fluency (Doman, 2005).
Each of them focuses on a different part of explicit knowledge of
grammar and grammatical terminology. The first is related to recognition of
grammatical categories such as preposition, noun and verb. The second is
related to production of appropriate meta-linguistic terms containing the ability
to provide grammatical terms of a given word / phrase. The third is concerned
with identification and creation of error involving the ability to identify and
correct faulty sentences or parts of sentences. The final one is related to
explanation of grammatical rules which deals with the ability to explain
grammatical rules which have been broken (Shuib, 2009). It is very important
that English teachers must have grammatical awareness. Denham and
Lobeck (2002), states that english education textbooks ask those teachers to
be aware of certain grammatical fundamentals in order to help learners
identify patterns of errors. Andrews (2005) argue that teachers must have rich
knowledge of grammatical constructions for them to be able to help young
writers (Shuib, 2009).
Careful consideration of the subcomponents of the language system;
phonology, the lexicon, grammar, and pragmatics (New combo, et. Al., 2005),
leads to the clear prediction that these components will all impact on the
production of written texts and could do so at different development phases.
Van Pattern (2003) stated that the term developmental stages refers to the
way in which one single aspect of language is acquired over time. A learner
who educate himself every minute of a day will make him more productive.
Thus, the development of a child occur. Many students are still suffering at a
low level knowledge. Limitations with oral vocabulary (Mackie et. al 2007) and
oral narrative performance (Cragg & Nation, 2006) are related to poor written
text production.
Phonological Awareness
Phonological processing skill is strongly related to reading performance
in monolingual English speakers. Additional variance in word reading skill in
English is explained by orthographic processing skill. Although English is the
most widely studied language in terms of predictors of reading, investigators
studying other alphabetic language have found that phonological awareness
influences reading ability in individuals learning to read in their first language
(Gottardo, Yan, Siegel & Wade-Woolley, 2001).
Phonological awareness is the ability to reflect on and manipulate the
structure of an utterance as distinct from its meaning. A learner’s language
ability needs to be developed to a level where the learner is able think and
reflect on the structure of the words syllables and sounds, thus leading to the
development of the meta-linguistic skills of the phonological awareness.
Phonological awareness is a component of meta-linguistics, which develops
due to the higher cognitive level of language use (Goldsworthy, 2000). The
knowledge that a word consists of a smaller leads the learner to understand
that they can divide them into sounds, syllables, and syllabic constituents.
Furthermore, the learner becomes aware that these constituents can be
manipulated (Goldsworthy, 2000).
Phonological awareness is considered the strongest oral language
predictor for reading success and includes the understanding of combining
the smallest units of sound or phonemes. For instance, children learn the /m/
is the first spoken sound they hear in monkey long before they understand
that the sound is represented by the printed letter /m/. Although children are
not typically aware of their knowledge of these rules, their ability to
understand and articulate words in their native language is an accurate
representation of their understanding. Also, it is a broad skill that includes
identifying and manipulating units of oral language – parts such as words,
syllables, and onsets and rimes. Children who have phonological awareness
are able to identify and make oral rhymes, can clap out the number of
syllables in a word, and can recognize words with the same initial sounds like
'money' and 'mother.' According to Gillon (2004)phonological awareness
consists of skills that typically develop gradually and sequentially through the
late preschool period. They are developed with direct training and exposure.
The conscious sensitivity to the sound structure of a language. It includes the
ability to auditorily distinguish parts of speech, such as syllables and
phonemes. The ability to blend and segment phonemes is critical to the
development of decoding and spelling skills. Phonological awareness is an
important and reliable predictor of later reading ability and has been,
therefore, the focus of much research.
Theoretical and Conceptual Framework
This study is anchored with the hypothesis of threshold proposed by
Skutnabb-Tangas and Toukomaa (1976). This hypothesis try to explain that
when children reached a threshold of competence in their first language only
they can be successful in learning a second language without comprising the
competence between two languages. It further explain that when a child
reached the second threshold of competence in both languages it will
positively affect intellectual development, a state they called “Additive
Bilingualism”. Skutnabb-Tangas and Toukomaa created the threshold level
hypothesis based on the research they conducted to the Finnish children who
migrated to Sweden and found out that before they had become competent in
Finnish showed weaker school performance and lower competence in both
Swedish and Finnish. They called this low competence in both languages as
semilingualism, saying that if the child’s first language is not fully developed
the foundation for the second language lack.
Based on Skutnabb-Tangas and Toukomaa (1976) study, Cummins
(1984) supported the said findings by formulating an “Interdependence
hypothesis” explaining that second language competence depends on the
successful development of first language. Cummins differentiate between two
kinds of language mastery: interpersonal communication that refers to oral
communication skills that used in everyday settings while cognitive academic
language proficiency (CALP) is achieved when the speaker use language in
decontextualized ways such as writing.
Figure 1 shows the independent variable which is the Social Learning
Theory, under it are the ‘level of actual development’ and ‘level of potential
development’. On the other hand is the dependent variable which is the
effects to oral competence.
Significance of the study
This study is beneficial to the following:
School Administrators.
This study will help them in planning
programs that will help pupils become an effective user of native language as
well as the second language.
Teachers. The result of this study can be a useful guide for them in
creating effective instructional activities that will motivate pupils in participating
in the class.
Pupils. The result of this study can serve as a facilitating tool for them
to engage in activities which would help them enhance their language
development.
Parents / Guardians. The result of this study can be an awareness
tool for them to take part in motivating their child.
INDEPENDENT VARIABLE
IMPLEMENTATION OF
MOTHER TONGUE-BASED
MULITLINGUAL
EDUCATION

Subject area

Medium
DEPENDENT VARIABLE
ORAL COMPETENCE
 Pronunciation
 Fluency
 Grammatical
Awareness
 Phonological
Awareness
of
Instruction
Figure 1. Conceptual Framework Showing
The Variables of the Study
Definition of Terms
The following terms used in this study are operationally defined to
establish a common frame of reference:
Mother Tongue – a person’s native language. A language learned
from birth. In the context of formal education, the term mother tongue is
normally used to refer to the language a child learned first and usually speaks
best. In a very high percentage of cases, the ―first language a child learns‖
and the language a child speaks best‖ are one and the same. One can, of
course, uncover sociolinguistic settings in which these two are not the same.
Such cases often involve complex diglossia due to migration or resettlement.
The term ‘mother tongue’, though widely used, may refer to several different
situations. Definitions often include the following elements: the language(s)
that one has learnt first; the language(s) one identifies with or is identified as a
native speaker of by others; the language(s) one knows best and the
language(s) one uses most. Mother tongue may also be referred to as primary
or first language. The term mother tongue is commonly used in policy
statements and in the general discourse on educational issues.
Multilingual
Education
–
prototypically,
the
term
multilingual
education refers to classroom or school-wide instructional strategies in which
multiple languages are used for instructional purposes. There is a plethora of
such strategies and continuing controversy as to which is to be preferred and
under what circumstances. When this term or model of education is used with
reference to educational models in developing countries, it almost always
refers to a model in which initial instruction begins in children‘s mother tongue
with accompanying preparation to learn a second language which will serve
as a language of instruction in later years of school after sufficient mastery
has been developed. Multilingual education refers to the use of two or more
languages as mediums of instruction.
Mother
tongue-based
instruction
-
in
mother
tongue-based
instruction, the medium of instruction is the child‘s mother tongue, or first
language. Basing instruction in a language means that that language is used
to teach most subjects in the curriculum and to interact in the program
environment. In contrast, mother tongue instruction may mean that the
program includes explicit instruction in L1 as a subject of study.
Oral Competence - the ability to speak efficiently and successfully. It
is defined as “the complex system that relates sounds to meanings. It makes
clear
and
convincing
oral
presentations;
listens
effectively;
clarifies
information as needed. Also, the condition of being capable; ability a sufficient
income to live on and the state of being legally competent or qualified
Implementation – implementation is defined in our study as the action
that must follow any preliminary thinking in order for something to actually
happen. It refers to the carrying out of public policy. This process includes of
rule-making, rule-administration and rule-adjudication. Factors impacting the
implementation include the legislative intent, the administrative capacity of the
implementing bureaucracy, interest group activity and opposition, and
presidential or executive support.
Mother tongue instruction - Mother tongue instruction refers to the
use of the learners’ mother tongue as the medium of instruction. It can
refer to the first language as a subject of instruction. It is considered to be
an important component of quality education, particularly in the early years.