A Paper Presentation in EL 108 Language Programs and Policies in Multilingual

Societies

Name/s:
Dinong, Aira
Saraba, Cristine Mae F.

Good Practices in Mother Tongue-First Multilingual Education

I. Introduction
In South East Asia, the Philippines is the only country to have instituted a
national policy requiring Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education (MTB-
MLE) in the primary school years. Native Language plays a crucial role at
learners especially those in primary levels. This will help them establish a
strong foundation that will help them in higher grade levels.
II. Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to;
 Recite the different good practices in Mother Tongue- First Multilingual
Education;
 Challenge yourself and create own good practices
III. Content

What is Mother Tongue-First Multilingual Education?

In 2012, the Department of Education (DepEd) implemented the use of

Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education in all public schools, specifically
in Grades 1, 2, and 3. In multilingual education programs (MLE) that start with
the mother tongue, learners use their own language for learning in the early
grades, while also learning
the official language as a classroom subject.

Good Practices in Mother Tongue-First Multilingual Education

 Programme planning
Parents and other stakeholders understand the rationale and principles of MT-first
MLE. It must be reliable and has a sustainable funding source. Moreover, must be
engaging enough.
Orthography development
Acceptable within language community, to government – systematic, multi-agency
approaches and supportive for transfer between languages.
Curriculum development
Develop standards and indicators for multilingual education based on national
curriculum guidelines. Supportive for transfer to other school systems and it include
themes and topics that are reflective of learners’ everyday life.
Instructional materials
Reflective of culture and world view of learners. Able to be used by teachers with
limited formal training. Supportive for transfer between languages.
Literature development
Materials that begin with the experiences of the learners. Methods replicable in the
community for sustainable literature development to support programme expansion.
Materials that preserve and develop the culture and values of the language
community.
Teacher identification and training
Teachers who are respected by the local community. Cascading training through
approaches which train trainers. Training for educational administrators and
supervisors.

What are the indicators of strong MLE programmes?

Time
 Challenges we have observed:
 Short, early-exit programmes Rapid implementation (short preparatory phase)
Short pilot programmes Thai – “successfully and quickly”!
Training
 Awareness raising for parents and other community stakeholders
 Training for teachers in MLE specific pedagogical and curriculum issues
 Training for teachers from minority language communities
 Training for educational administrators or supervisors
Tools
 Multi-agency process towards an agreed writing system
  Reading materials in L1 to promote reading fluency as a foundation for skills
transfer
 Advocacy and awareness raising strategies for stakeholders
 Testing, evaluation and documentation procedures.

IV. Exercises
IDENTIFICATION. Read the questions carefully and write your answer in
the space provided.
1. The Department of Education (DepEd) implemented this in all public
schools, specifically in Grades 1, 2, and 3.
2. Acceptable within language community, to government – systematic,
multi-agency approaches and supportive for transfer between
languages.
3. Teachers who are respected by the local community. Cascading
training through approaches which train trainers. Training for
educational administrators and supervisors.
4. Parents and other stakeholders understand the rationale and principles
of MT-first MLE. It must be reliable and has a sustainable funding
source. Moreover, must be engaging enough.
5. These are the indicators of strong MLE programmes.

 ANSWER KEY
1. Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education
2. Orthography development
3. Teacher identification and training
4. Programme planning
5. Time, Training and Tools

V. Summary
 In 2012, the Department of Education (DepEd) implemented the use of
Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education in all public schools,
specifically in Grades 1, 2, and 3.
 Curriculum development - develop standards and indicators for
multilingual education based on national curriculum guidelines.
 Orthography development - acceptable within language community, to
government – systematic, multi-agency approaches and supportive for
transfer between languages.
 Programme planning - parents and other stakeholders understand the
rationale and principles of MT-first MLE.
 Teacher identification and training - teachers who are respected by the
local community.
 Literature development - materials that begin with the experiences of the
learners.
 Instructional materials - reflective of culture and world view of learners.
 The indicators of strong MLE programmes are time, tool and training.

 References
 Google. (n.d.). Good practices in mother-tongue first multilingual education
- ppt download. Google. Retrieved November 1, 2022, from
https://www.google.com/amp/s/slideplayer.com/amp/16291438/