Course Title : EL 107 – Language Program and Policies in

Multi Lingual Society

BILINGUAL EDUCATION AND THE BILINGUAL EDUCATION POLICY (BEP)

IN THE PHILIPPINES

Learning Activities:
I. ACTIVE
Before you analyze the Philippine BEP, it is vital that you have a clear grasp of the key
terms that will be used in this unit.

Bilingualism is used to describe the two languages of an individual. Specifically, it refers

to the ability of an individual to use two languages. On the other hand, diglossia is a term
that is used to refer to the use of two languages in the societal level. Fishman (1980, in
Baker, 2006) characterizes diglossia as the presence of a majority and a minority language
in a specific geographical area where each language is used for a specific purpose, audience,
and context.

Fishman identities four language situation where bilingualism and diglossia may exist
with or without each other, as shown in the below.

DIGLOSSIA

+
 INDIVIDUAL Situation 1 Situation 3

Diglossia and bilingualism Bilingualism without

together diglossia

Everyone in the community Most people are bilingual

uses the majority and the and does not restrict the
minority language. For use of any language to a
example, the majority specific purpose or context.
language is used for
education and government
while the minority language
is used in the family and local
neighborhood.
Situation 2 Situation 4

Diglossia without Neither bilingualism nor

bilingualism Diglossia

One group of participants A linguistically diverse

speaks one language, while community was forced to
the other group speaks a convert into a monolingual
different language. one.

The language situation presented above shows the functions and interactions of two (or
perhaps more) languages in one community. How do you think will these language
situations affect a bilingual education policy?
Bilingual Education Policy aims the achievement of competence in two languages, through
the teaching of both languages and their use as media of instructions at all levels. But
somehow it has a positive and negative impact. For me, situation 1 and 3 has a positive
effect in the bilingual education policy because as we can see on the first situation, people in
the community are using both major and minor language. And on the third situation, people
do not limit their using of any language when they are communication. So, meaning,
students can practice and improve both of their first and second language. On the other
hand, Situations 2 and 4 are both negative. Take a look on the second situation, people on
the community are divided into two and looks like they don’t have unity. It will come to a
point that if ever they will talk, they won’t understand each other even though they live in
the same community. And on the situation 4, because of the language diversity they are
forced to speak one language only.