Formative Assessment Number 7 (Group 1)

Members: Almoguera, Arnico John Basa

Amisola, Jhucel Clarette Diamante
De Guzman, Frances Timothy Salcedo
Dela Cruz, Crystal Jane Osorio

Topic: Removal of Filipino Subject in College Curriculum

Issue: Should we let the Filipino subject be removed from the college curriculum or not?

Thesis Statement:

The Removal of Filipino subject from the college curriculum must not be legislated because the
language is what separates the Filipinos from the other foreign countries, countless Filipino
children will grow up knowing nothing about the history, and it will help to build up the colonial
mentality of every Filipino.

Claim 1: Language is what separates us from other foreign countries. The Filipino language is a
symbol of our nation, and it should not be eliminated so that the Filipinos may study it and
understand the differences between ourselves and other countries.

 Evidence 1: As stated by Juntereal (2019), The Philippine language symbolizes the

identity of being a Filipino different from other countries. It serves as the bonds that hold
the country's different cultures together. Indeed, it is the mother tongue of the people
that raised in the Philippines and it is capable of being as eloquent, technical,
sophisticated, affluent, and concise as English and any foreign language.

 Evidence 2: As claimed by Funtecha (2008), A Filipino must also love his birth nation
and, of course, his own language. The Filipinos are unique among Asian peoples only in
their language, especially these days when it is feasible to change skin color, facial form,
and characteristics. It’s almost as though only language remains to connect Filipino
vitality and potential to a permanent national identity.

 Evidence 3: As reported by Mojarro (2018), Filipinos have a lack of development

policies to encourage the maintenance or preservation of the precious and readily
disappearing local language, because they mistakenly perceive diversity as a threat to
national unity, when in fact it is the core of the Philippines' real and prismatic identity.
Unless anything is done, the Philippines will lose, at the very least, 50% of the
languages currently spoken in less than 100 years. It would be a cultural disaster.
Indeed, the preservation of these intangible cultural and intellectual heritage is based
solely upon whether they still have time to change it depending on their speakers'
desires.
Claim 2: Thousands of Filipino students would grow up knowing nothing about our history if the
Filipino course were dropped from the curriculum.

 Evidence 1: Based on Barrientos (2020), there is still a lot to learn in Philippine

history beyond the stories learned in grade school textbooks. The things that the
children learned during the elementary stage are not enough to fully understand
Philippine history, which gives more reasons why Filipinos must give more focus on
studying the history.

 Evidence 2: According to Pag-iwayan (2022), it is alarming that the youth lack

knowledge about their history. The video that was released by Pinoy Big Brother
Teen edition shows that many Filipinos are still not familiar with the history,
especially the new generation. The teachings about the country's history are not
enough to be confident that the next generation will be able to pass the knowledge
about the past.

 Evidence 3: In research from Dizon (2015), when the president learned that some
young Filipinos did not know Mabini, all he could do is to shake his head in disbelief.
Even though Mabini is one of the well-known heroes that contributed to the Spanish
revolution, there is still someone who does not know him because of a lack of knowledge
about history.

Claim 3: The Filipino subjects will help to build up the colonial mentality of every Filipino.

 Evidence 1: According to a news article written by Montemayor (2018), Because the

colloquial becomes impracticable to employ in conversations relevant to current
education and lifestyle, more and more students nowadays have difficulty using the
Filipino language in oral and written communication. On formal occasions such as in
work interviews, meetings writing, or even in street signage they use a foreign language
as a form of communication that the Philippine language is not been used the other
Filipino citizen that can’t understand English it might be difficult for them to comprehend.
The reason is that the foreigners will understand it easily but in the other country, the
Filipinos are the ones who adjust to their languages as part of respect.

 Evidence 2: In accordance with Punongbayan (2021), The Philippines is likely one of

the few countries in the world where no primary language is spoken on a national level.
Unfortunately, this condition has serious consequences, particularly in terms of political
and educational development, and, eventually, economic development. As primary, I
mean the language that is frequently used and communicated in almost all situations,
including government, industry, institutions, and even at home and in other informal
settings. Although numerous languages are spoken and used simultaneously in a nation,
the main language is required to bring the people united.
  Evidence 3: According to Santos (2009), The English language is important in order for
Filipinos to be united in the world's language, but if English is used even in those
disciplines, it will adjust understanding of the original language and produce problems
when it comes to knowing how to use language effectively. Because English is the
language that schools use to teach a range of subjects, students are more focused on
the proper usage of English terms and less interested in learning how to use their own
language. Filipinos already signify the inability to learn and pay attention to one's own
language, as well as the students' patriotism in enriching the country's culture.

Conclusion

The Filipino language is what symbolizes the national identity of every Filipino, separating us
from different countries and the varying cultures that have persevered since they were once
traditionally used, being left out through the changing of times. If these languages and cultures
are not preserved and taught even though a college setting, many of the Philippine history that
is yet to be learnt will be then lost as with the youth of this generation. If such a state arises that
the Filipinos are taught proficiently throughout their educational background on the Filipino
subject, it will effectively build up the colonial mentality, mitigating our country's background of
national, political, educational, and economic development also mitigating the new generation’s
difficulty in using the Filipino language. In conclusion, there are many reasons why the Filipino
subject should not be removed even in the college curriculum, that every Filipino should keep
learning thoroughly of our own language and history to separate us from other foreign countries.
 References

Barrientos, G. (2020). How were we not taught these stories in Philippine history class?
Scout Magazine. https://www.scoutmag.ph/60423/lesser-known-filipino-history/

Dizon, N. (2015, October 2). Filipino students learning all about history, Luistro insists.
INQUIRER.Net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/727322/filipino-students-learning-all-about-
history-luistro-insists

Funtecha, H. (2008, August 22). The Filipino language as spirit of national identity. The News
Today.
https://www.thenewstoday.info/2008/08/22/the.filipino.language.as.spirit.of.national.identi
ty.html

Juntereal, C. (2019, November 7). Our national language today. Manila Bulletin.
https://mb.com.ph/2019/08/04/our-national-language-today/

Mojarro, J. (2021, October 4). Linguistic diversity in the Philippines. The Manila Times.
https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/10/05/opinion/columns/linguistic-diversity-in-the-
philippines/1817130

Montemayor, M. T. (2018, August 29). Filipino: A dynamic, evolving language. Philippines News
Agency. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1046382

Pag-iwayan, J. (2022, April 18). Why we should be alarmed with #MaJoHa. Manila Bulletin.
https://mb.com.ph/2022/04/18/why-we-should-be-alarmed-with-majoha/

Punongbayan, B. R. (2021, July 12). Choosing and adopting a primary language soon. The
Manila Times. https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/07/13/opinion/columns/choosing-and-
adopting-a-primary-language-soon/1806755

Santos, T. U. (2009, August 31). Filipino, hindi marunong ng Filipino. The Varsitarian.
http://varsitarian.net/news/20090830/filipino_hindi_marunong_ng_filipino