Republic of the Philippines
SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Graduate School
ACCESS, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City
______________________________________________________________
IVAN T. BARROGA- MAT-English
MTE 612- Language Acquisition Theories and Learning
Paper No. 1
Language Learning Autobiography
I believe that our language could be a reflection of our totality. As such, the way
someone act or speak are often attributed to language he's using. To say, our language
is our identity.
I have learned Ilocano as my native tongue, and Filipino and English as my
second and third language, respectively. I also can speak Cebuano and
Hiligaynon tolerably to deal with any everyday situations. However, in my current
workplace, I am still learning Maguidanaoan language. I can utter some sentences
so as to bridge the communication gap between me and my students.
My Linguistic Heritage
I was born and raised in Brgy. Midtapok, Lambayong, Sultan Kudarat, where the
people predominantly speak Ilocano. My father, born in Tarlac, is an Ilocano, whose
family soon after moved in Mindanao. My mother, on the other hand, born in outskirts of
Zeneben, Sultan sa Barongis (now part of Lambayong), speaks Cebuano-Cebu, whose
family is a native of Cebu City. Due to immense linguistic influence, she can now speak
Ilocano fluently without recognizing markers of her first language.
Growing up, my parents use Ilocano in majority of the conversation. As a result,
along with my two older siblings, we learned to use the language as our native tongue.
In contrary, our two younger siblings use Filipino as their first language due to heavy
media exposure and internet usage. We rarely speak Cebuano at home on a typical
conversation.
When I was already sent to school on my primary years, I began my exposure to
my second and third language—Filipino and English. My L2 and L3 usage had been
intensified when I was exposed to heavy every day tutorial sessions. I was also used to
be in summer classes for English up until I reached secondary. Still, I am typical
schoolboy who doesn’t use “conyo”, as stereotypically perceived by others.
When I reached secondary years, I was immersed to complex linguistic
background—a multilingual-speaking community. My classmates speak Ilocano,
Hiligaynon, Cebuano and Maguindanaon. During that time, I already started to learn
basic vocabularies of the aforementioned vernaculars. As I progressed, I learned to
utter simple sentence structures of Cebuano and Maguindanaon in particular.
I moved in General Santos City to spend my college studies and pursue my
Bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature at Mindanao State University.
Linguistically, the city is dominated by Cebuano. For that, it has given me the chance to
enhance my linguistic competence and performance in terms of Cebuano. On the other
side, my course does not only deepen my understanding on conventions of English
language, but also allowed me to appreciate its uniqueness through different academic
exposures and textual immersions.
Translanguaging as form of Meaning Negotiation
Teaching in Pimbalayan National High School located in the outskirts of
Lambayong, where majority of the learners are residing in Maguindanao area, language
barrier is very evident especially for me who is nonnative speaker of Maguindanaon.
This language is used not only as means of communication in the community, but also
as a medium of instruction in school so as to bridge the language gap between teachers
and learners.
To address the concern of linguistic barriers, I negotiate for meaning by
translating English or Filipino phrases into Maguindanaon through the help of students
who are fluent in the language. On a lighter note, I learn the language by using this
teaching strategy. Oftentimes, learners code-switch to feel comfortable in expressing
their thoughts and ideas.
Due to minimum exposure to English language and overexposure to native
language, the balance seems to be skewed in terms of language use. As a result,
learners develop this feeling of anxiety and alienation when introduced to English
language. Evident in the classroom setting, anxiety can hinder learning and make
learners reluctant to express themselves in the second language. They are also
comparing their skills with native speakers of the target language, which lead to
embarrassment and shame that they are not pronouncing exactly or nearly the same
with the native speakers.
Conclusions
Being exposed into different linguistic environment made me learn different
language, thus, making me multilingual. More than learning the rules governing the
language from smallest to largest linguistic unit, it enables me to appreciate the beauty
of culture and tradition intertwined to it. For me, a language is the soul of the community
—it is a significant tool that unites people, it is their communal property and identity.
