Never fear English

[russpogi]

Never fear English--Danton Remoto
Danton Remoto/abs-cbnNEWS.com | 11/17/2008 12:00 AM

REMOTE CONTROL

The Philippines is still the third-largest English-speaking country in the world. But more and more, we have to qualify this statement. Does it mean a deep knowledge of English, or functional English just enough to get by? And what does this statement mean – that there is only one kind of English in the world?

Linguists and language specialists have concluded that there is nothing wrong with code-switching, i.e., using English and Tagalog, when discussing difficult concepts in subjects like Science and Math. Moreover, they found out that students in their early years (Grades 1 to 2) learn concepts better when they taught in their native languages. In short, one’s first tongue – or the language one has imbibed like mother’s milk – is best in laying the foundation for learning.

But this doesn’t indicate the uselessness of English. Learning in English can be introduced in Grade 3 for those whose first language is not English, and we are talking here of a majority of Filipinos. The foundations having been prepared, the students can now navigate the shoals of concepts and arrive at insights using another, borrowed tongue. How so? Because they would already have the confidence to form concepts and insights without translating them in their minds three times, i.e., from Ilocano to Tagalog to English.

Dr. Isabel Pefianco Martin, former chair of the Ateneo’s English Department, wrote that in our country, “The language most feared is English. I see this in my students who joke that their noses bleed after they talk in English; in my friends who claim that they speak English only when they’re drunk; and in my doctor who suddenly switches to Tagalog after I tell him I teach English. We see this fear of English in classes where students feel stupid because they mispronounced a word; in contact centers where applicants take accent neutralization sessions; and in English review centers that continue to mushroom in Metro Manila. Fear of English is also manifested in predictions that the country is approaching an English-deprived future; in House bills that seek to make English the sole medium of instruction in schools; and in courses or training programs that focus only on developing grammatical accuracy.”

How can we banish this fear of English?

Like the language

As in relationships, we stop fearing somebody when we look at him or her as a friend. Thus, what Stephen Krashen calls “affective filters” should be eliminated. These are the emotional barriers that prevent one from liking, or even loving, a language. And logically, one can like or love a language when these “affective filters” are gone.

I’ve been teaching English for 22 years at the Ateneo and have taught all kinds of students – from the poor, book-deprived but bright scholar from Malaybalay, Bukidnon to the cool, casual, and book-hating Fil-Am from Queens, NY. There’s also the occasional Cambodian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese who has enrolled for my undergraduate or even graduate classes in English.

What to do with them?

I tell them to be familiar with English. In short, to live in that language, to inhabit it, to embrace it. They should read their texts, watch English-language films, listen to language tapes and love songs, keep a journal or a blog in English. I encourage them to talk to each other in English. So in my class, Vith the Cambodian talks to Hanh the Vietnamese in English that may be slow now, but we are going there. Maria of Malaybalay begins to string together longer sentences in English, describing the hills of her province. To learn a language is to know its culture. Therefore, I tell them (especially students from other Asian countries) to be more open to other cultures and ways of being. In short, to open the doors and windows of their houses to the call of another language.

Another way to banish this fear is to remember that there are now many varieties of English. Its ownership is now shared by many countries and continents. English is no longer talked about in the singular form. Rather, like the atom, it has split and like an organism, it has mutated into many forms. When I was studying in the U.K., I heard Kenyan English from Peter Okeke and Nigerian English from Orufemi Abodundrin. When I studied later in the U.S.A., my conversations with Felicity (from Isle of Skye, Scotland), with Marta (from St. Lucia, Caribbean) and with Bob (from Malta) sounded some kind of rich, varied, and musical English to my Filipino ears.

We've colonized English

English is important and will always be so. It’s one of the 150 languages we use in the Philippines today. Studies show that Filipinos – a talented lot – speak at least three different languages. Who knows, one of them could even be English!

As the poet and UP Professor Jimmy Abad has said, English is no longer a foreign language. It’s already ours, for we have already colonized it. As with a T-shirt or a pair of jeans that you own, you should wear it proudly – and wear it well.

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[SIZE=1]This column was commissioned by the British insurer Pru-Life as part of its Planet English project to promote the use of English in the Philippines. Comments can be sent to www.dantonremoto2010.blogspot.com[/SIZE]

as of 11/18/2008 12:15 AM

Source:
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/views-and...-danton-remoto

[redorange]

Why is there fear of the english language? I don't recall it being that way when I was going to elementary school in the 70's. Maybe it's just my impression because my auntie was an english professor and I learned to speak english and tagalog at the same time. Is it because the educational system has gone down to the point that people can neither speak/write english or tagalog properly without resorting to text speak or taglish? I teach my daughter to speak tagalog at home and to only speak english to her friends. Taglish is frowned upon, either speak tagalog or speak english but don't do both at the same time.

[russpogi]

Why is there fear of the english language? I don't recall it being that way when I was going to elementary school in the 70's. Maybe it's just my impression because my auntie was an english professor and I learned to speak english and tagalog at the same time. Is it because the educational system has gone down to the point that people can neither speak/write english or tagalog properly without resorting to text speak or taglish? I teach my daughter to speak tagalog at home and to only speak english to her friends. Taglish is frowned upon, either speak tagalog or speak english but don't do both at the same time.

Nowadays, English is indeed "feared". Try talking to the general youth today: they can hardly speak one decent sentence in straight English. I blame the media for this: English-language shows being dubbed in Filipino. What for? Do they think that Filipinos would not be able to understand if the show is in English?

Now, compare that to the people who where in their youth during the 80's, 90's and below: they can speak perfect English most of the time. Why? Because most of the things in print and mass media is in English at that time. All these WITHOUT losing their native tongues (like Tagalog, Bisaya, Kapangpangan, etc.).

Also, in today's generation, you'd hear the term "nosebleed ako!", paano ba naman, di kayang mag-English ng maayos man lang. Think Janina San Miguel.

[uls]

compare that to the people who where in their youth during the 80's, 90's and below

yes, lalo na earlier... mga lolos and lolas na nakakausap ko... their english is perfect. Americanized kasi education nila. American textbooks ang gamit nila noon.

paatras tayo e

Now Koreans and mainland Chinese are learning english

[niky]

Yup... it's very easy to see English as an "American" thing... a foreign thing... but English doesn't belong to the Americans... it used to belong to the Brits...

Nowadays, you have a lot of different flavors of English... off the top of my head, I've heard British (which also has a ton of regional accents), Irish, Scottish (almost unintelligible at times), New Yawk (ya, I'm talkin ta yew... I used to have this accent), Southern, California, Afro, Indian, Jamaican, Chinese (Hong Kong English has a very distinct sound), Hawaiian / Polynesian, Australian (yes, it's different from British English), Bisayan ( ) and Tagalog...

What's funny about call center training, it addresses mostly the accent. Accent is an important factor in how English speakers communicate... and the reason why the Philippines is preferred by some companies over India... because the Indian accent is very thick.

---

It's sad what has happened to Filipino English. Part of the blame is on mass media... particularly TV hosts who started the trend for Taglish... and partly because of the stupid politics affecting English teaching. The focus on English in the curriculum has gone back and forth due to various political interests. Sometimes, Filipino is pushed to replace everything... because it's the "makabayan" (patriotic) thing to do. Then the focus is put on English, for preparation for global competitiveness... then the focus is switched back to the "dying" Filipino language.

The result? Damn kids nowadays can't speak English or even deep Tagalog. Nosebleed? I had a classmate in College who could talk like the best of the leftists... Tagalog so deep that even our other friends, who made fun of my poor Tagalog all the time, would stop in their tracks and go... "Whaaaaa?"

Teach civics in Filipino. Teach Filipino language. But the next time someone suggests teaching science and math in Filipino, including translating all technical terms into Filipino, despite there not being any equivalent words... I will personally strangle them.

Have you ever tried to translate Physics terms into Filipino? "Pounds per square foot" of pressure equals "librang kada talampakang kuwadrado" (never mind that two of those words are actually spanish). By the time you finish writing that, you don't have enough time to actually answer the exam...

[CVT]

^^^ Agree. When speaking with our American boss/counterparts, I need to 'eat my words' or mumble, just like a regular American for him/them to understand what I'm saying. Most peculiar, isn't it?

I remember my favorite Corregidor tour guide, Pablito, who said that a touring Englishman told him that he(Pablito) does not speak English, but rather he speaks American....

7000:diver:

[niky]

hahaha... that's actually true. The English taught here from the 50's to the 70's is very American English.

The sad thing is, students nowadays compare their natural, Filipino English accent to the American English accent of their grandparents and get an instant "inferiority complex" about the way they speak English... so thehy refuse to talk in English, which makes the problem even worse.

[mbeige]

The advantages of speaking English is that it's an international language, so conveying technical information can be done easily and with similar precision. Try that in Tagalog and you end up with, "ganito lang yan, anuhin mo ito, tapos takpan mo nyan, lihain mo ng ganito lang, wag masyado, ayos ka na"

Moreso, you can convey something more specific than saying something in Tagalog that's a bit vague. For example, you want to say "him" or "her" but in Tagalog we can only refer to them as "siya" - there is no gender in our language. So in essence, if we get used to that kind of thinking, we get used to generalizing everything.

I mean, yes, English is considered a foreign thing. Not much so an American thing anymore, but moreso a non local thing so much so that if you speak it when you're in the homeland people look at you differently. "Pilipino ka, magtagalog ka" - no problem there, except that some don't even know how to speak either language fluently anymore. They get a bit of both, but not fluent on either.

When you say "fear English" I think what the context of the article means is that, we should not fear pushing our envelope further. English is considered, as mentioned earlier, a foreign thing. As such, pushing ourselves to learn something else involves making mistakes, but the sad thing with our culture is that we make fun of those who make grammatical errors. "Barok style" is what we call them and that does not help. It's all about the culture of having image on top of everything else. If your English speaking skills ruins your image, you'll be laughed at for even trying. Ain't that the truth.

I think the reason why we're so backwards, is that we poke fun of mistakes other people commit. Instead of helping them out and refraining from making any comment, negative remarks are said that ultimately bring the effort to try speaking English properly and fluently, into futility. Here in the US, if you do something out of the ordinary, as long as people know you're trying to better yourself, they will support you and provide you with constructive criticism. I pray it will be that way over there, eventually.

[Bogeyman]

Fear English?

I dread Engrish more.

[uls]

Hai!