A Troubling Filipino Textbook for College Freshmen
I recently had the misfortune of stumbling upon a Filipino Textbook for College Freshmen which endlessly bothered me. Its title alone, is enough to make you wonder what is happening to the state of our education system and, more importantly, our national language. The book is entitled “FILIPINO 1 AKADEMIKONG FILIPINO TUNGO SA EFEKTIV NA KOMUNIKASYON.” On the cover there’s a sign that proudly boasts that it’s “CHED Compliant.” The authors of the book are Rolando A. Bernales, Glecy A. Atienza, Vivencio M. Talegon, Jr., Amelita P. Achas, Luvismin D. Danao, Elizabeth A. Joson, Petra s. Ornos, Stanley G. Rovira, and Tessie s. Suguran.
The book seems to be an English book, only Filipinized. It uses words such as “varayti,” “varyasyon,” “perspektiv,” “definisyon,” and “morfoloji,” among others. In fact, section 1.5.3 on page 67 is entitled as “2001 Revisyon ng Alfabeto at Patnubay sa Ispeling ng Wikang Filipino: Mga Tuntunin.” What really bothered me about the book is how it seems to perpetuate an English-based Filipino language. Yes, times are changing and language is supposed to be dynamic. But it does not have to be lazy, or lousy.
Language is one important factor of a nation and the culture of its people. It reflects a people’s identity, its heritage, its culture. Is this what our country has come to? A Filipinized American society?
A lot of educators and institutions focus a lot of attention and effort in improving our use of the English language as if our survival as a nation depended on it. In my opinion it does not. Rather, it is the success of our economy that rides on its proliferation.
But our survival as a nation, as a people with a unique history, with a rich cultural heritage depends on our preservation and use of the Filipino langugage and other vernacular languages. Unfortunately, we don’t seem to be too concerned about it.
Let us not be a nation ashamed of our identity and too lazy and lousy to be proud of our heritage. Our language is not just a means of communication, but an embodiment of who we are, and where we came from. Unless something is done to avoid the bastardization of the Filipino language, then, there is really no way for us to progress. We will just be another English-speaking country, with no roots or own identity to speak of. We are not an American colony, let us not act like we are one.
32 Responses to “A Troubling Filipino Textbook for College Freshmen”
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28 years old from Davao City, blogging since 2004. :)
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glecy atienza (kung siya talaga yun) was my filipino professor in UP. palanca and ccp winner yan. back in college, many filipino writers/professors encourage the use of Filipino in the way we speak it. dahil ang Filipino ay buhay na wika, walang masama na humiram sa ibang wika, tulad ng ingles. in the same way na ang ingles ay maraming hiniram ding salita mula sa ibang wika….
Yes, it’s not bad to borrow words from other languages. But it seems that the book or its authors was just too lazy to use the proper Filipino words. Moreover, there’s a very big difference between borrowing some words, and borrowing an entire language.
It’s so sad that English words are changed into filipino words with a different spelling. Pipol for People? haha. That’s juts hilarious. Why, my beloved Pinoys? And Taglish? That’s so weird. Me, I prefer pure Filipino or pure English, with a bit of interchanged, but totally acceptable words. But Taglish to bad English, to FILIPINO with misplled English words, that is beyond belief. Makes me puke to be honest with you.
What if I spoke like this, Umayka ditoy, porque yo necesito a hablar with you. Kasi, mamaya, mag-eat tayo. Later on, we will visit our prenz sa bahay!!!
Yikes??? You see, I was born in Ilocano, thus the Ilocano dialect.
Then I moved to Hawaii, thus the English language.
Then I learned Tagalog, thus the Filipino language.
Then I took three years of Spanish, the the Spanish.
So, my beloved Pinoys, imagine if I use all of these languages and dialects at once. Plus my Hawaiian Pidgin, by the way. How would you feel?
Please, please, please, let’s try our best to speak English, speak Filipino. Yes, once in a while it’s okay to interject a foreign language, but it shouldn’t be overbearing and dominating.
Otherwise, we will end up talking like Lito Lapid.
Palanca, Emmy or Tony awardee or not, that’s no excuse to demolish the Filipino language. Jeeez, the title of the book alone gives me the chills. Efektiv??? OMG.. No I can’t!! Morfoloji?? Is that Swahili?! CHED seriously needs to reassess the Philippine educational system. Because by the way they’re doing their jobs, the root problem might just be CHED itself.
It really depends on what you define to be “Filipino”. What is proper Filipino anyway? That’s just like asking who is the absolute end-all and be-all of the Filipino language. There is no perfect linguist.
Most people equate Filipino to Tagalog and therefore are horrified by the presence of F’s and J’s in the Filipino vocabulary. What if those words don’t exist in the Tagalog (or any other provincial) language? Does that mean we’re not supposed to include them in our tongue as well? Heck, we’ve been adopting tons of things from Tagalog and Spanish. We’ve been biased towards those languages when there are other full-fledged languages such as Cebuano and Ilokano that should share the spotlight in forming the National Language.
I don’t think our language is supposed to remain static. We may encounter some awkwardness encountering new terms, but the point is that we need to address how we’re supposed to embrace those new words. Should we use “ji” instead of “hiya”? What are the valid points supporting each option? These are what should be analyzed, not if they sound “weird”. Every language sounds weird to someone.
P.S. One of my classes in UP was called Arkiyoloji. (Archaeology, of the Filipino culture) And yes, we did talk about language.
You’re right, some terms there are just ridiculous. I think the authors have gone overboard in Filipinizing some English term. I believe that such textbook shouldn’t be circulated at all in our educational system, or else, it’d be a great embarasment, and an insult in fact.
Simula ng baguhin nating ang ating alpabeto o alfabeto o alfaveto at isinama nating ang “C”, “F”, “J” at iba pang mga banyagang titik ni hindi ko na mabaybay ang ating abakada. Sa pakiwari ko gumawa tayo ng ibang wika na hindi naman Tagalog pero hindi naman English kung hindi ay “bastardized version” ng dalawang wika. Kung baga ay parang “Pidgin English”. Ang kaibahan nga lang ng ating tinatawag na “Filipino language” sa “text language” ng mobile phones ay wala itong kasamang numero sa pagbaybay.
Napakahalagang aspeto ng ating kulturang Pilipino ang wika. Ang ating wika ang nagbibigay buhay sa ating pagkakalinlanlan. Sa tingin ko gumagawa tayo ng “mestisong” wika na hindi katanggap-tanggap sa mga puristang Tagalog ngunit katawa-tawa naman sa mga Ingles. Ang napakasama lang na idinudulot nitong “experiment” ay tinuturuan natin ng mali ang mga mag-aaral na bumaybay at gumamit ng tamang wikang Pilipino at Ingles.
Halimbawa na lang: “I will leave tomorrow” ay maaring isalin sa wikang Pilipino ng ganito: “Aalis ako bukas” hindi “Aalis ako tomoro” o “I will lev bukas”. Pansinin po natin na hindi sapat ang salitang “bukas” sa pagsalin kung hindi ay inuulit pa ang unang titik na “a” sa “alis”. Hindi ito ginagawa sa wikang Ingles. Ang katangiang ito ay kakaiba sa wikang Pilipino.
Kagaya ng paggamit ng salitang “effectiv” sa Filipino, hindi kaya ang mga mag-aaral ay masanay na gumamit ng baybay na ito sa pagsulat sa wikang Ingles? Samantalang ang “effectiv” ay dapat baybayin ng “effective”? Kung hindi natin kayang magsalin ng wikang Ingles sa Tagalog, mas mabuting magsalita na lang tayo ng purong Ingles baka magkaroon pa tayo ng trabaho sa “kol senter” o “kul sinter” o “cul senter” o “col cinter”. Ewan!
Perhaps it is none of my business but I cannot resist a comment. As an American, I can assure you that we do not speak English in the states. We speak American! Most languages, with the exceptions of the “dead languages” such as latin, sandscrit, etc., ate “living languages” that evolve and change over time. All societies integrate slang into their languages. All “living” languages incorporate words and phrases from other languages not as a sell-out but rather because these new words embody a feeling that we cannot express with our language. Besides, there are more Filipino Dialects than islands on high tide. Celebrate your diversity. Your are a diverse and beautiful people in any language! Hope I didn’t offend; it was not my intent.
I totally aggree with you that language is supposed to be dynamic. But it does not have to be lazy, or lousy.
This is what most respected expert on our language considered as “mongrel”. The probelamtic thing is that nobody benefits from it.
PAang nakikita ko na ang mga batang masasanay sa ganitong mga libro ay lalong maguguluhan. Ano va talaga. Ba ba or Va?
What worries me is the label as “CHED Compliant” which means it does not any approval from CHED. So anybody can do a book of this kind and just put in there “CHED Compliant”.
BTW, what does “CHED Compliant” means and who said it is?
Kitam, iba ang perspektiv ng di-Filipino (Richard J. Gear) sa liberalayzeysyon ng Filipino langwij? Marahil ay ugali na talaga natin ang maging kontento sa kung ano meron tayo at ayaw na natin ng improwvment (Pwede Na mentaliti).
Vizit po kayo sa blog ko. Tenkyu!
wala namang purong wika! lahat ng wika nagbabago! nasa kalagayan tayo ng pagbabago kaya’t ganito at ganiyan ang mga reaksyon ng mga mambabasa. Dahil ang wika dinamiko, marapat lamang na malaya ang bawat isa kung ano at saan niya maipapahayag ang kanyang kaisipan at saloobin.
kung ituturo kaya’t ang naunang wikang filipino ay gagamitin kaya ng mga kabataan ngayon? samantalang ang kasalukuyang gobyerno ay nais pang ingles ang gamitin upang umunlad ang bansa?
iba na ang wika ng kabataan ngayon, iba na rin ang wika ng media, bunga ito ng pagbabago ng panahon. kung ipapanatili natin ang dating filipino malamang ay maiiwan ito kaysa sa mga wikang patuloy na lumulikha ng bagong salita at nagpapayaman sa kanilang vokabularyo. kung tayo ngang mga tao ay patuloy sa pag-aaral upang makaagapay sa pag-unlad, ang wika tulad natin na siyang gumagamit ay kasabay din ng pag-unlad nito.
ang 2001 revisyon ay kautusan ng komisyon sa wikang filipino. makailan lamang ay sinuspinde ito dahil lumikha ng isyu. kung tutuusin ay halos limang taon nang ipinaiiral ito. masisi nyo ba ang mga tao kung ito ay ginamit. kaysa sa mag-react kayo mabuti pang makipagtulungan kayo at magmungkahi sa ikabubuti ng ating wika tungo sa pagkakaisa.
Makakatulong ba ito sa pagsulong ng bansa at makakapag isa kaya ito sa makabayang damdamin ng bawat filipino?
Ang paglaho ng katutubong lenguahe ay daan din sa paglaho ng kultura.
A lost language will lead to a lost culture.
ambot nganong inyo pa manang lalison, mao namay uso karon….nangiskuyla gani ta….para makat-un ……isa pa sa atong lugar sa pinas daghan kaayo ug language hehehe..kada isla naay ilang kaugalingon nga sinultihan…nganong maglibog libog pa na inyong ulo…mosamot ang pinas ug kagubot……mabuhay….
Circulate the book and then the fading of our culture is inevitable………
My dear friends, before we talk and criticize others.. Let just investigate of what make those authors decided to change the FILIPINO words we used to speak and learn..
Alamin ang bagong revisyon ng wikang Filipino na isinaayos ng Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino. Sila lamang ay sumusunod sa Komisyon. Aking iginagalang ang inyong mga opinyon ngunit sa aking palagay nararapat na pumuna ang bawat isa sa pamamagitan konstruktibong pananaw. Huwag nating tapakan ang pagkatao ng ilan nais tumulong, atin lamang silang punahin sa kanilang mga ginagawa, hindi sa kung sino sila.
natawa naman ako sa reaksyon dito. nagbabago ang wika kapatid. walang puro na wika, at ang nakakatawa rito ay lahat ng henerasyon, mula pa sa umpisa ng kasaysayan, ay nagrereklamo na nagdejenereyt ang isang wika at laging mas maganda ang wika nung sinaunang panahon. na para bang may “golden age of perfection” ang isang wika. sigurado ako ganyang ganyan din ang reaksyon ng mga ninuno natin nang pumasok sa wika natin ang ilang mga hiram na salita at nang nagkaroon ng mga variyeysyon ang kanilang mga sinasabi.
basahin niyo ang librong “The Unfolding of Language” ni Guy Deutscher. may patikim dito. http://theunfoldingoflanguage.com/
to enlighten those who are not very familiar with the language policy, the use of these “weird” words are proper and have gone through scrutiny by language experts from the State University and other recognized institutions. these words are being introduced, thus the venue for such introduction are school textbooks. nothing wrong with that, i think.
what is odd with this book is how it is used to bleed the students dry. i am a parent of a child from the university of makati, where this book is sold, and i tell you, the only name that deserves to be on that book is Ms. Glecy Atienza. All the other names on the book have no substantial input as they are mostly unknowns in the literary world. they are names of my son’s professors who are neither licensed nor well-trained in the writing academic books on language. the book itself is very thin, and the teachers have required my son to buy the book at a cost of P200 pesos! furthermore, i have my doubts as to whether Ms. Atienza did write any part of the book. my son’s other books all bear the name of this rolando bernales and comparing this with his other books, they all look the same, perhaps with only the examples being changed. something must be done with this bogus bernales selling books that are overpriced and plagiarized!
talaga namang hindi na maiiwasan ang pagsasaling wika.. dhil habang tumatagal,iba ibang henerasyon na ang gumagamit nio at naiiba na rin ang kanilang kultura sa ngayon..sana’y sa maayos na paraan at walang diskriminasyon.
Pwed nman nating gamitin ang ibang pananalita,pro dapat sa tamang pamamaraan,pra wlang gulo.. .pwede?! sbi nga nLa.. .”Be safe,Be original”.. .hehei =)
……………..walang bayad ang mang hiram ng mga salita pero may mas mabigat pa ba kung sarili mo ng BAYAN na FILIFINAS ay di mo na maiayos sa pagbaybay?????…………………….
anong pagkakaiba ng varayti at ng varyasyon???
Di mo lang siguro nagustuhan yung libro kasi ang inasahan mo eh Tagalog. Kaso nga Filipino yung libro…
ang wika ay may diwa ngunit para san pa ang ating mga manunulat na Pilipino kung isasakripisyo din pala nila ang ating lahi.Ano pa ang masasalamin sa ating pagkatao? Ano pa nga ba kundi isang hilaw na banyaga.nakakalungkot.at nakakatakot.bigyan niyo naman kaming mga mag-aaral ng dignidad.
way lami wa jud ko ksabot.
salamat sa mga comment nyo nakagawa ako ng aking proyekto sa filipino.. ang masasabi ko lng ang ating wika ay kinakailangan pa ng napalaking pagbabago at pagoorganisa.. kasi bastahan kung gamitin ito kaya dapat malaman ng bawat pilipino ang tamang pag gamit dito ^_^ Maraming Salamat muli ^_^
mglgy nman kyo ng autobiography ni rolando a. bernales……….plz
Wika ay dapat pahalagahan o bigyang pansin upang umunlad ang ating wikang pambansa…
Nung tinuruan kayo ng mga professor sa Filipino, ipinaliwanag ba kung bakit tayo nanghihiram ng dayuhang wika?
Marahil yung iba na nagre-react na pinabababa raw ang ating wika, mali po! Sa panghihiram, mas pinalalawak ang ating talasalitaan? Isinasabay lang ‘yan sa panahon? Gusto mo bang manatili ang pagiging tulog ng wika mo? Ikaw sa sarili mo, kailan mo ba huling nabanggit ang salitang silid-aralan, guro, palapag,baytang, gusali, takdang-aralin, gawain (mga karaniwang salita sa loob ng kampus)… at maraming-marami pang iba… Di ba mas ginagamit at naririnig mo sa kapwa mo estudyante ang pagiging hiram ng mga ito? Tulad ng klasrum (“San ang klasrum natin next subject?”). Sinasabi mo bang “Sino ang guro natin sa Math? o “Sino ang titser natin sa Math?” at kapg nagtatanong ka ng asayment, “Klasmeyt, may asayment ba tayo sa Math?” o para sa iyo ba’y mas magandang pakinggan ang “Kamag-aral, may takdang-aralin ba tayo sa Math?”
Sana’y nakatulong ako sa paglilinaw ng ilang isyung nabasa ko kaugnay sa ating wika… Tulad ng iba, nagmamahal at nagmamalasakit din ako sa wika!
kung ang tao nga nakikisabay sa uso ang wika pa kaya, di ba kaya nga nabuo ang mga salitang balbal…natututo tayo na gumawa o magbago ng mga salita…sa pagiging globalisado natural ang pagsunod sa agos ng panahon ng teknolohiya..bakit ikaw, ang mga salita ba noong panahon pa ng mga ninuno mo ay sinasalita mo pa? hindi ba’t hindi?bakit? dahil wala na sa uso?jologs?ika nga ing iba>>
I actually saw this in one of the popular bookstores when I went for a vacation in Manila, and I almost jumped out of my skin! They shoud have done something like, “Pilipino I: Akademikong Pilipino Tungo sa Mabisang Pakikipagtalastasan”
Ten to fifteen years ago the system wasn’t like this, really. I recall my Filipino teacher saying “tumpak” during class discussion instead of “tama” or “korek”
And by the way, we were taught that the academic subject/course Filipino is supposed to be spelled as “Pilipino,” not Filipino as in Pilipino I, II, II, IV, etc. Ai kenat anderstand wai they ar transliterating mowst of tha inglish words thru filipino speling wail wi hev awar own filipino ekwivalent
I have asked my professor about this matter because we have the same book. He explained that Filipino and Tagalog are different. For example if we translate this English sentence, “Sorry, I wasn’t able to attend the meeting earlier” in Tagalog, it would be, “Paumanhin dahil hindi ako nakadalo sa ating pagtitipon kanina”. However, when we translate it to Filipino, it would be, “Pasensya na, hindi ako nakapunta sa miting kanina”. You are confusing Tagalog and Filipino, they are not the same. Filipino is like the American language based on the English Language. There are differences in those languages, right? Even though we refer to both of them as English. Same with Filipino and Tagalog. Filipino is actually a combination of Tagalog, Spanish and English terms. If you want to say dictionary in Filipino, it is definitely all right to say diksyunaryo, from the Spanish term diccionario, however in Tagalog it’s called talatinigan. You can’t say this book result to the “bastardization of the Filipino language” for the book is in Filipino. Don’t be confused by Tagalog and Filipino. Again, they are not the same.