Manio, Cassandra BSED English

2B
Morandante, Cyril
Mandocdoc, Railey
Meneses, Joyce
Mejica, Jeralyn
Obtinario Perly

ABSTRACT
Topic: THE LANGUAGE POLICIES OF THE PHILIPPINES AND THAILAND

Reporter: Cyril F. Morandante

To have a grip on the complex history of language planning in the Philippines, it is advantageous
to start with the following chronological map that visually represents the period from the
transition from the Spanish to the American colonial regimes up to the present (adapted from
Demeterio, 2012, p. 28):

A Profile of the Philippine Language Policies and Practices

National language. The present national language of the Philippines is Filipino and Figure 1
shows how its almost 80 years of history is characterized by renamings and discontinuities.
Tagalog-1 refers to the Tagalog language, which in 1937was considered the basis of an intended
national language. Eventually, Tagalog-1 was named the National Language of the
Commonwealth of the Philippines in 1939. Tagalog-2 refers to the same Tagalog language,
which in 1940 was made into a mandatory academic subject. Pilipino-1 refers to that stage when
the national language was renamed “Pilipino” in 1959 in order to dissociate it from the Tagalog
ethnic group and presumably ease the resentment of the other Philippine ethnic groups,
particularly the Cebuanos, the Ilocanos and the Hiligaynons. Pilipino-2 refers to that stage when
the same language was divested of its national language status in 1973 while maintaining its
supposedly temporary official status. Filipino-1 refers to a grandiose project, envisioned in 1973
but did not take off, concerning the building of a new national language from the grammar and
vocabularies of the Philippine languages. Filipino-2 refers to that stage when Pilipino was
renamed “Filipino” in 1987 and invested again with the status of national language. Thus, the
Philippine national language may be said to be around for almost 80 years if the reckoning starts
from Tagalog-1; but considering the disruption brought about by Filipino-1, it would be more
reasonable to start the reckoning from Filipino-2 and say that it has been around only about 30
years. Official languages. The official languages of the Philippines are English and Filipino.
English has been the official language for over a century now; Spanish only ceased to be an
official language in 1973; while Filipino (Tagalog-2 in Figure 1) only became an official
language in 1941. Thus, Filipino as a co-official language has been around for only about 70
years. But, again, because of the disruption brought about by the temporary status of Pilipino-
2that was supposed to be replaced by Filipino-1, it would be more reasonable to start the
reckoning from Filipino-2 and say that Filipino has been a co-official language for only about 30
years. In addition to English and Filipino, the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the
Philippines recognized the regional languages as official auxiliary languages in their respective
regions.

Question: Do you agree with the assertion that Filipino serves as our national language, with its
roots grounded in Tagalog?

International language. With the transition from Spanish to American colonial regimes,
Spanish as an international language also waned in the Philippines with the waxing of English.
At present, very few Filipinos understand and use Spanish. This makes English the sole
international language in the country.
Status of the regional languages. According to Ethnologue the Philippines has 181 living
languages (Cf. “Philippines”). Subtracting Filipino, Tagalog, Chinese Mandarin, Chinese Min
Nan, Chinese Yue, and Spanish from this total, the country, therefore, has 175 regional
languages. Although these languages are heavily used in everyday non-formal communication,
they have minimal official standing. Since 1939, they have been intermittently used as auxiliary
languages for learning. The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines has a more
affirmative stance on them with its recognition of their being official auxiliary languages in their
respective regions, its vision of continuously enriching Filipino with elements coming from
them, and its mandate for the Congress to establish a national language commission composed of
regional representatives and tasked with conducting developmental and conservational
researches on the Philippine languages. The Philippines’ most dramatic support for the regional
languages is the Order 74, Series 2009 of the Department of Education, entitled
“Institutionalizing Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education,” that stipulated the use of such
languages in the early years of primary education.

Question: Do you support the implementation of mother tongue-based multilingual education in

primary schools? If not, what do you believe are the shortcomings or errors in this directive?

Status of other foreign languages. Ethnologue includes four foreign languages in its list of 181
living Philippine languages: Chinese Mandarin, Chinese Min Nan, Chinese Yue, and Spanish.
Among these four, however, only Spanish is mentioned in the 1935, 1973 and 1987
constitutions. Specifically, the 1935 Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Philippines
retained Spanish as a co-official language, while the 1973 Constitution of the Republic of the
Philippines specified it together with Arabic as one of the languages to which the constitution
shall be translated, and the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines provided that
Spanish, together with Arabic, shall be promoted on voluntary and optional bases. Chinese
Mandarin, although not mentioned in any of the Philippine constitutions, enjoys the status of
being taught and used in Chinese primary and secondary schools.
Languages in the public sphere. With the presence of two official languages, 175 official
auxiliary languages, and a handful of other foreign languages, determining the dominant
language in the Philippine public sphere is a little complicated thing to do. In this paper,
therefore, the public sphere was first broken into the following domains: [1] national
government, [2] courts, [3] military, [4] religion, [5] education, [6] entertainment, [7] press/
literature, [8] local government, [9] businesses and offices, [10] factories, and [11] marketplaces
and home-based industries (Adapted from Schmidt-Rohr as cited by Haberland, 2005, pp. 229-
230). Then, for each domain it was discerned if Filipino, English, the regional languages, and the
other foreign languages have primary, secondary, tertiary or quaternary dominance. Such
discernment was based on the authors’ familiarity with the linguistic landscape of their home
country, as well as on the information culled from the literature on Philippine languages. To be
able to come up with averages, numerical values were assigned: 1 for primary, 2 for secondary, 3
for tertiary, and 4 for quaternary dominance, with 5 for non-use. English has primary, the
regional languages have secondary, and Filipino has tertiary dominance in the Philippine public
sphere and that the other foreign languages are relatively not significantly used (Table 1).
Language programs. With the presence of two colonial languages, discontinuities in the
histories of national and official languages, and further discontinuities in language planning, a
series of discontinuous language programs were put in place mainly in the domain of education.
Hence in Figure 1, monolingualism-a refers to the Spanish monolingual education;
monolingualism-b, to English monolingual education; bilingualism-a, to a program that started in
1939 that established English as the primary medium of instruction and the regional languages as
the auxiliary medium of instruction; bilingualism-b, to a short-lived program in 1969 that
mandated the use of Filipino as the primary medium of instruction and the regional languages as
the de facto auxiliary medium of instruction; multilingualism-a, to another short-lived program
in 1973 that directed the use of the regional languages as the medium of instruction for the early
years of primary education

before transitioning to Filipino and English; bilingualism-c, to the more lasting and known
version of bilingualism that started in 1974 and the specified use of only Filipino and English as
the medium of instruction for primary, secondary, and tertiary education; multilingualism-b, to a
modification of bilingualism-c during the Presidency of Corazon Aquino that recognized again
the regional languages as auxiliary medium of instruction; and finally, multilingualism-c, to an
innovation in 2009 that is based on the principles of mother language education that begins with
the regional languages and systematically transitions into the use of Filipino and English. As
already mentioned, this program was the Philippines’ most dramatic support for the regional
languages.

Socio-Cultural and Political Contexts

The socio-historical and political contexts of Philippine languages are complex and shaped by a
rich history of colonization, cultural interactions, and political changes. Understanding the
linguistic landscape of the Philippines involves considering various factors:
Pre-colonial Period:
Prior to Spanish colonization in the 16th century, the Philippines was home to diverse indigenous
communities with their own languages and writing systems.
The archipelago had a thriving trade network, and linguistic diversity was a reflection of the
numerous ethnic groups and cultures.
Spanish Colonization:
Spanish colonization from the 16th to the 19th centuries had a profound impact on the
Philippines, including its languages.
Spanish became the official language of the government, education, and religion, influencing the
development of local languages through loanwords and influences on syntax and grammar.
The Roman script was introduced for writing, replacing indigenous scripts.
American Period:
The Philippines came under American rule after the Spanish-American War in 1898.
English was introduced as the medium of instruction, and its influence in education, government,
and business began to grow.
The use of English further contributed to language dynamics, including language shift and
bilingualism.
Japanese Occupation and Post-War Period:
During World War II, the Philippines was occupied by Japan.
After the war, the country experienced reconstruction and the re-establishment of its educational
and political systems, with English maintaining its prominence.
Post-Independence and Martial Law:
The Philippines gained independence from the United States in 1946.
The Filipino language, based on Tagalog, was chosen as the national language in the 1935
Constitution and further developed as a tool for national unity.
Martial law under President Ferdinand Marcos (1972-1981) influenced language policy, with the
promotion of "Pilipino" (a standardized form of Filipino) as a means of fostering national
identity.
Contemporary Period:
The 1987 Constitution designated Filipino, based on Tagalog, as the national language, while
English remained an official language.
The Philippines today is characterized by linguistic diversity, with over 170 languages spoken,
and a bilingual education system (Filipino and English).
Globalization and Technology
: Globalization and technological advancements have contributed to language change and the
adoption of new terminologies.
English remains widely used, especially in business, technology, and higher education.
In summary, the socio-historical and political contexts of Philippine languages are marked by a
complex interplay of indigenous, Spanish, and American influences, along with efforts to
establish a national language and navigate linguistic diversity in the modern era.
Reporter: Cassandra Manio

Filipino as national and official language encountered problems in its selection condification
processes. It's pre war versions ( Tagalog -1 and Tagalog 2) had problems with the selection
dimension due to that perceive heavy handed imposition of Tagalog ethnic group , but it went on
with a rather successful codification . It's 1973 version( Filipino -1) could have addressed the
problem of selection by promising a new ethnically neutral / inclusive national language , but
faltered in its condification , and miserably reverted as( Filipino -2) to the evolving condification
that started in the pre war period . The regional languages had been successful in the selection
dimension, as there are no noticeable oppositions to the government's inclusivist action of
making these languages the official auxiliary languages of their respective regions and the
medium of instruction in the early years of primary education . But in actual reality , things may
not be as neat as they appear. First, the boundaries among ethno- linguistic groups do not
coincide with the political boundaries of the local governments . Second ,there are local
governments that are saddled with too many regional languages . Faced with so many still
uncondified regional languages , the government stealthily substituted it's mother language
education program with a regional ligua franca education program , at least for the time being.
Spanish , Arabic , and Mandarin like English are also well condified and elaborated languages .
But unlike case of English , the plans for Spanish , Arabic and Mandarin are not intensively
implemented and widely supported by Filipinos . As has been shown ( Table 1) , how these other
foreign languages are relatively not significantly used in the domains or the Philippines public
sphere. The structural and organization mechanism that support the Filipino language are the
Department of Education ,the Commission on Higher Education and the Komisyon sa Wikang
Filipino( Commission on Filipino Language ). These departments and commissions are too few,
too preoccupied with other concerns ,and too weak to goad Filipino against the hegemony Of
English The regional languages are structurally and organizationally supported by the
Department of Education and nomilly by the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino. The Department of
Education is the specific government office that is flooded with the already mentioned
condification of regional languages for the supposedtedly ongoing mother language education
program. In addition to thesetwo government offices , there are a handful of non- government
organizations mostly groups of regional writers , that support specific regional languages .
Examples of these organisations are LUDABI for the Cebuano , and GUMIL for Ilocano.

Implications on Nationalism and Multiculturalism

One of the motivations for the establishment of Filipino as national language was the cultivation
of unified national identity . But since the perceived heavy handed imposition of the Tagalog
ethnic group resulted in resentment among those who do not belong to this ethic group , this
language did not do much in the strengthening of Filipino nationalism.
Question: What is the difference between multicultural and multiculturalism?
The first refers to a state of cultural diversity , while the second refers to an attitude of openness
to such diversity. There might be linguistic diversity in the Philippines ,but it does not follow that
its government has that attitude of openness to such diversity. Philippine multiculturalism cannot
be deducted from its failed mono-cultural attempt to cultivate a unified national identity through
Filipino national language .
Implications on Human and Intellectual Capital
The Philippines has already achieved the status of being one of the most top labor exporting
countries ,but a closer look (Table 4) , showing data from the Human Capital Index 2013 and the
Global Innovation Index 2014. This incongruence could have been a result of an insufficiency
arising from the Philippine government and people's insistence on using English as the primary
medium of instruction that necessitates so much time for the learning and mastery of the
language without the guarantee that such time expended wouldindeed result in the functional use
of the same language . English in the Philippines has become a bottleneck in the education of the
young Filipinos. Had the country shifted to using the national language as the primary medium
of instruction , the education process would have been a lot more efficient.
Implications on Regional Integration and Globalization
The Philippines and it's people 's facility for the English language ,the official language of the
ASEAN and a major Franca of international interaction ,is more than ready for regional
integration and globalization .But globalization is not just about communication ; it is more so
about human capital and functional economies .If the Philippines strengthened it's
communication facility at the expense of prioritizing it's human capitaland economy , then the
country should have second thoughts about its readiness for regional integration and how
Filipino workers are distributed among foreign occupational groups , reveals that only few of
them land in white collar jobs. ( adapted from National Statistics Office ,2013)
Reporter: Jeralyn Mejica
THE LANGUAGE POLICIES AND PRACTICES OF THAILAND

Again, to have a grip on the history of language planning in Thailand, it is also

advantageous to start with the following chronological map that visually represents
the period from the establishment of the Chakri Dynasty and the Kingdom of
Rattanakosin in 1782 up to the present.

A Profile of the Thai Language Policies and Practices

National language. The de facto national language of Thailand is Thai; its more
than a century history of existence is characterized by developmental continuity
(Figure 2). Thai-1 refers to the Central Thai language, which in 1918 was imposed
by King Vajiravudh (Rama VI) as a subject and medium of instruction to all
private schools, specially the Chinese schools, and which in 1921 was used as the
medium of instruction in Thailand’s compulsory education program (Cf.
Ratanapat, 1990, pp. 107-108; Tungasvadi, 2004, pp. 47-48). Thai-2 refers to the
same language, which in 1940, through a state convention, was made into one of
the primary symbols of Thai nationalism and an obligatory language to be learned
by all inhabitants of Thailand (Cf. Simpson & Thammasathien, 2007, p. 397).
Official language. Thai is the only official language of the Kingdom of Thailand.
Such status must be reckoned from the reign of Vajiravudh. Therefore, this official
language has been around for almost a century.
International language. English is the foremost international language of
Thailand. Its presence in Thailand can be dated back to the decision of King
Nangklao (Rama III), who ruled from 1824 to 1851, to let his court be familiar
with this language in order to elude the threat of colonial domination. Nangklao
had access to the language through the American Baptist missionaries who arrived
in 1833, and the American Presbyterian missionaries who arrived in 1840 (Cf.
Methitham & Chamcharatsri, 2011, pp. 59-60). This policy was supported and
expanded by his successors, King Mongkut (Rama IV), King Chulalongkorn
(Rama V), and Vajiravudh.
Status of regional languages. According to Ethnologue, Thailand has 73 living
languages. Subtracting from this the Ban Khor Sign Language, Chiangmai Sign
Language, Chinese Mandarin, Thai and Thai Sign Language, the country,
therefore, has 68 regional languages. Although these languages are heavily used in
everyday non-formal communication, they underwent a rather long history of
repression, as a consequence of the propagation of Central Thai as the national and
official language. The languages, other than the Central Thai, that belong to the
Thai family were considered dialects and variants of the Central Thai. The rest of
the languages that do not belong to the Thai family were marginalized as minority
languages. Despite the dominance of the Central Thai, there is generally no
tangible resentment coming from the other ethnic groups (Cf. Smalley, 1988, p.
246).
Status of other foreign languages. Aside from English, the other foreign
languages that are significant in Thailand are Chinese Mandarin, Japanese, Pali,
and Arabic. Chinese Mandarin has been part of the curriculum of the Chinese
schools since the establishment of the Kingdom of Rattanakosin, and although it
experienced periods of repression it is presently the second most popular foreign
language in the country (Cf. Luangthongkum, 2007, p. 190). Japanese used to be
the second most popular foreign language before it was overshadowed by Chinese
Mandarin (Cf. Luangthongkum, 2007, p. 190). Thais who can speak Chinese
Mandarin and Japanese possess advantage in the job market. Pali, a dead Indian
language, and Arabic are used as religious languages by Buddhists and Muslims,
respectively, and are taught in temples and mosques. Aside from these major
foreign languages, Thailand also has a number of languages that are shared with its
neighboring countries, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia. But for the
purposes of this paper, these border languages are treated as either regional or
minority languages of Thailand, instead of international languages.
Languages in the public sphere. With the presence of an official language, 68
regional languages and a handful of foreign languages, the dominant language in
the Thai public sphere may be determined following the scheme that was used in
this paper for the Philippines.
Language programs. Bilingualism-a (Figure 2) refers to the archaic temple-based
education that presumably used either the mother tongues or some lingua francas
together with Pali. Bilingualism-b pertains to the elite court-based education that
used Thai and English starting from the decision of Nangklao to familiarize the
Thai royalty and aristocracy with the language. Monolingualism denotes the
secular and modern education implemented by Chulalongkorn starting in 1884 (Cf.
Sangnapaboworn, 2007, p. 261).
Socio-Historical and Political Contexts
Figure 2 might show that the presence of English as a foreign language antedated
the establishment of Thai as official language by almost 90 years and as national
language by more than 100 years, but such do not mean that English was able to
entrench itself deeper than Thai. English started as an international language for
only a very small number of Thai royalty and aristocracy.

Reporter: Railey Mandocdoc

Implications on Nationalism and Multiculturalism
One of the motivations for the establishment of Thai as national language was the
cultivation of a unified national identity (Table 7). Such desire for a unified
national identity was not nurtured for the sake of a unified national identity but
rather for the sake of saving the Kingdom of Rattanakosin from the external threat
of the French and British colonial powers as well as from the internal threat of the
Thai-Chinese.

Implications on Human and Intellectual Capital

Thailand appears to have maximized its rather struggling educational infrastructure
and culture (Table 5) that juxtaposes data from the Human Capital Index 2013 and
the Global Innovation Index 2014. In terms of educational infrastructure and
culture, Thailand ranks 6th in the ASEAN region. But in terms of translating this
standing to the context of the workplace and employment, the country climbs to
the 3rd rank in the same region, and, in terms of translating its educational standing
to innovativeness, the country retains the 3rd rank in the same region. This
impressive incongruence could have been a result of an efficiency arising from the
Thai government’s insistence on using Thai as the primary medium of instruction.
Although Central Thai may not be the mother tongue of many Thais, the major
regional languages of Thailand are related to it as part of one linguistic family.

Implications on Regional Integration and Globalization

Thailand may not be very proficient with English, but it does not mean that it is not
ready for regional integration and globalization. It has enough leaders and
intellectuals who are proficient with English and therefore can communicate
regionally and internationally. Furthermore, some Thais are very proficient with
Chinese Mandarin and with the handful of their boundary languages such as
Burmese, Lao, Cambodian, and Malay, which are languages of some of the
ASEAN countries.
 COMPARISON AND CONTRAST

On the Profiles of the Philippine and Thai Language Policies and Practices The
Philippines and Thailand’s linguistic profiles are similar in the sense that they
both: [1] have a national indigenous language,
[2] use such national indigenous language as official language,
[3] have English as primary international language,
[4] have a number of regional languages,
[5] are currently shifting to a multilingual affirmation for these regional languages,
and
[6] have other international languages.
Reporter: Perly Obtinario
The Implications on Nationalism and Multiculturalism of Philippine and Thai
Language Policies and Practices
Filipino and Thai are different in their impact on the development of their
respective nationalism. Tagalog/Filipino deteriorated into a divisive political
matter and therefore could not contribute much to the development of Philippine
nationalism. Thai, on the other hand, was successfully established as one of the key
symbols of Thai nationalism and one of the defining characteristics of Thai-ness.

The Implications on Human and Intellectual Capital of Philippine and Thai

Language Policies and Practices
Comparing how the Philippines and Thailand translated their educational
infrastructure and culture into advantages in the context of the workplace and
employment as well as in the sphere of innovation, it would appear that Thailand is
faring much better compared to the Philippines (Table 12).

The Implications on Regional Integration and Globalization of Philippine and

Thai Language Policies and Practices
In terms of English as the official language of the ASEAN and the lingua franca of
globalization, the Philippines definitely has an edge over Thailand. But Thailand
has an edge over the Philippines in terms of Chinese Mandarin, as a major
language in the ASEAN region and also a lingua franca of globalization.
Reporter: Joyce Meneses
CONCLUSION:
INSIGHTS AND LESSONS
What the Philippines Can Learn From Thailand

Thailand has more success than the Philippines in terms of planning for the
national language, the official language, and the other international languages, thus
the lessons that the Philippines can glean from Thailand should come from these
three areas of language planning. Reflecting on Thailand’s planning for national
language, the Philippines should realize that in a linguistically heterogeneous
context, the selection of a national language would inevitably be a political process
that would include irresolvableissues from some aggrieved ethnic groups.

What Thailand Can Learn From the Philippines

The Philippines has more success than Thailand in terms of planning for English
and the regional languages, hence the lessons that Thailand can glean from the
Philippines should come from these two areas of language planning. As to the
relative success of the propagation of English in the Philippines, Thailand should
see its positive and negative sides. On the positive side, Thailand may learn how
the Philippines propagated the use of English by making it the primary medium of
instruction in education and by allowing English to dominate most aspects of the
Philippine public sphere. On the negative side, such method of propagating English
may negatively result in an inefficient educational system that fails to produce
graduates who are able to translate their educational capital into functional
economic power and drive for innovation. Furthermore, such method of
propagating English may negatively result to the erosion of Thai-ness that the
country is supposed to be jealously guarding. In other words, Thailand should
think twice about following the Philippine fascination and obsession with the
English language.

Insights and Lessons for the ASEAN Countries and Beyond

Concerning the planning for national language, the ASEAN and other countries
that are grappling with the issues and challenges of being multicultural and
multilingual as well as those that are gearing for regional integration/cooperation
may gather the following insights and lessons: that a national language can be used
as a tool for nation building; that national language planning in a linguistically
heterogeneous context can be a very difficult task that needs a lot of political will,
financial support, and organizational backing; that national language planning
implies some irresolvable issues coming from aggrieved ethnic groups; and, that
the stakeholders should be able to see the necessity and urgency of such planning.