Online Quiz 3 for Technology and Literature Students (Reading for Information and Details)

Read the article in this site http://sajedsingilan.blogspot.com/2013/07/some-issues-in-english-language-teaching.html . In your perspective, what skill should be given emphasis in English 1 and how should it be taught? Write your views in the comment box below on or before Aug. 4, 2013, Sunday, 9 p.m.

Read More

Online Quiz 3 for SAEc and CGB Students ( Reading for Information and Details)

Read the article entitled "Language and Power" in this site http://sajedsingilan.blogspot.com/2013/07/language-and-power.html . Based on your experience, cite a scenario that would show the relationship between language and power. Write your views in the comment box below on or before  August 3,2013, Saturday, 9 p.m.

Read More

Online Quiz 3 for Engineering Students ( Reading for Information and Details

Read the text entitled " How should one teach grammar?" in this site http://sajedsingilan.blogspot.com/2013/07/how-should-one-teach-grammar.html . In your perspective, how should a professor teach grammar to Engineering students? Write your views in the comment box below on or before August 1, 2013, Thursday, 10 p.m.

Read More

MALAYSIA : My New Home (Part Three)

I took a glance at the golf course of the National University of Malaysia before enjoying the sumptuous lunch treat of Dr. Siti.

Ooops.. In previous articles, I kept on mentioning swimming, malling, and chatting in Kuala Lumpur .  “ Sajed, tomorrow we will go to the University of Malaya. I will ask things about our research.”, Dr. Francis reminded me.  “Sure ,Sir.” I almost forgot that research consultancy was my major reason why I was in Malaysia. And this is it! Research. Research.  “But you do not need to exert effort. I will just let you do some things about the study entitled , “ Religious and Cultural Identities of Filipino Muslims in Malaysia”, Dr. Francis reminded me.

I woke up early and had my breakfast with Dr. Rodney, Dr. Francis, Aries and his wife . Thanks for the hospitality since June 2 up to June 9, 2013. I immediately took a bath and prepared myself for this day’s intellectual battle. Dr. Francis, and I took a ride in Aries’ car and they toured me around the University of Malaya situated on a 750 acre (309 hectare) campus in the southwest of Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.  This is the oldest university in Malaysia. 

Dr. Francis brought me to his faculty room, and I was just amazed because Dr. Francis has his own room. “Ganito sa UM Sajed. May kanya-kanyang room ang mga professor. Di kagaya sa Pinas. Kayo sa USEP, may room ba kayo?”, Dr. Francis asked. “ Nah. Wala Sir uy. Nagtapok mi sa isa ka room . Guot gani kaayo. Hahha.”, I responded. “Ito yung mga publication ko Sajed. Napublish sa Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia. Kasi dito sa UM dapat may mapublish ka every year. Requirement yan. Kaya si Aries sinasabihan ko na magpublish. Eto yun kay Aries. Same kami ng thesis supervisor. Ikaw may napublish ka na ba?” 

 I paused for a while. “Meron na Sir pero local lang yun. “

“Dapat magpublish ka Sajed”, Dr. Francis continued. “Anyway, eto pa lang yun research ko. Gusto ko sanang malaman kung ano yung practices ng mga Muslim sa Mindanao. Saan ka ba sa Mindanao?”

“Davao del Sur Sir pero Sulu po yung origin ng parents ko. Tapul yung ama ko while Lugus naman yung ina ko.”

“Ah so pure Tausug ka pala.”

 “Yes, Sir.”

 “So ano yung mga practice ng mga Muslim sa Mindanao, Sajed?”

And our discussion about Dr. Francis’ research went on. “Bibigyan kita ng honorarium dito Sajed. May budget ito. Half million ang budget nito.”

“What? Dakua Sir uy.”

“Ganito kami sa UM, Sajed.”

“Parang si Binay rin. Ganito kami sa Makati. Hahhaah”

And in the middle of our conversation, Rami, an Iraqi research assistant of Dr. Francis arrived. Dr. Francis accompanied Rami to the cafeteria because Rami had not taken his lunch yet and I stayed in the office and continued my task until afternoon.     


The next day, Dr. Rodney and I went to another university in Malaysia, the National University of Malaysia or Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. We took a cab from Pantai Panorama to Selangor, Malaysia. That was an hour travel and I had a glimpse of how beautiful Malaysia is. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia is one of top research universities in the country.

 Dr. Rodney introduced me Dr. Siti , former Chair of Linguistics and Language Department at UKM . Dr. Siti treated us a sumptuous lunch in the restaurant located in the Kelab Golf Danau at UKM. For how many years of studying in UKM, Dr. Jubilado has not played in the Kelab Golf.  Dr. Rodney finished his Ph.D in Linguistics at UKM.

I am on my way to the office of Dr. Siti.

Read More

#Shift Davao Social Media Conference (Part Two)

iamsuperbianca shared her tips on building a strong social media community. 

                 “Puno kaayo  ang utok. Di mahutdan. ”, Wilfred shared after the talk of Maria Ressa. And Juliet Vasay approached us and said, “Hi. Luoy kaayo ang USEP. Way banner. Nagpaila lang jud. Ahaha.”

                “Pobre kaayo lagi. Paita. hahah”. I responded. A writer from The Collegiate Headlight replied, “Wala mi kabalo Ma’am/Sir na naa diay banner parade. Hahaha”. And the conversation continued while we were busy taking group pictures. USEP Delegates .And we were around 9 in the crowd.

                   I introduced Juliet to Wilfred. “ Juliet, this is Wilfred, the one that I told you the other day who would register me to this conference. Siya nagbuhat sa akong blog.”

                     “Hello. Taga – USEP ka? Gusto ko magblog pero the problem is I don’t know how to start a blog”, Juliet lamented.

                “ Yes. IC… I can make one for you. Just e-mail me the contents”, the  proud blogger Wilfred replied.

                “Really? Wow. Sige sige excited nako. Kay Sajed lang sah ko mag-ask about blog. I really love to write…”, Juliet continued.

                “Sure. Just give me your number and we will talk. What are your interests, Ma’am?, Wilfred asked.

                “Food.  Food.  Fashion.  Travel.“ , Juliet answered .

                “ Ganahan kaayo na magsulat si Juliet, Kuy. Sige ra na laag. Kaon diri. Kaon didto. Coffee diri. Coffee didto. Sige ra na magpost sa twitter ug facebook. Daghan jud na siya traffic ba. UIC ug USEP na.”

                And the bloggers’ discussion went on. Connections. Connections.  And we are now starting a strong social media community!

                And thank God because Bianca Gonzalez, yes Bianca Gonzales, was about to start a talk on “Building a Community in Social Media” and she is the right person to talk about this since she is one of the Philippines’ most-number of Twitter followers and known for her strong charisma in print, TV, and social media. No doubt she has one of the biggest and strongest community online.

                “Who you are online should be who you are in real life.” Bianca stressed out this in building a community in social media. She went on by saying what you can say online, you can say in real life. She added that if your enemy has no profile picture  , neglect him as if he does not exist in your virtual and real world.  She related also that bullying is rampant in social media and you need to deal with it. Face it. She has been bullied also in social media. “It hurts. Tao rin ako. Noon nga, binubully rin ako. Negra. Negra. Pero ngayon….”, she laughed. Her friends would just say to her, “ Wag mo na silang intindihin. Importante may pamilya ka.”

                “ Guwapaha jud ni Bianca uy. “ Bright pa jud. Kana! ” And the crowd was still mesmerized with the beauty of this celebrity.

Bianca shared 10 tips on how to build a community in social media:

1.       Pick a fitting (username and photo).

2.       Start STRONG.

3.       Start a CONVERSATION.

4.       Content is KING.

5.       Write your IDOLS.

6.       Use relatable HASHTAGS.

7.       Use catchy images.

8.       Go multi-platform.

9.       Grow your network.

10.   Follow with action.

                Bianca ended the talk with this, “ There is Annabel Rama  in some of us. There is Sarah Geronimo in some of us. “  True,  so we must be ready to face and stand on what we post.

The members of the social media community gather in this conference. 

Read More

#Shift Davao Social Media Conference (Part One)

I am with the brilliant Maria Ressa. 

“Maria Ressa. Bianca Gonzales. Yes, and they will be here in Davao City to talk about Social Media on July 27, 2013, Saturday at Ateneo de Davao University. Social Media? Like facebook, twitter, instagram? Oh, what about these social media? Sound interesting… But, wait.. There is a Php450 registration fee.” 

      These were my thoughts as I read the post at the College of Governance and Business, University of Southeastern Philippines. I love to attend this conference and Wilfred, my new found friend because of social media, urged me to go with him to this seminar. “ I know Kuy you will just go there because of Bianca Gonzalez. Alam na”. And Wilfred replied, “ No, it is because of Maria Ressa, a famous Filipino journalist. “ Still, I am not convinced. And Wilfred registered me to the conference on Thursday, July 25, and he paid me for the meantime because I went home and I was not able to give my payment to him. And maybe because I am not that interested, but Wilfred insisted, “ Adto ta didto kay blogger baya ta. Manguha tag tips ba. Connections. Connections.” 

     And yes, it is July 27, 2013. My iphone4s beeped at around 7:10 a.m. and I knew where that text came from. “Kuy asa naka? Naa nami ADDU.” I immediately took a bath and charged my iphone ( because I know my iphone will be useful for pictorials. LOL) Wilfred was with his teammate, yes teammate according to him. She is Joan from the Institute of Computing, USEP. “ Lagi. Lami pa unta matulog. Padulung nako. Chill!”, I replied hastily. “Dalaa imung student ID.LOL, “ he continued.

    #SHIFTDAVAO, here I come. “Puro mani students diri kuy. Atay.”, my immediate line to Wilfred. “Hulat lang. Naa man professionals. Si Clark muapas rato”, Wilfred responded. Clark is also a blogger. He was my student before in English 2. We stood for 20 minutes and I could see the excitement and interest of the participants, and most of them were students. And it was just amazing because there were participants not just from Davao City, but also from Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte, Samal Island, Panabo City, Bukidnon, and Cagayan de Oro City. While waiting, the aroma of coffee from Coffee Bean was so tempting, but we could not ask for a cup since Wilfred and I are on fasting. And at around 8:25 a.m., we entered the Finster Auditorium. We sat in front to have a clear glimpse of the distinguished speakers. The three writers from The Collegiate Headlight, the official publication of USEP, were also there. Ms. Juliet Vasay and Mr. Arjay Arcena, my co-teachers in the Language Department were in the crowd also. Juliet was with her fellows from University of the Immaculate Conception, while Arjay with his students from San Pedro College. These two instructors are super heroes, shall I say. USEP, ADDU, SPC, UIC, DMSF. These are their kingdoms. 

     And here you go. MARIA RESSA was the first speaker who shared her brilliance about the power of social media. The audience was in awe. Oh. Maria Ressa was talking before us. We could not believe this. “Amazing”, Wilfred exclaimed. Maria Ressa has been a journalist in Asia for more than 25 years, most of them as CNN’s bureau chief in Manila then Jakarta. She has worked for every television network in the Philippines and was one of the founders of independent production company, Probe. In 2005, she took the helm of ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs. Maria Ressa is now the head of Rappler, a social news network.

      “We need to be authentic. We need to be who we are in the social media.” These were the lines that Maria Ressa emphasized during her talk. Majority of the Filipinos are now hooked into social media, in fact, we are now tagged as the “Social media capital of the world”. In social media, it revealed that most of the Filipinos are happy as reflected in their posts on facebook, twitter, instagram, etc.

     The point of Maria Ressa is that anything you post in social media, make sure you know it, you mean it, and you can act on it. Do not post a stuff that you can’t stand in the real world. If you tweet that she is ugly or pretty, make sure that you can say this to her offline. One participant asked this question to Ressa: How do you lead the team? And Ressa directly responded, “ I set the direction. I am a cheerleader. I give them the freedom.”

Read More

MALAYSIA : My New Home ( Part Two)

My good swimming buddies in KL : Aries and Ashraf.

And they welcomed me with a swimming session at Pantai Panorama Condo in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Ashraf, a Palestinian English teacher, and Aries, A Filipino English teacher who hails from Davao City, were my swimming buddies while Rami and Dr. Francis just watched us. And yes, I felt home because they were so accommodating eventhough that was our first meeting as friends. Thanks to these good people in KL.

“You are home in Malaysia. There are many Muslims here. Malayu, Indonesians, Iraqis, Iranians, Palestinians, Indians.. They are all here. And Pantai Panorama is like a Middle East because of these Arabs.”, Aries shared. “ And there are many Halal restaurants here so I decided that it is nice to be here. No worries.”, Ashraf added.

And this is Malaysia, my HOME. When I was in Bangkok, I really had a hard time finding a halal restaurant . Dr. Jubilado often teased me that foods in Thailand are HARAM. And that is why I felt like I could not live any longer here. Masjid is too far from the city. And here comes Malaysia, a heaven for Muslim as what Aries and Ashraf shared. Alhamdulillah! (Praise be to God). And this was still the topic when Dr. Jubilado arrived from Thailand. He continued that life in Malaysia is awesome. People are so nice. The place is great. “So you better work here lah”. And I am still convincing myself as I looked at the tall buildings in the city. The lights are convincing me that life in KL is indeed beautiful.

Dr. Francis added that his work at the University of Malaya opened many doors for him. He has supported his family, has built good houses, has bought his needs and wants, and has travelled the world. “Pero if sa Pinas lang ako, di ko ito mararating. Mahirap ang buhay sa Pinas. Full time teacher dito, part time teacher sa kabila. Kayod talaga.”

The two doctors happily shared their experiences when they were still working in the Philippines. The trials, the challenges, the laughters. and I just reflected on what they had shared.

I got nothing more to do in the condo. 

Swimming is another virtue.

The next day, we went to the nearby malls and had our lunch at Pancake House, a Filipino restaurant but managed by Malaysians. And the two doctors keep on inspiring me to get out from my comfort zone and try my luck abroad. “ Life in the Philippines is difficult. Ang sahod mo ay tamang-tama lang sa gastos mo araw-araw. If magkakasakit ka, kulang pa ang sahod mo. Marami ka pang palamunin. Nandiyan pa ang kapatid, mga pamangkin mo, mga pinsan mo. Problema nila, problema mo rin. Damay ka. Mahirap kapag kasyang-kasya lang ang sahod. Sakit sa ulo.” I just nodded and continued eating my fried bangus. Yes, these two doctors have points…These are the common reasons why majority of the Filipinos are going abroad and finding their greener pastures.. And I am still convincing myself to work abroad.

“Yes, mahirap talaga iwan ang comfort zone mo. Masaya ang buhay sa Davao. Malapit ka sa pamilya mo but think of the future.” , Dr. Jubilado advised me as he sipped his tea.

“In Malaysia, you got nothing more to do in the condo. Swimming is another virtue!”, Dr. Jubilado cheered.

Read More

Malaysia :My New Home (Part One)

I just arrived in Kuala Lumpur! Selamat datang ke KL!

Truly Asia. After my trip in Bangkok, I immediately flew to Kuala Lumpur for research consultancy and leisure of course!. From Novotel Siam via limousine ( I paid around 450 Baht) , I went to Don Muang Airport in Thailand at around 6:30 in the morning, too early for my 10 a.m. flight to KL. I had a cup of coffee at Starbucks Don Muang watching and listening to my fellow tourists who shared their experiences in Bangkok, as well as their personal lives. Oh, this is life! Malaysia, here I come! 

When I landed at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, I took AirBus to KL Sentral (as per instruction by Dr. Jubilado) where Dr. Francis Dumanig was waiting for me. In the bus, I sat with an Overseas Filipino Worker who has been working in Saudi Arabia for some years, and he is now touring Malaysia as part of pampering his self. He shared that he has travelled a lot of countries in Asia just like Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Thailand. “Kailangan ko talagang magbakasyon. Di maganda na work lang ako ng work sa Saudi. Alam mo muntik pa akong di makapunta rito. Ayaw pumayag ng boss ko. Gusto ko na siyang patayin. Gusto siyang saksakin. ” He continued his story while I was slowly opening my snacks. “ Sir, no eating”, a Malaysian driver reminded me. “ Oh, so sorry , Sir.” My seatmate advised me , “ Wag ka lang pahalata. Sige na kumain ka na. Alam ko gutom ka.”

“Alam mo doon sa Saudi mahirap ang buhay. Kailangan mo talagang lumaban.”, an OFW continued his story. “ Ganoon po ba Sir? Ganyan talaga ang buhay ng OFW”, I responded.

My OFW seatmate shared also that he was a victim also of sexual harassment. “Balita ko Sir doon sa Saudi talamak yung mga manyakis na Arabo. Tinitira ka raw. “ The OFW replied, “ Naku, sinabi mo pa. Manyakis yung mga Arabo doon. Wala akong bigote so guwapong-guwapo ako sa tingin nila. Pagkatapos ko ng work, sabi sa akin kita daw kami. Magpapamasahe daw sila. Eh, marunong ako magmasahe. At first, takot ako pero ng tumagal, nasanay na rin ako. Normal na lang sa akin. Kumikita naman ako.” I wanted to sleep but my OFW seatmate was very eager to share his story. I just did not know why he was very open with his experience in Saudi. He shared also his love affair with a Filipino working in Dubai, and I did not ask him about it. “Naku, yung partner ko napaka-active sa sex. Akon a nga yung umaayaw. Bata pa kasi. Eh ako 40 plus na so madaling mapagod.”

“Ok..KL Sentral”, the Airbus driver announced. “Oh Sir, KL Sentral na tayo. Sa Starbucks ang punta ko Sir. Naghihintay doon si Dr. Francis.”. O siya ihatid na kita doon sa Starbucks.”

And I saw Dr. Francis sitting with his cup of signature chocolate. “Sir Francis!”. “Oh, Sajed! Musta ang biyahe mo? Maupo ka.” . And his students Rami, Ashraf, and Bakry arrived. And Dr. Francis introduced me to his students and we started to share our stories. It was just sad because Bakry was leaving for his scholarship in London. Bakry is my facebook friend. “Nice to meet you, Sajed. Wrong timing, Sajed. I am going to London. I will be back on the last week of June.” And I replied with a smile, “It is okay ,Bakry. I will be back in KL.”

And Dr. Dumanig and Ashraf, a Palestinian English teacher in KL, sent my OFW seatmate to the terminal where he could take a ride to Bukit Bintang. “Oh Sajed, who is that person?”, Rami asked. Rami is an Iraqi student of Dr. Dumanig who is taking up Master of English at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur. “Rami, he is an OFW in Saudi.” , I responded. “Oh, really? I thought he is a friend of Dr. Francis.” Anyway, what brought you here in KL, Sajed? , Rami asked.

And we took a cab to Pantai Panorama Condo and this would be my place from June 2- 9, 2013.

Read More

The Study of Language

Bahasa Sug. Arabic. The researcher discusses these two languages as to their similarities and differences.

Longitudinal Research in Language Teaching

I believe that longitudinal research is essential to the advancement of knowledge in language teaching. Both common sense and expert knowledge tell us that teaching a language other than the mother tongue is a complex process that happens thorough and over time. All problems in language teaching are related to time; henceforth these problems can be addressed only within a longitudinal perspective.

Problems in language teaching are fundamentally questions of time and timing. One thing is concerned on biological time at the onset of learning, including “ not only on what age” but also for “how long” learning the second language should occur in context where near-native success is the desired outcome. This problem concerns on what and how to teach learners at a particular age which inspired basic research about maturational constraints for L2 learning and the critical period hypothesis (Hyltenstam & Abrahamsson, 2003 ; Scovel , 1988). And this can be answered through a longitudinal research.

If the teacher wants to know the ideal length and intensities of instruction in a given curriculum, and has in mind the goal to foster advanced L2 capacities, longitudinal research is the desired research design as found out by Lally (2002). In the study of Lally (2002), he recommended the dichotomization of language programs in North American universities such that the lower- division language course is devoted to the language learning alone, while the upper- division language course is devoted to exclusive learning of literature and cultural studies. Longitudinal research then established the pattern on what to teach in a particular program.

If the instructor aims to teach phonology and morphology, and wants to know also the linguistic features, longitudinal research is useful to solve his problem. The study of Perdue, Benazzo, and Giuliano (2002) for one, charted the development of finiteness in the spoken production of five adult Italian and Spanish immigrant workers in Europe during 30 months of naturalistic exposure to English or French. Bardovi- Harlig (2002) had his longitudinal research also on the development of future tense as evidenced in the written production by 16 college ESL learners during 7 to 17 months of study in a university’s English language program. The studies of Perdue, Benazzo, and Giuliano (2002) and Bardovi- Harlig (2002) concentrated on phonology and morphology of multiple participants, and can help the teachers on how to deal the learners on these aspects of linguistics.

Indeed, longitudinal research is a noteworthy trend in language teaching.

Phonological Feature of Tausug

`This discussion deals on the phonological feature of Tausug, a Malayo- Polynesian language spoken in the Sulu archipelago, and which is now widely used among Tausugs in Tacub, Barangay Zone I, Santa Cruz, Davao del Sur, my homeland. This specifically discusses the allophonic variations of the vowel phonemes which reflect individual differences among speakers from different social group such as tau gimba ( a Tausug living in the forest), tau higad ( a Tausug living in the bay), and tau pu ( a Tausug living in the island). Tausug has a three-point vowel system and have wide ranges of allophonic variation which makes it complex. The Tausug vowel sounds are patterned from the Arabic vowel sounds or the sound of 'Alif' which is equivalent to 'a', the first letter of the English alphabet. Discussion of Tausug phonetic variants is just limited to the three social groups.

The phonetic realization of each of the vowel phonemes of Tausug results from differing distributions in given utterances. The [ i ] allophone of the high-front vowel normally occurs in stressed syllables such as iban [ iban ] ‘companion’ , lindung [ linduŋ ] ‘ shade’ , and bid [ bid ] ‘hill. In unstressed syllable, a more lax and lowered variety , [ I ] , is often heard such as the second syllable of tagi [ tagI ] ‘ fond of’ , and sakit [ sakIt ] ‘sickness’. For some Tausug speakers, the complimentary distribution of the [ I ] and [ i ] in stressed and unstressed syllable, respectively, is consistent. Among other speakers, however, it may be used interchangeably or in free variation since the use of other one for the other does not render a person’s speech unacceptable, neither does affect the meaning of a given word. A word like inum may be pronounced as [ inum ] or [ Inum] with acceptability by tau gimba, tau pu , and tau higad.

Among some Tausug gimba speakers, a centered [ i ] and an unrounded [ u ] are heard as realization of /i/ and /u/ respectively. The [ i ] is made with a less spread lip position than [ I ] such as igun [ igun ] ‘ will remove ‘ and bihun [ bihun ] ‘ will buy’. The [ u ] has an unrounded lip position such as in maisug [ maisug ], and bukun [ bukun ] ‘no’. In the case of low central vowel , a more front variety , [ a ], has been observed to occur following a bilabial or dental consonant such as basu [ basu ] ‘ glass’, dagan [ dagan ] ‘ run’.

This is just a manifestation on allophonic variation as to social group.

Read More

Some Issues in English Language Teaching

How should I teach the macro skills? Oh la la la..

Theories in teaching :

a. Listening

The theory in teaching listening was not explicitly discussed, but I will just simply

present what I remembered and learned on this matter.

In real-world listening, both bottom-up and top-down processing generally occur together. The extent to which one or the other dominates depends on the listener’s familiarity with the topic and content of a text, the density of information in a text, the text type, and the listener’s purpose in listening. Thus I believe that in teaching listening, we must combine the two processes by outlining activities consisting of pre-listening, while-listening, and post-listening that link bottom-up and top-down listening (Field, 1998). The pre-listening phase prepares learners for both top-down and bottom-up processing through activities involving activating prior knowledge, making predictions, and reviewing key vocabulary. The while-listening phase focuses on comprehension through exercises that require selective listening, gist listening, sequencing, etc. The post-listening phase typically involves a response to comprehension and may require students to give opinions about a topic. However, it can also include a bottom-up focus if the teacher and the listeners examine the texts or parts of the text in detail, focusing on sections that students could not follow. This may involve a microanalysis of sections of the text to enable students to recognize such features as blends, reduced words, ellipsis, and other features of spoken discourse that they were unable to process or recognize. Through these activities, successful listening among students can be attained.

b. Speaking

The mastery of speaking skills in English is a priority for many second-language or foreign-language learners. Consequently, learners often evaluate their success in language learning as well as the effectiveness of their English course on the basis of how much they feel they have improved in their spoken language proficiency. But, the question is, what are the things that we need to consider teaching listening? Tsang and Wong (2002) shared that the first is to determine what kinds of speaking skills the class will focus on. Informal needs analysis is the starting point here. Procedures for determining needs include observation of learners carrying out different kinds of communicative tasks, questionnaires, interviews, and diagnostic testing . The second issue is to identify teaching strategies to “teach” (i.e., provide opportunities for learners to acquire) each kind of talk. With this, I believe that one should teach speaking as transaction. According to Richards (1990), talk as transaction is more easily planned since current communicative materials are a rich resource of group activities, information-gap activities, and role plays that can provide a source for practicing how to use talk for sharing and obtaining information, as well as for carrying out real-world transactions. These activities include ranking, values clarification, brainstorming, and simulations. Group discussion activities can be initiated by having students work in groups to prepare a short list of controversial statements for others to think about. In this approach, talk is associated with other activities. For example, students may be engaged in hands-on activities. In this type of spoken language students and teachers usually focus on meaning or on talking their way to understanding .

c. Reading

Reading is not a simple task to teach as it involves a series of activities such as

perception, thought, and word recognition. One of the theoretical approaches that I learned in our class discussion is problem solving method.

One of the roles of the teachers is to equip students with problem solving skills they can use in their day to day interactions. In this regard, Pearson and Taylor (2002) suggested that students should acquire the necessary reading skills to help them boldly confront the challenges facing them. In this case, it is the responsibility of the teacher to guide the learner to identify specific issues to solve. Teachers must present issues wherein the students can relate, and will use their problem solving skills. I can still recall when Dr. Catherine M. Roble gave us activities on how to solve a crime by just reading the situations given to us. We read, evaluate the situations, and judge, and come up with a solution on how to solve the problem at hand.

Moreover, the teacher should guide them on how to use reading skills to solve specific problems. He can either choose for them the appropriate topic and the best texts to read in order to get the required information. For instance, when teaching reading skills, a teacher can decide to ask learners to do a research on a selected topic from a large volume of text such as encyclopedia. If the learners respond to the question correctly, then it means that the learning objectives are achieved.

This particular theoretical approach is indeed helpful since it is very useful in their daily transactions, and in life in general.

d. Writing

“A simplistic view of writing would assume that written language is simply the graphic representation of spoken language…” (Brown, 2001:335). Writing is more complex than this; hence writing pedagogy is important, as Brown states by claiming that writing is “as different from speaking as swimming is from walking” .This is supported and developed by Hedge, who states that writing is more than producing accurate and complete sentences and phrases. She states that writing is about guiding students to: “produce whole pieces of communication, to link and develop information, ideas, or arguments for a particular reader or a group of readers…”

With this, I believe that a teacher should teach writing using the genre approach (Hylands, 2004). The ideas started in Australia and are now prominent in English teaching in Australia, New Zealand and countries nearby. This approach-model is situated away from naturalistic ways of learning language, theory-wise. It is more of a functionalistic approach; “genre based approaches to writing are based on a functional model of language; that is, a theoretical perspective that emphasizes the social constructedness of language” (Knapp & Watkins, 2005:9).

In genre approach, text is seen as a social process, which is further supported by Unger and Fleishman, who bring up a quote from Sperling and Freedman: "We now see writing not just as a process taking place inside an author’s head, but as a collaborative act influenced by complex and interrelated social factors" (2004: 90). The proponents of this theory often claim that genre-writing is the most efficient and modern way of teaching writing, since it creates awareness of both culture and ways of writing. The structure of a text is partly linked to the culture it is produced in; “…genre teaching as a means of helping learners to gain access to the dominant genres of our culture…” (Hyland, 2004:18). Besides this, the genre approach usually is presented with advantages such as being systematic, empowering and consciousness-raising. It is systematic since it “incorporates both discourse and contextual aspects of language use” (Hyland, 2004:12) and makes the student aware of audience, textual variation and structuring of writing.

The teaching is therefore “based on the ways language is actually used”. It is not just a matter of training students in reproducing forms of texts, but offering students “a way of seeing how different texts are created in distinct and recognizable ways in terms of their purpose, audience and message.

e. Viewing

Viewing is one of the skills that a student must develop, and enhance. But the question is

how to teach this skill? I believe that discipline-centered approach must be observed in this case. To get the attention of the students, the teacher must give viewing activities related to the field of the students. For example, if you are teaching English to Engineering students, the teachers must have look for films in the field of Engineering. But the teacher must still take into consideration the communication functions that students must develop in order not to deviate from the goal in language learning. This activity then creates awareness on their discipline, and at the same time developing the viewing skill.

The theories discussed are of paramount importance in teaching effectively the skills

namely : listening, speaking, reading, writing, and viewing.

In teaching listening, we must combine the two processes, bottom-up and top-down, as shared by Field (1998) by outlining activities consisting of pre-listening, while-listening, and post-listening that link bottom-up and top-down listening.

In teaching speaking, one must carry out this skill as a transaction (Richards, 1990). Talk as transaction is more easily planned since current communicative materials are a rich resource of group activities, information-gap activities, and role plays that can provide a source for practicing how to use talk for sharing and obtaining information, as well as for carrying out real-world transactions.

In teaching reading, problem solving method should be one of the options to use ( Pearson and Taylor, 2002). Students should acquire the necessary reading skills to help them boldly confront the challenges facing them. In this case, it is the responsibility of the teacher to guide the learner to identify specific issues to solve . Teachers must present issues wherein the students can relate, and will use their problem solving skills.

In teaching writing, a teacher should teach it using the genre approach (Hylands, 2004). The teaching is based on the ways language is actually used. It is not just a matter of training students in reproducing forms of texts, but offering students “a way of seeing how different texts are created in distinct and recognizable ways in terms of their purpose, audience and message.

In teaching viewing, discipline-centered approach must be observed in this case. To get the attention of the students, the teacher must give viewing activities related to the field of the students. But the teacher must still take into consideration the communication functions that students must develop in order not to deviate from the goal in language learning.

With all these theories, I believe that one must teach a skill by taking into account the language and communication functions that students need to use in their daily transactions and professional lives. The teacher must use authentic materials representing how people typically use language. In teaching these skills, I believe that it is more than just learning the grammar or linguistic structure, instead, it focuses on context and audience. In this manner, the teachers will look beyond content, and composing process to better understand language patterns.

Read More

How should one teach grammar?

Teaching GRAMMAR is not an easy task!  

One should teach grammar through a communicative task , with incidental focus on form. A focus on form overtly draws students' attention to linguistic elements as they arise incidentally in lessons whose overriding focus is on meaning or communication (Long, 1991: 45-460). This can be done through error correction, noticing of salient forms in texts, and teacher- or student-initiated attention to a language feature. Schmidt in Ur (2010) explained that noticing is necessary for learning the grammar of a language. There is now ample evidence that many learners are capable of mastering a wide range of explicit grammar rules. Green and Hecht (1992), for example, found that university-level students of English in Germany were able to produce clear explanations for 85% of the grammatical errors they were asked to explain, while overall the learners in their study (who included secondary school students) managed satisfactory explanations for 46% of the errors.

Macrory and Stone (2000) reported that British comprehensive school students had a fairly good explicit understanding of the perfect tense in French (e.g., they understood its function, they knew that some verbs used avoir and some être, they were familiar with the forms required by different pronouns, and they were aware of the need for a final accent on the past participle). Hu (2002) found that adult Chinese learners of English demonstrated correct metalinguistic knowledge of prototypical rules of six English structures (e.g., for the definite article specific reference constituted the prototypical rule) but were less clear about the peripheral rules for these structures (e.g., generic reference).He went on that awareness of grammatical rules, forms and meanings may facilitate later acquisition. This can be realized through occasional lessons where learners’ attention is drawn to forms, often in the shape of an explicit rule. Communicative tasks can be done also through discussion of examples, and some intellectual effort. In a communicative task, one may teach bits of grammar / vocabulary / spelling before, during or after: but the focus is always on the communicative task. After giving the tasks, the teacher as suggested by Ellis (1996) should : first, teach those forms that differ from the learners’ first language (L1), and second, teach marked rather than unmarked forms.

Given all these grounds, I believe that communicative task is appropriate in teaching grammar to learners.

Which is better between implicit and explicit teaching of vocabulary?

Explicit teaching of vocabulary is better than implicit teaching. In explicit teaching of vocabulary, the instructor clearly outlines what the learning goals are for the students, and offers clear, unambiguous explanations of the skills and information structures they are presenting whereas in implicit instruction, the instructor does not outline such goals or make such explanations overtly, but rather simply presents the information or problem to the student and allows the student to make their own conclusions and create their own conceptual structures and assimilate the information in the way that makes the most sense to them.

The claim that explicit teaching of vocabulary is better than implicit teaching is supported by a study conducted by Laurie Cutting and her team in Vanderbilt University, which found out that explicit teaching of vocabulary is effective than implicit teaching. The study examined 34 adult readers, from 21 to 36 years of age. The subjects were taught pseudowords—words that are similar to real words but that have no meaning, such as “skoat” or “chote.” Then, through both explicit and implicit instruction, subjects were taught meanings for these words. (In the study, both of these pseudowords were associated with the picture of a dog.)

The goal was to gain a clearer understanding of how people with different skills and capabilities processed short-term instruction, how effectively they learned, and how those differences looked physiologically in the brain.

In the end, the subjects were all able to learn the pseudowords. But, through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the researchers learned that something deeper was actually taking place: subjects previously identified as excellent readers showed little difference between how they processed explicit vs. implicit instruction. Average readers, on the other hand, showed through their fMRIs that they had to work harder to learn through implicit instruction; for them, explicit instruction was the more effective method.

With these claims, I believe learners would best learn vocabularies through explicit teaching.

Read More

Sample Answers to Essay Tests

How should I start my essay? This is the common problem of the students when answering an essay test.

Essays are usually part of the test. Instructors give this type of test to find out whether the students understand the course material enough to see the relationships between the data and to create some synthesis in their own mind.

Below are sample answers to essay tests for you to reflect on.

1. Down syndrome, named after John Langdon Down, the first physician to identify the syndrome, is a chromosomal disorder caused by an error in cell division resulting in the presence of an additional third chromosome 21 or trisomy 21. 

A 21-year old male patient has been diagnosed of Down Syndrome. Account for his phonological, morphological, semantic and syntactic development.

Answer:

Discussed below are the phonological, morphological, semantic, and syntactic developments of a 21- year male patient who has been diagnosed of Down Syndrome.

As to phonological development, Hamilton (1983) found out that people who age 21 years old with Down syndrome have phonological problems such as typical speech errors largely on the same type of phonemes (i.e. consonant cluster, addition and omission of some phonemes, and syllable final phonemes). Hamilton (1983) added that there exists a several abnormal articulatory characteristics such as more palatal zone contact for alveolar sounds (/t/, /d/, /n/), longer closure duration for occlusive consonants, larger consonant transitions within clusters, difficulty with rapid tongue movements. He confirmed also the existence of dysarthia (i.e. breakdown in the ability to move the tongue and lips in order to articulate speech sounds accurately and rapidly), and dyspraxia (i.e. the ability to select , plan, and sequence the sounds needed in the speech). In addition, Shriberg and Widder (1990) reported the abnormal suprasegmental characteristics regarding five prosodic domains namely: rate of speech, stress, loudness, pitch, and quality of voice – relative harshness, hoarseness, or nasality in his speech. Shuttering is also frequent in him ( Preus, 1972).

As to morphological development, Hamilton (1983) found out that he ( the patient) has little comprehension on some linguistic categories like personal pronoun, articles, verbal inflections, subordinate clauses, negative and passive sentences.

As to syntactic development, people with Down Syndrome like the 21-year old man, have grammatical clauses in their utterances. Randal and Laubert (1983) found out also that sentence complexity remained low. Grammatical marks of gender and number were produced on the average of one or two times in their utterances. Articles such as a, an, the, were infrequently used. Verbs are not regularly inflected.

As to semantic development, Rondal (1978) claimed that people with Down syndrome who age 21 years old appear to structure their utterances, no matter how formally limited they may be- according to the same basic semantic relations ( i.e. agent, semantic object, beneficiary, location, attribution, etc.). Rondal (1978) added that he seemed to understand correctly the same set of basic structural meaning when these meaning are expressed in the speech of other people. He went on by saying that semantic structures and the contents produced are correctly organized. He concluded that their verbal production is relevant and informative, and generally appropriate to the social context and the communicative intents of the locutors.

2. A. Describe the (1) etiology and (2) problems of global aphasia, Broca’s aphasia and Wernicke’s aphasia?
Answer: Broca’s aphasia is primarily a disorder that affects a person’s ability to form sentences with the rules of syntax. Broca’s aphasia is named after the French surgeon Paul Broca who claimed at a scientific meeting in Paris that language is localized to the left hemisphere of the brain ( now called Broca’s area) and claimed that we speak with the left hemisphere. Broca’s finding was based on the study of his patients who suffered language deficits after brain injury to the left frontal lobe. People who are suffering from Broca’s aphasia have the following problems: ( a):Language produced is often agrammatic . It means that it frequently lacks articles, prepositions, pronouns, auxiliary,, verbs and other grammatical elements. They also typically delete inflections such as the past tense suffix –ed or the third person singular verb ending n –s ;(b).Difficulty in understanding complex sentences in which comprehension depends exclusively on syntactic structure and where they cannot rely on their real-world knowledge. For example, an agrammatic aphasic may have difficulty in knowing who kissed whom in question like : Which girl did the boy kiss?, where it is equally plausible for the boy or the girl to have done the kissing.

Another disorder is Wernicke’s aphasia which is named after Carl Wernicke, a German neurologist who described an aphasia that occurred in patients with lesions in areas of the left hemisphere temporal lobe, now known as Wernicke’s area. People with Wernicke’s aphasia produce fluent speech with good intonation, and they may largely adhere to the rules of syntax. However, their language is often semantically incoherent. For example, one patient replied to a question about his health with: I felt worse because I can no longer keep in mind from the mind of the minds to keep me from mind and up to the ear which can be to find among ourselves. Another problem of people with Wernicke’s aphasia is having a difficulty of naming objects presented to them and also in choosing words in spontaneous speech. They may make numerous lexical errors ( word substitutions) , often producing jargons and nonsense words.

And the last is global aphasia which profoundly impairs all aspects of language – oral and written production as well as auditory and written comprehension. The syndrome is due to a large lesion to the left perisylvian cortex ( Kartesz, Lesk, Mc Cabe, 1977). Global aphasia is referred to as the most severe type of aphasia. It is often seen right someone has a stroke. Global aphasia is caused by injuries to language-processing areas of the brain, notably Wernicke’s ad Broca’s areas. Most often, the injuries are the result of a large middle-cerebral artery stroke. People with global aphasia face problem with word-based communication skills such as writing, reading, speaking, and understanding speech. Moreover, few of them are mute and some can produce sounds like “ta-ta” or stereotypic phrases such as “We said”. They can sometimes use simple words , such as expletives. People with global aphasia are marked by a severe impairment of both understanding and expression of language.

B. Does aphasia affect intelligence?

No. it does not. A person may face difficulty retrieving names, and words but the person’s intelligence is intact. For person’s with aphasia, it is the ability to access ideas and thought through language- not the ideas and thoughts themselves- that is disrupted.

Read More

Exploring the City of Angels

This is HEAVEN. This is BANGKOK.

Welcome to Chulalonglorn University,
the leading university in Thailand!

I was too excited the moment I received the letter of acceptance from the 23rd Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (SEALS23) that our paper entitled “Lexicalization of Profanity in Cebuano and Bahasa Sug” would be presented in the conference and the host university, Chulalangkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand would be giving me a travel grant. This is indeed awesome! So, I immediately processed my papers and the president of my university, University of Southeastern Philippines approved my travel to Thailand from May 29- June 2, 2013. Vacation. Vacation. Oh, this is life. This is heaven in Bangkok.

May 29, 1.a.m., I arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport pronounced as [sù.wān.nā.pʰūːm]; from Sanskrit, सुवर्णभूमि, meaning Golden Land), and also known as (New) Bangkok International Airport. And I was all alone in this trip. Oh la la la. I immediately hired a taxi and I instructed him to send me to Novotel Bangkok on Siam Square. I already had an idea about what Novotel Siam is and thanks to the power of internet. And yes, it is a 4-star hotel in the vibrant centre of Bangkok. With 423 well-appointed rooms, this is the perfect destination for both business trips and holidays. Thanks to Dr. Jubilado for the accommodation. Thanks to the University of Hawaii. USeP cannot give this accommodation to international research presenters.

I rested. I felt the contemporary design, spacious, and adaptable executive room in the 14th floor of Novotel. This room welcomes me with everything I want and I need for a truly comfortable stay: flat screen television, air-conditioned, elegant toilet, generously sized bedroom with an open plan lounge area and city views of Bangkok. Truly, executive room!

May 29, 7 a.m., I woke up comfortably and was ready to attend the 23rd Meeting of Southeast Asian Linguistics Society in Chulalongkorn University, just a few steps from the hotel. Chulalongkorn University is the oldest and one of the most prestigious universities in Thailand, and was founded in its present form in 1917 by King Vajiravudh ( Rama IV). It was named after his father , King Chulalongkorn ( Rama V), who laid the foundations for modern education in Thailand. In keeping with the shred vision of both kings, Chulalongkorn University has maintained its reputation for academic excellence ever since, and has been instrumental in national development. Chulalongkorn University, known familiarly as “Chula”, extends over a 456-acre tract of land. It has grown constantly in the near-century since its founding, and today is a comprehensive university offering 500 programs in almost all areas of study, 87 of them international. Both traditional academic disciplines and interdisciplinary studies are included. The enrolment is currently approximately 39, 000 students.

And yes, SEALS is here in Chula. The Annual Meeting of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society is a proud tradition cherished by community of linguists from USA, Asia, Australia sharing an interest in the languages of Southeast Asia. It aims to promote academic exchanges as well as to foster the network among scholars working on the languages of Mainland and Insular Southeast Asia. And this is what I love. Connections. Connections.

The paper presenters from Asia, USA, and Australia
during the first day of theSEALS Conference.

And of course, part of the travel is exploring what Bangkok has to offer. Since our hotel is in Siam Square, the near shopping mall is no other than the pride of Bangkok, the Siam Paragon. It houses world-class clothing lines, and I and fellow Filipino presenters from Summer Institute of Linguistics were just up to window shopping only. We experienced also the 3D Cinema and I was in awe that time. We had a coffee session also with the Filipino presenters from University of the Philippines – Diliman, and thanks to Dr. Jubilado for the treat! We experienced also the Chatuchak weekend market, the world’s largest market, which offers a wide variety of products including household items, clothing, Thai handicrafts, religious artifacts, collectibles, foods, and live animals. And I bought here my pasalubongs! It is estimated that the market receives 200,000 visitors each day.

We visited also the famous Patpong Night Market in Silom. Patpong is a must night shopping destination in Thailand as it offers not just items for pasalubongs, but also sexy girls, and handsome boys, and gays. Bars are sprouting like mushroom. Live shows, ladies wearing only panty and bra, and men in briefs are in the streets tempting the tourists. A Thai approached us and said, “ Hello Sir. Do you want BOOM BOOM?”. Oh what is BOOM BOOM? I asked my fellow presenter. He said, “ It’s sex. They thought we are Indonesians or Malaysians.” There are many Indonesians, Malaysians, Americans and other nationalities who are enjoying the pleasure of life. Sex is rampant here, so if you want to feel heaven, visit SILOM and do the BOOM BOOM!

Swimming session before attending the conference.

Life is beautiful in Thailand. Swimming and going to Physical Fitness Center of Novotel were just few of my activities there. How I wish I can do these in the Philippines, my beloved country.

Enjoying the Fitness Center at Novotel.

These are just some of the pleasures in Thailand. Indeed, there is heaven in Bangkok!

Read More

Research Presentation in Bali, Indonesia

Your paper is accepted! I was a bit hesitant if I was reading the right message. Yes, my paper is accepted for a paper presentation in Bali, Indonesia. And so? That was my initial reaction.

Actually, it is an honor to present a paper abroad but the problem is where will I get funds? I was a part-time instructor then at the University of Southeastern Philippines, Bo. Obrero, Davao City, Philippines and my salary was just enough to satisfy my needs and of course, the needs of my family. Money, money. That was my problem then. Luckily, when I shared the news to Consul- General Sukarsono of Consulate General of Indonesia in Ecoland, Davao City, he was happy then and said , “ Welcome to Indonesia as he handed me a travel book”. Consul Sukarsono was my tutee in English and he enjoyed our discussion because I used actual situations in our lesson. At the end of the conversation, he handed me money and said , “Go to Bali and share your study to them. They need you.”

And this is it! Welcome to Bali! I was the only Filipino presenter in the International Conference on English Across Cultures. Here is the abstract of my study :

WELCOME to Bali. This is another avenue for me to grow intellectually as a researcher and as a person. Terima kasih, Indonesia!

_________________________________________________________________________________

ANALYSIS OF VERB PHRASE ARCHITECTURE IN MUSLIM LEGENDS: 

BASIS FOR A TEACHING GUIDE IN ENGLISH I

by

SAJED S. INGILAN

University of Southeastern Philippines

ABSTRACT

This study entitled Analysis of Verb Phrase Architecture in Muslim Legends: Basis for a Teaching Guide in English I, aims to analyze the verb phrase architecture in Muslim legends which would be basis for a teaching guide in English I. This investigation is a qualitative type of research. Through purposive random sampling, there were 7 Kalagan, 6 Maguindanaon, and 9 Tausug informants. Constant consultation with the experts was done for data accuracy. Findings revealed that the verb phrase architecture in Muslim legends are: Kalagan verb phrase is on initial syntactic position with verb, verb + noun phrase, verb + prepositional phrase, and verb + adverbial phrase as constituents; Maguindanaon verb phrase is on initial syntactic position with verb, verb + noun phrase, verb + prepositional phrase, and verb + adverbial phrase as constituents; and Tausug verb phrase is on initial syntactic position with verb, verb + noun phrase, verb + prepositional phrase, and verb + adverbial phrase as constituents. The Maguindanaon, Kalagan, and Tausug languages are verb-initial languages; have verb, verb + noun phrase, verb + prepositional phrase, and verb+ adverbial phrase as verb phrase constituents. Muslim and English languages share similarities on verb phrase constituents such as the verb, V+NP, V+PP, and V+AdvP. The majority of the verb phrases in Muslim languages are on their initial syntactic position unlike English, it is on final syntactic position. Out of the findings, a teaching guide in English I was designed for Muslim students which focused on the Muslim verb phrases. It is then recommended that the analysis on the Muslim verb phrases should be used in English and Linguistics classes to understand the complexities of Muslim languages. Researchers should explore the other facets of Muslim languages which will be of great help in designing teaching guides in English.


A paper presented in the International Conference on English Across Cultures at Ganesha University of Education, Singaraja, Bali, Indonesia, October 21-22, 2011.

Read More

Online Quiz 2 for Literature, SAEc, CGB Students ( Reading for Comprehension)

Read the text in this site http://sajedsingilan.blogspot.com/2013/07/media-ethics-and-conflict-in-mindanao.html and in the comment box below, share your views as to media ethics and conflict in Mindanao. On what grounds that you agree or disagree with ? Deadline : July 25, 2013, 9 p.m.

Read More

Online Quiz 2 for Engineering and Technology Students( Reading for Comprehension)

Read the text in this site http://sajedsingilan.blogspot.com/2013/07/teaching-english-to-engineering-students.html and in the comment box, please share your insights as to how an English professsor handles Engineering students given the scenario at USEP. On what ground/s that you agree or disagree with the writer? Share it. Deadline : July 25, 2013, Thursday, 9 p.m.

Read More

Media Ethics and Conflict in Mindanao

Terrorists, kidnappers, corrupt officials and all other undesirable characters in society are usually portrayed by the media practitioners to the image of Muslims in Southern Philippines. Mass media practitioners have contributed to the building of stereotypes to Muslims.

In her article entitled “The Other Face of Mindanao,” Gina Mission said that Mindanao is portrayed as a war zone and that for the uninitiated; it is easier to visualize an island at war than go to the place and see for one's self the validity of such a description. Mass media practitioners deliver news from Mindanao only in terms of conflict, crime and violence. Headlines range from bombings, shootouts, military ambushes, kidnapping incidents and failed ceasefires. Muslims are involved. These give the public the idea that there is a full-blown “war” in Mindanao.

Another issue as cited by Marites Vitug, Editor-in-Chief of Newsbreak, is the use of Christian and Muslim labels, even if religion has nothing to do with stories, continues—i.e. Muslim kidnappers/bandits but never Christian kidnappers/bandits. Vitug continued that with such kind of reporting, the roots of conflict are not illuminated. It does not throw light on the political and economic processes that generate conflict. It does not address the complex relationship between state and rebels, elites and rebels.

She added that journalists failed to adequately distinguish between different parties to the conflict, the MNLF, MILF, and civilian Muslim groups. A TV journalist even said there was no difference between the MILF and the Abu Sayyaf, that they were all related, conspiring to overthrow the government. (Abu Sayyaf is an extremist group. The MILF has denounced the Abu Sayyaf.)

As a result, mass media practitioner's portrayal has prevented the investors to step forward because they get scared by what they have read in the newspapers, heard over the radio, and seen in the television. Another outcome is that many non-Muslims hold certain stereotypes of Muslims. An August 2004 poll in the Philippines showed that 52 percent had a favorable view of Islam while 41 percent had an unfavorable opinion. This showed a decline because in June 2003, those with favorable opinion of Islam reached 58 percent. Those who viewed Islam unfavorably was the same, 41 percent.

Based from a data released by the Growth with Equity in Mindanao, a non governmental organization working towards accelerated economic growth in Mindanao and ensuring that the benefits of growth are widely distributed among its people, a lot of development activities are happening in Mindanao, yet it is only the insurgency problem that gets reported.

According to Escote(2008),mass media practitioners play a crucial role in forging peace in a world that seems to be preoccupied with violence. He stressed out that mass media practitioners could either make or break Mindanao with what and how they report events and activities, especially in something complicated like a peace process.

Mass media practitioners should be sensitive to the faith and cultures of Muslims when they are covering events in Mindanao. Rufa Cagoco-Guiam, Mindanao State University Center for Peace and Development Studies Director, in her article entitled “Telling the Truth of the "Other": Images of Islam and Muslims in the Philippines”, related the do's and don'ts for non-Muslim mass media practitioners covering events and processes with the Muslims in Mindanao:

(1) Mass media practitioners must observe proper dress and decorum when doing coverage or interviews because part of becoming a Muslim means being always modest in one's dress;

(2) Mass media practitioners must investigate the historical background of the Mindanao conflict and the Philippine government's policy and guidelines for peace negotiations;

(3) Mass media practitioners must be highly conscious of the distinctions between terms denoting religious identity and those used to refer to cultures or groups of persons;

(4) Mass media practitioners must examine not only one source, but all possible sources of information about the circumstances that engendered the Mindanao conflict;

(5) Mass media practitioners must read up on the various cultures of the 13 Muslin ethno linguistic groups; and

(6) Mass media practitioners must be extra careful when describing people who are suspects in crimes.

In her article “Positive Spin for Mindanao”, Rina Jimenez David, Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist, suggested that to project a more realistic image of Mindanao, a simple lesson in geography for reporters, editors, publishers, and news producers in Metro Manila must be given.

Mass media practitioners must be specific also in giving reports. When there is a bombing incident, journalists must dateline their stories where the events took place rather than just saying it was in Mindanao.

Hence, mass media practitioners must be aware of their critical and influential role. They can help in solving the conflict and they may also impede the peace process in Mindanao.

Read More

Teaching English to Engineering Students

Messy rooms, noisy students, big number of students. These are the common problems that a teacher encounters at the College of Engineering at the University of Southeastern Philippines. I have been handling English at the College of Engineering for five years, and I do not regret.

Speech. Party. Fun. The BS Mechanical Engineering students during the Culminating Actvity in Speech and Oral Communication.  They delivered their respective speeches based on the occasion.

They say that it is difficult to handle the Engineering students primarily because of the messy rooms. Chairs, and tables in the rooms are ancient, so you must be careful for if not, you will be disappointed as you get stain from the chairs. Chalkboards also are not that tempting for a teacher to write, so in my case, I seldom use the chalkboard. I always use my voice to get the attention of my students. Yes, it is true that classroom really affects the learning of the students, and it is now a challenge on my part on how to deal on this issue. Since 2008, I have never uttered bad words about the scenario because I know that this is USEP. I finished my undergraduate and graduate degrees from this university so I am very aware of the condition of the classrooms here. I can still recall that in 2009, I handled English 3 (Speech ad Oral Communication) class at the Chemistry Laboratory, fifth floor, at the College of Engineering. Wow! How would I handle this class? I reflected and continued to handle the class at the Chemistry Laboratory since this was our assigned room. I could not look for another room because all rooms were occupied. Everytime my students brought this issue, I just said that, “This is USEP. But let this not disappoint you, instead, take this a challenge”. And my students often replied, “ Tama jud Sir. Daghan baya board passers diri”.

Another hurdle that you would encounter when you teach at the College of Engineering is the noise of the students. Since I am handling Engineering students, it is expected that majority of the students are men. Dota, basketball, and cartoons are the common topics that create noise among these men and it is not new to me. Sometimes, I join the conversation so that they would feel that I am with them, and this is a good strategy in order to establish a good relationship with them. That is why everytime I meet my Engineering students , they usually call my name and smile at me though I gave them low grades. I realize that students do not have hatred in their hearts when I gave them low grades because they still smile at me, and this is because I instilled in their minds that I am just giving the grade that they deserve. So, walang personalan. My student teachers usually comment, “ Sir, daghan lagi ka fans sa Engineering building.” I then replied, “Mao na akong gipang 3.0. hahaha.” Yes, Engineering students are nosiy, that is why at the start of the class, I orient them that if I talk, they should listen to me. And if someone is caught talking, I usually get his attention for him to be reminded that he is violating my policy. 

The BS Geodetic Engineering students have a pose with their English 3 professor 

Newly hired teachers usually say ,” Daghan kaayo ko students sa Engineering. Paita.” I just smile and say, “ That is no longer new. Eversince the world began, the class size at the College of Engineering is 50+. So take it or leave it?!”. Once you handle Engineering students, you need to be brilliant in employing teaching strategies in order to get the attention of these students, of course, in order for them to learn. I am just lucky because the Language Department has modules and textbooks, a big help on how to deal with these students. And I always search for new texts, new strategies to cope with the needs and wants of my learners. I use texts from the Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mining Engineering, and Geology.

Yes, it is a tiring task, but at the end of the day, you will be happy as you hear your students saying, “ Thank you Sir. We learned a lot through your activities which are not boring”.

Read More