One big issue that has hounded Philippine education is the medium of instruction (MOI). A long time ago, English was the MOI. For a time, it seemed to work. When it was an allEnglish curriculum that was followed (beginning circa 1901), achievement levels were not as disappointing as they are now. A glorious past can often be heard spoken about by the old folks. It might be recalled that there was a time when English was the only language allowed to be spoken in the classroom and within the school premises. A SpeakEnglish-Only campaign, strictly implemented which students willingly complied with, found support with the parents. The mood was very much pro-English.

Fast-forward to the present. It seems that we have lost our strong hold on English. No longer do we have the reputation of being the best English-speaking country in Asia. Younger generations of Filipinos cannot handle English well compared to their older counterparts. What has gone wrong? Is it the changes in our curriculum brought about by the Bilingual Education Policy (BEP)? Is it the unwillingness of our teachers to follow BEP as instructed, or regional sentiments prevailing over policy dictates? Is it deficiencies in the educational system as a whole? It is hard to pinpoint exactly what has caused the decline of English.

I think we can support English without detracting from our own native language. We can make Filipino flourish so that it reaches an intellectualized level; however, in the process let us not kill English. Some pro-Filipino educationists may think that an effective way to propagate Filipino is to stop the growth of English. But the beauty of the BEP is that it aims to develop a bilingual nation, competent in both Filipino and English. Let us encourage the Filipino learner to be good at both Filipino and English.

And this is also the time to develop a policy making Mother Tongues/vernacular languages play a significant role in children’s early schooling. Much more is known now about Mother Tongue instruction; studies have shown that the Mother Tongue is an effective link between the home and the school. The Mother Tongue is also an effective bridge not only to learning another language, but to all cognitive learning in general. The use of Mother Tongues as MOI in the early years of schooling deserves careful consideration.

There are several reasons why we should keep English. It happens to be the most important language in the world at this point in the 21st Century. The long history of the development and growth of English and the illustrious efforts of its prominent writers/speakers to propagate, enrich, and earn for the language its undeniable prestige cannot be begrudged. Many nations aspire to speak English, the language of power. In the field of linguistics, English is what is called a Language of Wider Communication (LWC); in fact, English can be referred to as the most influential language the world over. It is an official language of many countries/governments; it is the language of business and trade, of music and the arts, of the Internet, and of virtually all areas of importance to humans. English is the acknowledged Lingua Franca of the world.

Then there is the concept of "Education for All", which aims to be inclusive and not to leave out the unfortunate sectors of society from learning what they should. Studies have shown that language aptitude is independent of measures of intelligence; this means that one does not have to be intelligent to learn/acquire language. Worth considering, too, is Howard Gardner’s concept of multiple intelligences. Every individual has their own unique capacities/intelligences and can excel in what they seek to accomplish. No longer should education gravitate around the earlier notions of intelligence being linked only to something cognitive. Instead, it must be realized that there are other kinds of intelligence and the school should address them, too, thus rightfully catering to learners of all kinds. Surely, everyone can be harnessed according to their own individual talents and skills. Many more people whose different intelligences are developed will be able to contribute towards the good of the community and country and this will augur well for greater social and economic development.

The view expressed by Jacques Delors, president of the UNESCO International Commission on Education for the 21st Century, holds much wisdom. In keeping with the notions that he and the Commission brought forward, of the four pillars of education for the 21st Century (learning to know, to do, to live together, and to be), it must be realized that different learners come in different molds. Thus, the ways for them to learn to know and to do things surely would be different. Furthermore, learning how to live together with others is invaluable. The learners of the 21st Century are of a breed whose characteristics and needs are far different from those of previous generations. The road that must be traveled by them is far more exciting and far more open to many and varied possibilities. Learners must be led properly on that road. On the other hand, if we remain stagnant and unwilling to learn how better to prepare them for the future, then we condemn them to their doom.

Therefore, curricular imperatives for the new century have to be changed now, accommodating the fact that learners are perceived to be different, and the ways of learning as well as the tools for learning are different and innovative for them, too. We have to realize that the great divide of this Century might be between those who can keep pace with the digital revolution and those who cannot. We have to prepare our learners to be the kind of knowledge workers that the 21st Century knowledge society needs.