english language as a medium of instruction inside the classroom: perception of the first year...

English language as a Medium of Instruction inside the Classroom: Perception of the First Year Students

A Research Presented to

The School of Education

Ateneo de Davao University

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement

Of English 34

By:

Pedro P. Raymunde Jr.

Marvin C. Ramirez

March 2013

2English As A Medium of Instruction: First Year Student’s Perception

Chapter 1

Introduction

The need to be proficient in the use of English among non-native speakers has

become a global phenomenon. Since the Philippines embraced the English language

from the American colonizers, the Philippines today is the fifth largest English-speaking

country in the world and second in the continent of Asia (www.ue.edu.ph). Filipinos are

really proud of this because English is considered as the “world language,” the lingua

franca of the modern era.

Furthermore, English language is used as a medium of instruction in Filipino

schools and universities. Because of this, Filipino teachers as well as the students are

really challenged to understand each other and communicate using the English

language fluently. They are also challenged to learn the English language and to

practice using it as a medium in communicating with others.

English language is used as a medium of instruction both on the private schools

and public schools. These schools differ in some aspects because of their system of

teaching and facilities. One of the aspects that Private and public schools differ is the


class population. Mostly, private schools have a smaller class size in contrast to the

public schools.

Students in these schools also have different perceptions and ideas about all

things but specifically about the use of English language as a medium of instruction to

their classes.

A. REVIEW REALATED LITERATURE

The need to be proficient in the use of English among non-native speakers has

become a global phenomenon. Today, educators are faced with the challenge of

addressing the needs of the growing number of students whose primary language is not

English (Gibson, 2003).

A study made by Amamio (2000) on the attitudes of students, teachers and

parents toward English and Filipino as media of instruction provided an interesting

comparison. According to the result of the study, students and teachers prefer the use

of English as the medium of instruction, with the teachers finding English a more

comfortable language for explaining ideas and concepts. Teachers further noted that

English is an “intellectualized language” and a valuable tool to source information

technology. However, parents preferred Filipino because “it is the language in which

they can think and express themselves” and it is the language that they understand and

through which they themselves are better understood.


According to Villegas, 2003 the youth have all the chances to speak and listen to the

Filipino language in their day-to-day lives such as in conversation with members of the

family, friends, going to the movies, et cetera. The majority of the youth, however, do

not have enough occasions in their normal lives to speak nothing but English.

Cruz (2004) stated in a relatively recent newspaper column that even at this time,

most of the official notices, laws, court decisions, bar and board examinations and even

the Constitution, are mostly in English. At some point, English seems to be more official

than Filipino, as the latter is still in the process of establishing its status after having

been established just recently to include some words from major regional dialects all

over the country. What is clear, though, is that English is a language that continuously

enjoys a more privileged status in the Philippines.

Lourdes Villanueva has stated that learning to speak and write in English in this age

of globalization is necessary especially if we would want to compete in the knowledge-

based world.

Now everyone will agree that we need greater competence in English to be

competitive in a globalized world. But educators or those who have done education

research will disagree that using English as the medium of instruction will accomplish

that goal. As a matter of fact, they point out that research findings are unequivocal, that

to achieve greater mastery in English or Filipino, the most effective medium of

instruction is in the child's mother tongue; that is his first language or the language

spoken at home. Studies in country after country bear this out. Teaching in an official


school language that is not the mother tongue is a major barrier in the child's learning

(Monsod 2009).

B. THEORITICAL/ CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

The Acquisition-Learning distinction is the most fundamental of all the

hypotheses in Krashen's theory and the most widely known among linguists and

language practitioners.

According to Krashen there are two independent systems of second language

performance: 'the acquired system' and 'the learned system'. The 'acquired system' or

'acquisition' is the product of a subconscious process very similar to the process

children undergo when they acquire their first language. It requires meaningful

interaction in the target language - natural communication - in which speakers are

concentrated not in the form of their utterances, but in the communicative act.

The 'learned system' or 'learning' is the product of formal instruction and it

comprises a conscious process which results in conscious knowledge 'about' the

language, for example knowledge of grammar rules. According to Krashen 'learning' is

less important than 'acquisition'.

The Monitor hypothesis explains the relationship between acquisition and

learning and defines the influence of the latter on the former. The monitoring function is

the practical result of the learned grammar. According to Krashen, the acquisition

system is the utterance initiator, while the learning system performs the role of the


'monitor' or the 'editor'. The 'monitor' acts in a planning, editing and correcting function

when three specific conditions are met: that is, the second language learner has

sufficient time at his/her disposal, he/she focuses on form or thinks about correctness,

and he/she knows the rule.

It appears that the role of conscious learning is somewhat limited in second

language performance. According to Krashen, the role of the monitor is - or should be -

minor, being used only to correct deviations from 'normal' speech and to give speech a

more 'polished' appearance.

Krashen also suggests that there is individual variation among language learners

with regard to 'monitor' use. He distinguishes those learners that use the 'monitor' all the

time (over-users); those learners who have not learned or who prefer not to use their

conscious knowledge (under-users); and those learners that use the 'monitor'

appropriately (optimal users). An evaluation of the person's psychological profile can

help to determine to what group they belong. Usually extroverts are under-users, while

introverts and perfectionists are over-users. Lack of self-confidence is frequently related

to the over-use of the monitor.


C. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

The independent variable in this research is the English language. It’s because, the

English language cannot be manipulated. It is a language and therefore it’s

unchangeable while the perception can be varied because the respondents only make

perceptions out of the usage of English language in the class.

D. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This investigatory aims to answer the following questions:

1. What is the profile of the fourth year students in terms of:

Gender;

Age;

2. How do students perceive the teacher’s use of English language inside the

classroom during English class?

INDEPENDENT VARIABLETeachers' Use of English Language as a Medium of InstructionDEPENDENT VARIABLEPerception of the First Year Students


E. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study about the student’s perception about the English can be a basis for

teachers on how to teach and use the English language inside the classroom. The

project’s goal is designed to help students as well as the teachers improve their

communication with one another, this goal can be achieved through the private and

public students’ perceptions and thought about the study. The output of this study

can be a source material for teachers to use as a basis on how to deal with the

students especially when the implementation of K-12 program.


CHAPTER II

METHODOLOGY

A. DESIGN

The study is descriptive quantitative- qualitative. The students’ perception about

the usage of English language will be determined using a survey and an essay. Their

answers will be reflected as a numerical value and also using their own words.

B. SETTING AND PARTICIPANT

The survey was conducted in Holy Cross College of Calinan. The participants

were the 20 selected students from two sections (Saint Dominic Savio and Saint Clare).

The survey was conducted on March 15, 2013, 10:00- 12:00 noon. The researchers’

contact persons were Mr. Ardee Tumboy, the first year English teacher; Ms. Aivy

Calicdan, the first year Saint Dominic Savio class adviser, and Mr. Dave Ian Gamad, the

first year Saint Clare adviser.


C. MEASURES

The answers will be measured through the following indicators. For the Difficulty:

Very Difficult as the lowest followed by Difficult, Optimal, Easy, and Very Easy as the

highest. If the students’ answer in this section would be difficult then it means that

he/she has a negative perception about the usage of the English language as a medium

of instruction. For the Enjoyment: Not at all as the lowest followed by Sometimes, Good,

Satisfactory, and High Satisfactory as the highest. Lastly for Helpfulness: Not at all as

the lowest followed Sometimes, Good, Satisfactory, and High Satisfactory as the

highest. If the student’s answer would be not at all, then it indicates that the student has

a negative perception about the usage of the English language. ‘The lower the answer,

the more negative the perception would be’. It means that the answer of the students is

directly proportional to the perception of the students.

D. PROCEDURE

. The following steps will do on this research:

1. The researchers will prepare a questionnaire.

2. They will gather data using the questionnaire.

3. They will go to a school and will let the students to answer the questionnaire.

4. After the students answered the questionnaire, the researchers will collect it and

will analyze the data.

5. After they analyzed the data, they will share the results to their classmates.


E. DATA ANALYSIS

This study about English as a Medium of Instruction inside the Classroom: Perception of

the First Year Students used the mean and percentage to get the profile of the

respondents.

The checklist or the questionnaire that the researchers made for this study used

was ranked from highest to lowest. The result was tallied by hand. Then, the

researchers calculated the result using the percentage distribution,

F. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study is delimited to the First year High School students of Holy Cross

College of Calinan. This research only limits about the different students’ perception

about the English language as a medium of instruction to their classes and how it

affects their academic performances.


CHAPTER III

RESULTS

Below is the table of the survey about the students’ perception about English subject as a medium:

RESPONDENTS: BOYS: 4 GIRLS: 16

TOTAL: 20

Very Difficult Difficult Optima

l Easy Very Easy TOTAL

DIFFICULTY 0 8 11 1 0 20

Not At All

Sometimes Good Satisfactor

yHigh

Satisfactory

ENJOYMENT 0 8 8 4 0 20

HELPFULNESS 0 4 5 2 9 20


Chapter 4

Discussion

In this chapter, the result of the quantitative research will be presented. The aim

of this chapter is to answer the problems presented in the Chapter 1.

In this table, it informs the gender of the respondents.

Frequency Percentage

Male 4 20%

Female 16 80%

Total 20 100%

The table shows that there are more females than males. They covered almost three-

fourth of the respondents.

Table 2 shows the ages of the respondents.

Frequency Percentage

12 years old 9 45%

13 years old 11 55%


Total 20 100%

The table shows that there are more 13 years old than 12 years old. They accumulated

one-half of the respondents.

In this part, it shows the perception of the teachers’ use of English language inside the

classroom during class.

In terms of difficulty:

Frequency(Number of

Students)

Percentage

Very Difficult 0 0%

Difficult 8 40%

Optimal 11 55%

Easy 1 5%

Very Easy 0 0%

Total 20 100%

In this table, it shows that there are 11 students who find the English language not so

difficult and not so easy. There are 8 students who find the English language as difficult.

There is 1 student who finds it easy.


In this case, the students’ perception about the teachers’ use of English language as a

medium of instruction is optimal. It means that the teacher’s use of the English language

is favorable by the students.

In terms of enjoyment:

Frequency (Number of

Students)

Percentage

Not at all 0 0%

Sometimes 8 40%

Good 8 40%

Satisfactory 4 20%

High Satisfactory 0 0%

Total 20 100%

In this table, it shows that 8 students sometimes enjoy the English language. 8 students

also say that they enjoy it. 4 students said that they are satisfied about the teachers’ use

of English language as a medium of instruction.

It means that, students sometimes enjoy the teachers’ use of English language as a

medium of instruction in the class and little are satisfied on it. Thus, teachers should

make activities that will help the students to motivate them. In addition, teachers should

do well in the subject. She should excel both in writing, grammar and public speaking.

Is it helpful to them?


Frequency (Number of

Students)

Percentage

Not at all 0 0%

Sometimes 4 20%

Good 5 25%

Satisfactory 2 10%

High Satisfactory 9 45%

Total 20 100%

In this table, it shows that 4 students said that sometimes it is helpful to them. 5 said

that it is good to them. 2 students are satisfied and 9 students are highly satisfied.

It means that, through the help of the teacher by using the English language as a

medium of instruction in the classroom, English language is very helpful to the students.


Chapter 5

Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations

A. Summary

The main purpose of the study is to know the different perceptions of the

students about the usage of English language as a medium of instruction inside the

classroom. It may help the teachers to improve their usage of different languages inside

the classroom. The researchers’ study also aims to address to the teachers the different

thoughts of the students about the medium of instruction that is being used in the class.

The researchers started to conduct the research on the 2nd week of January 2013 and it

was finished on the 17th day of March 2013. The study is descriptive quantitative. The

students’ perception about the usage of English language was determined using a

survey. Their answers were reflected as a numerical value and also using their own

words. The survey was conducted in Holy Cross College of Calinan.


B. Conclusions

English language is used as a medium of instruction in Filipino schools and

universities. Because of this, Filipino teachers as well as the students are really

challenged to understand each other and communicate using the English language

fluently. But the point is, did the educational system of our country include the different

perceptions of the learners? By this research, the teachers as well as the educational

ministers will be aware that the learners have different perceptions and thoughts about

the English language. Since the results of this research showed that not all students are

in favored on the usage of the English language as a medium of instruction, and some

are not enjoying studying using this medium, the government and educational heads

must make an action for these students for their convenience.

C. Recommendations

We, the researchers, recommend that the educational heads must do an action

for the students who experience difficulty in understanding the English language

especially now that the Department of Education has implemented the K-12 Curriculum.

The researchers also suggest for some researchers to conduct further research about

this topic so that this study will be widened and different perceptions from diverse

learners in other places and ages will be determined and be examined.


REFERENCES:

http://www.ue.edu.ph/manila/uetoday/index.php?nav=27.htm&archive=200808

http://www.sk.com.br/sk-krash.html

Amamio L. (2000). “Attitudes of Students, Teachers, and Parents of RVM Schools in

Metro

Manila Toward English and Filipino as Media of Instruction.” (Unpublished thesis)

Presented to the UST Graduate School. Manila, Philippines.

Cruz, Isagani (2004). “English in the Philippines.” Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Villegas, Bernardo (2000, May 26). Why English Should be the Medium of

Instruction.

http//www.mb.com.ph/oped/villegas/2000.

http://www.sk.com.br/sk-krash.html

http://www.ue.edu.ph/manila/uetoday/index.php?nav=27.htm&archive=200808


SURVEY QUESTIONS

(FirstYear High School)

Fill out the given table below. Put a CHECK on the box.

How do you find the English language as a medium of instruction?

Difficulty: Very Difficult Difficult Optimal Easy Very Easy

Enjoyment: Not at all Sometimes Good Satisfactory High Satisfactory

Helpful: Not at all Sometimes Good Satisfactory High Satisfactory

Others (Please Specify): ____________________


Personal Vitae

Name: Pedro Polinar Raymunde Jr.

Birthday: July 31, 1995

Home Address:

Email Address: [email protected]

Name: Marvin Clores Ramirez

Birthday: November 4, 1994

Home Address: Purok 5, Brgy. Riverside, Calinan District, Davao City, Davao Del Sur

Email Address: [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]