UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES VISAYAS Name: ALVIN M.

MAGHOPOY
EDFD 202 Student Number: 2011-23198
SOCIOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL Submitted to: PROFESSOR AILEEN C. CHONG
FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

Coloniality in Education

It is true that when you talk about nationalism in the Philippines, it is still considered to be an
idea but not a realistic value and principle that we Filipinos imbibe. And one of the factors that
contribute to the Filipinos not living with this ideal aspiration for the country is the kind of education we
have in the Philippines. The education system of the Philippines has gone through a lot of phases. We
used our education to fight against ignorance and to spark uprising and rebellion against the Spaniards
which eventually helped to reclaim our freedom. While we were freed from the tyranny of the
Spaniards, there was still a struggle on how we could maximize our democracy as a nation. So as saviors
they called themselves, here came the Americans who injected their own practices, culture, language,
and governance into our education system which was thought to really pave the way for Filipinos to
seek and finally have their own identity. Unknowingly, the so-called national identity that would finally
be in our grasp was not fulfilled and that was because of the dominance of the Americans in our culture
that is continuously taking over us through time and even up to this date. The nationalistic goals were
not achieved as the Americans continued to thrive in our daily living and most especially in our
education system.
English as the primary medium of communication is one major factor that holds us back from
achieving nationalistic goals. We all know that it has already been the medium of instruction for
teachers since then. And yes, with English, we were able to produce graduates that could compete
globally as it is a universal language and used as the lingua Franca of the earth. We have become at par
with the neighboring Asian countries and even with the first world countries despite our economic
standing on a global scale. We are known now by the whole world to be the country in Asia with the
most number of English speakers next to India. We could communicate with foreigners who would like
to wander in our beautiful destinations and this is just one of the reasons that keep us prideful as
Filipinos. But it was just injected into us after all and one would argue, where is the Filipino touch about
it?
English as a language has been used in different subjects such as Math, Science, Literature, even
PE Music, and many more disciplines you can count using your fingers. With the existence of a language
of instruction, Filipino culture is at stake. There is somehow a lack of appreciation of our language and
we only give our Filipino language a celebration within a span of seven days. Hello, Linggo ng Wika.
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES VISAYAS Name: ALVIN M. MAGHOPOY
EDFD 202 Student Number: 2011-23198
SOCIOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL Submitted to: PROFESSOR AILEEN C. CHONG
FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

Students nowadays cannot even distinguish the difference between Filipino and Tagalog. They could
correct their organizational thoughts in English essays but could not make a distinction between a pang-
abay and pandiwa. Not only that, Filipino students are seemingly puzzled whenever asked to look for
Filipino synonyms of some of the Filipino terms. And now that the English language is taking over, the
Filipino subject in tertiary education is even planned to be omitted from the curriculum.
That is for the language domination of English alone. We have not yet tackled how students are
entangled with the Western values and thoughts smoothly sailed in Philippine education. The US has
become the model for global upright which unconsciously underplays the suppose nationalistic idealism
of the country. With the technologies they have introduced to our schools, students have now become
understandably adept with the use of computers, tablets, and smartphones which ultimately led to
different problematic and complex contemporary issues that until now have become a problem in the
institutions. Computer addiction, procrastination, plagiarism, digital divide, intellectual property issues,
and cyberbullying are just some of the problems that are caused by the abuse and irresponsible use of
these technologies. We may be preparing the students to be technology literate but sometimes schools
have been dependent on these life-hacks that sadly replaced the traditional materials and instructions
that are identifiably ours. Undeniably, ICT fosters global competence among the learners for it is one
major requirement for employment and it is an in-demand attribute that business enterprises and
agencies are looking for in their employees which is why this causes the teachers to also keep up with
the trend and must be able to cope with the pace of the learners even without proper training.
We could say that we are somehow independent in the sense that we own this land, we have
the rights that we enjoy, and we are autonomous from other entities. However, to be able to survive as
a nation where it carries the identity of being a free-willed country, there is a need for the government
to have reforms in our educational system where we, Filipinos, should be a priority; our cultures must
have greater importance over the secondary ones, and we should be the master of our lands. The
education system must be designed to create and produce Filipinos who carry with them the pride and
nationalistic values of patriotism and love for the country, assuring that these are preserved and passed
on to the next generations.
It is good to have a diplomatic relationship with our past colonizers but to let them have a tight
grip on our neck is not different compared to an able bird that has a leash attached to its leg. We should
continue to communicate with them and promote international connections and networks but not to
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES VISAYAS Name: ALVIN M. MAGHOPOY
EDFD 202 Student Number: 2011-23198
SOCIOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL Submitted to: PROFESSOR AILEEN C. CHONG
FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

the extent that we will just let ourselves be devoured by their strong systems. It is all okay to have a
professional bond with the foreign countries for it impacts economic growth and assures international
camaraderie but to let them get hold of our own culture through thriving in our education, we may find
ourselves on the losing end.
There is nothing more valuable than seeing Filipinos who take pride in being one and who
celebrate national identity.