CHAPTER I

The Problem and Its Setting

Background of the Study

Language undeniably plays an important role in various aspects of our

daily lives. It is a means of communication that is used to transfer information,

ideas, and feelings from one person to another. But its role is not limited to only

communication rather it extends into the vast branches of knowledge.

Language is capable of developing human knowledge and extending it

for the benefit of others. Education is an essential part of every man’s life for it

improves the quality of life and develops living standards. Thus, the general

importance of language justifies the need for a scientific and objective study of

the relationship between the respondents preferred language and education.

“People develop their preferred language that they would be proficient

with by the time they grow up at school and for the generation today, schools are

much more diverse than they were twenty-five years ago” (Malarz, 2014). Stated

by Omark and Erickson, the changing society has come to a clearly defined

increase in the number of language minorities. And with that, schools can no

longer ignore the need for adjustment when it comes to the languages used

inside the campus. Sticking to one language or having the incapability of learning

another one will hinder the students into further advancement of their vocabulary.

And this advancement leads to one of the most discussed pedagogical

progress which is Code witching. According to Besa in her study in 2009,

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wherever there is language contact, there is bound to be some form of code-

switching for those who are adept in using more than one language which may

cause confusion to the receiver.

Everyone has an Academic (Written and Oral) and Social Language

(Intrapersonal and Interpersonal), one is used for socializing and the other is

used at school, as it may be a school policy or it is just the language where one

is able to grasp much information with. And to that, Code-Switching is a very

used way for communicating for this generation because for some it actually

helps them explain a thing or two; It helps the students know the translation of

their Academic Language and Social Language or vice versa.

Code switching is present in the preferred Academic and Social

Language, and culture has a great impact when it comes to preferred Academic

and Social of a student because a language isn’t taught, it is acquired; there is a

little influence when it comes to ‘teaching’ the language, it may be enhanced with

it but the learner is still the one who would determine whether or not the

language is gained. With that, they contract their own rule in language acquisition

(Malarz, 2014). Consistency is a very important role here because the more they

hear or engage with it, the higher the possibility that they may adapt to it.

As stated by Ellen Bialystok, a cognitive neuroscientist, on an article

based on her conversation with Claudia Dreifus : “There is a system in your

brain, the executive control system. It’s a general manager. Its job is to keep you

focused on what is relevant, while ignoring distractions. It’s what makes it

2
possible for you to hold two different things in your mind at one time and switch

between them. If you have two languages and you use them regularly, the way

the brain’s networks work is that every time you speak, both languages pop up

and the executive control system has to sort through everything and attend to

what’s relevant in the moment. Therefore, the bilinguals use that system more,

and it’s that regular use that makes that system more efficient.”

Having a preferred language keeps the mind focused into practicing

the said language and it gives more way to other information we could absorb

from school which leads to academic success. Having less time to focus on other

languages the students could speak, the respondents manage to give their time

to other things the respondents could learn aside from the respondents

language, since they only have one to go with.

In the premises of International Baptist College’s Grade 9, students are not

obligated to follow the English Only Policy, thus students are given the chance to

use and excel with their preferred language. However, there could be a

justification why they chose the language they would use above other languages;

wherein the impact of it would be clear to us throughout the study.

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Statement of the Problem

The objective of the study is to distinguish the relationship of their preferred

language of the Grade 9 students and their success on their language subjects.

And to determine those who are having difficulties on their language subjects

because of their language preference. This sought to answer the following

questions:

1. What is the language preference of the International Baptist College Grade 9

students when communicating?

2. In what situation does the students use their preferred language?

3. Is there a significant relationship between language preference and their

performance in language subjects?

Significance of the Study

This study is conducted to investigate the observable activity involving the

student’s language preference. It is achievable by observing the students who

can switch from language to language and those student who are obliged to have

one language to master or enhance from a day-to-day basis; which the

researchers can determine the effects of it to them when it comes to their

performance on their language subjects and whether being monolingual or

bilingual encourages or hinders them to communicate with other co-students.

And if having more than one preference could show intelligence and has higher

possibility of excelling academically or if it would strain their progress in their

4
 language subjects. The researchers aim to know the common factor of students

with having a preferred language and to those who are bilingual.

Conceptual Framework

INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT

Questionnaire Conduct survey Results that answers

Grades of the using the the sub-problems
respondents in their questionnaire
. and would determine
Language Apply Statistical
the greatest
Subject(English & Treatment(Chi- common factor
Filipino) Square) to the between the two
categories
gathered data
Interpret the Data
Analyzing the
Information gathered

The conceptual framework explains the series of actions made to acquire

the objective and scientific explanation to the relationship of education and
preferred language to provide a suitable proposal to aid students and teachers.

Scope and Delimitations

The focus of the study is to determine the language preference of the

students and what effect it may have to them. Determining the similarities of the

students when it comes to language preference, we separated them into two

categories; 1.) Student who have a language preference between the two and 2.)

Students who sticks to one out of the two.

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 The study is limited to and only to determine the effects of the language

they chose with their excellence on their language subjects. The data can be

used to further improve the methods which the teachers are using to enhance the

speaking ability and/or to help the students to cope up with the discussion inside

the school premises. This would help identifying the possible language

miscommunication inside the classroom.

Definition of Terms

Preferred language in this study it is how the student will learn and excel.

Mastering the said language helps them in the proficiency of it and is allotting

time into other aspect that they need improving.

Academic Language is the language they use when it comes to academics.

They may have another preferred language to this or it could just be the same,

depending on the students we would conduct the study on. But this language is

to help improve the comprehension and understanding of the students at school.

Social Language is the one they use when it comes to talking with other

people. Some would have to adjust to this because not all of the people they

encounter will have the same language preference as theirs. This would help the

students communicate better with the people who is proficient or has the same

language preference as theirs.

Code-Switching in the study we showed that it is the method of changing

language to language, further enhancing the vocabulary and is use when you

can’t find the word on the said language. It helps some students that is capable

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of speaking two languages but isn’t fluent to both, the method of this gives them

a better chance to explain. Translation of language that improves the broadness

of a word into the expansion through another language.

Academic Success in this study we are observing this aspect with the

language preference of the student we would be conducting the survey on. We

would be gathering the data and we would determine the students that has the

same language preference and to those who have more than one language they

obtain and would find out who has better success in academics.

Culture in this study it is where the students adapted the language it

knew. It has great effect to it because it is occurred when the environment the

student is in is responsive enough for the student to acquire the language. And

that Language development is continues, you would know what language the

student dwells more with his or her proficiency.

Null Hypothesis

There are no significant relationship between language preference and the

respondents performance in their language subjects.

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 Chapter II

Review of Related Literature

The literature review is divided into two primary sections that discuss specific

areas of concern. This chapter provides an overview of the previous research on

the knowledge sharing and intranets. It introduces the framework for the case

study that comprises the main focus of the research which is to determine the

effects of the Grade 9’s language preference with their proficiency with their

language subject. This review’s importance is to find limits within this study’s

scope, efficiently used observations and comments essential to the study, and

clearly explain the purpose of the study through the means of using evidences

that will be found in the review of these related literature.

I. Local Literature

Lingua Franca

A big factor in the establishment and acceptance of English in the

Philippines is linked with definite or need for lingua franca – a common language

that could both link the people of the Philippines to each other and link the

Philippines to the rest of the world. The economic and social need of an evolving

nation is readily apparent because of the need of lingua franca (Avila,2007).

In the Philippines, it is not a necessity to learn more than two languages

aside from linguists and historians who would like to disclose behind the post-

8
colonialism effect in the language. But with the research, the need is visible for

the Filipinos to connect with each other and to connect to the rest of the world. In

the Philippines, supposedly there are recognized 185 dialects which is 4 of them

are now extinct (Mandane, 2014). Ironically, the political system is a unitary one,

so only 2 of them are recognized as official languages — Filipino and English.

How come?

In brief, it is due to the grave "nationalistic" need of those in the Commission

of Filipino Language (Kumisyon sa Wikang Filipino) to unify the Filipinos with a

language based on Tagalog. President Manuel Quezon pursued and

implemented the foundations for a bilingual education system, which gained full

implementation from 1959 onwards. Thus, from then on, most Filipinos celebrate

the so called "Buwan ng Wika" or “Language month”.

They say that language is the key to understand others but what many

Filipinos miss is that English can also be used as a key to understand ourselves.

Besides, America does not own English. It can belong to the whole wide world if

we only accept it with grace and use it with wisdom (Espinosa, 1997). The

numbers of Filipinos who can speak more than a few languages than there own

are rising. The Philippines is very flexible to change, the Filipinos can adapt the

passed language chosen by the people.

Mother tongue based instruction had a stronger effect on the students

compared to second language instruction that affect the students’ proficiency that

resulted into some implications not only for mother tongue-based but also for

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English as a second language instruction in the country (Aquino, 2012). Since

the country is a mixture of cultures that landed to the Philippines, adaptation is

inevitable at that time because of the colonisation that gave a long-term effect in

some of our language like the Chavacano; which is Spanish-based creole.

Since it is influenced, it is easily passed on throughout the generation.

Like English, people who were present in the colonization on that time have

acquired it and may have taught it to their sons and daughters same with the

language they grew up with, creating a bilingual effect. Thus, having the ability to

speak two languages at once.

Code-Switching

Code-switching is really popular to those who knows how to speak more

than one language. Some people doesn’t like the thought of it since it can be

acceptably confusing for others but it should not be scowled by educational

policy-makers, educational managers, and particularly in the Philippines,

accrediting agencies of schools. But it does not mean that the use of the method

must be implemented in order for it to be accepted in classrooms in the

Philippines, thus letting others to be overwhelmed with the usage of such way of

speaking. Like what Bernardo said: Our language prescription in formal school

environments to allow students and teachers to benefit from the use of this

efficacious resource of developing knowledge and understanding.

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 The current policies do not need to be changed. Nevertheless, views on

language in education and languages of instruction should be accessible to the

changing times. (Borlongan, 2013)

Foreigners that visit Manila or other urban areas in the Philippines for

the first time are struck by the experience of hearing small conversations that

they can understand because a part of the conversation is in English. But at the

same time, they feel comprehensively lost when they are listening to the other

parts of the conversation. The phenomenon is repeated when they open an

English newspaper and see an advertisement in English but with a long stretch of

Tagalog thrown in, or a news item with English and Tagalog quotations from

government officials or a feature interview with the interviewer and the

interviewee switching between English and Tagalog. When they turn on the

Television, they hear interviews, panel discussions, and sportscasts in the same

code-switching variety. (Bautista, 2004)

As said by Maria Lourdes Bautista: This is Taglish or Tagalog-English

code switching. The alternation of Tagalog and English in a conversation. It is a

confusing way to speak of those who only use one of either language, yet it gives

a little bit of hint to the listeners who subsequently get confused after hearing the

code-switched statement.

This part in the research presents the future observations, which gives

enlightenment to code-switching in order to understand the perspectives involved

in code-switching, its patterns and its circumstances. Discourse is defined as the

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form of language we use when we speak or write (Gee, 2005); a speech act is an

utterance that serves a function in communication, containing between one word

and several sentences (Carla, 2014); and code can be defined as a system used

for communication between two or more parties used on any occasion

(Wardhaugh, 2010)

This has raised great scholarly interest during the last twenty-years and

has been given different definition. One of the definition sets that it is the practice

of moving back and forth between two languages or between two dialects

registered of the same language (Gardner-Chloros, 2009).

Academic Language

Academic language is the language needed by students to do the work

in schools. It includes, for example, discipline-specific vocabulary, grammar and

punctuation, and applications of rhetorical conventions and devices that are

typical for a content area. You should also develop your students’ abilities to

produce and understand oral and written texts typical in your subject area as well

as to engage in language-based tasks (PACT, 2007).

It is stated that the Academic language is important for the students, they

can be used to do school works and it includes the composing of a proper

sentence and the grammar. Academic language is most used it essays, lab

reports, and discussion. For the Philippines one might use two Academic

Language for some of the students, knows how to speak two languages. In the

Philippines, the only difference the Academic and Social Language have is the

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way we deliver, the tone and the behaviour of the one speaking because code-

switching is commonly used in both manner.

This kind of language has many purpose and it very important for the

studying language. The student should also develop their abilities in language so

that they can more understand oral exams and other written objects that’s very

difficult to understand.

This refers to the oral, written, auditory, and visual language proficiency

required to learn effectively in schools and academic programs—i.e., it’s the

language used in classroom lessons, books, tests, and assignments, and it’s the

language that students are expected to learn and achieve fluency in. Frequently

contrasted with “conversational” or “social” language, academic language

includes a variety of formal-language skills such as vocabulary, grammar,

punctuation, syntax, discipline-specific terminology, or rhetorical conventions that

allow students to acquire knowledge and academic skills while also successfully

navigating school policies, assignments, expectations, and cultural norms.

Even though students may be highly intelligent and capable, for

example, they may still struggle in a school setting if they have not yet mastered

certain terms and concepts or learned how to express themselves and their ideas

in expected ways (Great Schools Partnership, 2014).

Academic language can be used in many different ways and it can

improve your language skills and it can also make you easily understand other

things that involves language. It is very important to us students, it can improve

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our knowledge about language and even though a student is very intelligent if

they can’t understand the Academic language it is hard for them to understand

some other topics that includes language.

Social Language

Social language is the simple, informal language we use when

talking face to face with family members and friends. It allows us to use

contemporary or slang terms like “cool,” “awesome,” or “dude.” We can also

communicate feelings, needs, and wants using symbolic hand gestures for drink,

eat, hot, cold, hurt, or tired. Social language also includes writing emails, friendly

letters, and texts or retelling stories.

Special needs children may need specific instruction that the researchers

may encounter in social language and behaviours, such as greeting people,

giving and receiving compliments, apologizing, and making polite requests. They

may also need instruction in understanding nonverbal language, facial

expressions and body language, respecting rules of personal space and using an

appropriate tone of voice and volume for different environments. For example,

some students, one of the researcher is trying to observe, addresses a teacher in

the classroom in the same tone and volume they use speaking to friends outside

of classrooms. With exposure, practice, and interaction, social language will

develop continually.

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 Role playing, teacher and peer modeling, and viewing age-

appropriate videos are good tools for students to observe social language skills

and behaviors. Teachers and parents can set up opportunities to use and

encourage appropriate social language and behaviors with real incidents that

come up in class or at home; for example, having the child/student practice

greeting or saying good morning (and good-bye) to their teachers, classmates, or

siblings (Spivey 2012).

It is stated here that social language is being used when you’re talking to

someone. Slang is included in social language, we can use social language with

emotions or feelings. Social language also includes writing emails, friendly

letters, and texts or retelling stories. It can be added up with some tone and

volume of the user’s voice. It is important for us to know Social language, without

the knowledge of it we can’t talk properly to others or express the feelings that

we want to while telling it to somebody. Social language is the language of

everyday communication in oral and written forms. This which helps the learner

into further the levels of a word they would pick up when talking to their peers,

giving them the chance to distinguish the possible connection of a word to

another.

What the researchers gathered shows the connection to the actual thesis

which is the language preference and its effect to academic success, with this

the researchers found out these factors has a great effects to the possible

outcome to a student’s improvement and success. From MTB-MLE that was

passed to strengthen the foundation in using mother tongue language because it

15
is the preferred language of most people for the reason because they are used to

that language giving them the advantage if the topic or discussion would be on

their proficient language. This may lead to a better transition in learning another

language, giving the way to Bilingualism where a student might need to manage

their proficiency in two languages at the same time helping them absorb more if

the discussion is mixed between two languages. On the other hand, this could

lead to Language Dominance, as we know is the dominance of a language more

commonly the person’s own mother tongue than the 2nd language to the person.

This will show up more, the loner the MTB-MLE is used in our country because

people are encouraged to study their mother tongue, so they will have a higher

mastery than their second language.

This research shows that Academic Language and Social Language may

or may not have a difference because in some countries, taking Korea as an

example, both of their Social and Academic Language has no difference since

they use Hangul all-around. While some part in the Philippines uses Filipino as

their Social Language and English as their Academic Language because some of

the textbooks used are written in english. Code-switching in connection to the

study helps a student improve or broader their knowledge in a word or phrase,

giving them a better success rate because they would have better understanding

in the discussion.

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EFL/ESL

In our country, english has been taught either as a foreign language or

a second language. This is called “English as a Foreign Language” and “English

as a Second Language”. Most countries are teaching English as a foreign or

second language but not everyone is learning it efficiently. Much of the class time

is devoted to talking about the language; virtually no time is spent talking in the

language (summarized from Omaggio, 1986, p.55). This is where language

preference comes in play. In a class, a new language is taught but it is never

really used aside from that subject, so the students will like the language that

they are used to than the language that is only used only during a certain subject.

But what really is a foreign or second language? Strevens (1971) “reports of a

conference in Britain in which it was suggested that the term second language be

used to describe those countries in which English is the medium of instruction

and foreign language in which English holds a dominant position as the principal

language of advanced study, but it is used only to limited degree as a medium of

instruction. EFL/ESL is mostly used in asian countries like Hong Kong, Malaysia

and the Philippines”. In the Philippines, people only use the English language if

they are talking to a foreigner or if they are outside the country, because it is

easier to speak in our first language which is Filipino. There a few cases where

Filipinos use the English language as their main language, but that is only the

minority of the population. Strevens (1978) defines a country as ESL if English is

accepted as an official language or as a medium of instruction, and if it receives

the major time allocations in broadcasting system. The Philippines is an ESL

17
country because we are using the English language as a second language or a

language used as a medium of instruction. So as stated above, An ESL country

is a country that uses english as a language to communicate or used as a form of

medium for instructional things.

Cultural Language

Language and culture are connected one way or another. People uses certain

medium to spread their culture. This is called, Cultural Language. Cultural

Language is a language that is learned by many people to access the culture of

certain place. It can verbal or non-verbal. The relationship between language and

culture is deeply rooted. Language is used to maintain and convey culture and

cultural ties (Aubrey Neil Leveridge, 2008). In the Philippines, we use the Filipino

language to share our culture, but there will always be a time where some people

will be confused because they can’t understand the language, especially

foreigners. For the Filipino people to express culture, they need a medium to

share their culture. This is where cultural language or more specifically the

English Language comes in. It helps the Filipinos spread their culture, because

although we can share it through music and arts, it’s better to explain it in either

Filipino or English depending on the recipient. As stated by Brooks (1968),

behaviors which are acceptable will vary from location to location thus forming

the basis of different cultures. Different places have different cultures. Their

cultures are shaped through the history of their country. We Filipinos have a

diverse culture, so explaining it in a language that can be easily understood by

the recipient is great. Hantrais (1989) puts forth the idea that culture is the beliefs

18
and practices governing the life of a society for which a particular language is the

vehicle of expression. This is how culture is spread, even though many people

don’t understand each other at first, they can learn a language that can connect

them to a wider audience which a certain language is preffered.

Oral Communication

Literature states that this kind of communication is less time consuming as

compared to written communication (Teddy Kimathi, 2006). For example, when a

speaker is telling a speech on a certain topic or problem, he or she can answer

questions quickly and freely without wasting any time. By using less time, you

can also give more time to other stuff because you are saving time when using

oral communication.

Oral communication also helps new graduates find jobs easily

because communication is one of the desired skills an employer wants (Cappel,

2011; Gray, 2010; Kavanagh and Drennan, 2008). Oral Communication might be

very important, but it is also hard to master. Oral Communication isn’t just about

talking and getting a reply then it’s done, oral communication is talking properly

so the recipient understands you and can give you proper reply too.

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 II. Foreign Literature

Language Preference

Language preference is more open to more than one interpretation,

reflecting one's prime cultural values, social networks, political ideology, or

construction of social identity. As said by Lynn Malarz on the year 2014, Culture

is a great impact when it comes to the preferred language because a language

isn’t taught, it is acquired; there is a little influence when it comes to the language

being taught, it may be enhanced with it.

As observed by Omark and Erickson on the year 1983, Our

changing society has increased in the number of language minorities. In 1980,

there were fourteen or fifteen major language groups with almost 2,400,000

students between the ages of five and fourteen. By far, the largest language

minority population being represented is Spanish-speaking, with more than two-

thirds of the entire language minority population being represented by Spanish

speakers. In 1985, it was projected that the number of Spanish speakers in this

country would increase some 48 percent by the years to come. Because of this

tremendous increase in the numbers of Asian, Hispanic, and other linguistically

and culturally different individuals, school can no longer ignore the need for

adjusting education programs to better serve these groups. One result to this is

the great expansion of bilingual education to provide for the educational needs of

students with limited proficiency in English.

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 It has long been recognized (Mohan 1986; Early, Thew, and Wakefield

1986; Ashworth, Cummins, and Handscombe 1989) that if ESL students are to

`catch-up' or `keep-up' with their native-English speaking peers, their cognitive

and academic growth should continue while the second language is developing.

Thematic units (as opposed to exercises in grammatical structures), where

language is integrated with academic content, appears to be an effective way to

simultaneously develop students' language prefernce, subject area knowledge,

and thinking skills. Thematic units help involve students in real language use

—— use of language interactively across a variety of situations, modes, and text

types.

This only proves that no one can contain the expansion of vocabulary of

people into extending much further than the language they knew since birth. This

would also show that there are many people who can handle learning another

language aside from what they grew up with meaning that they could handle the

‘pressure’, if there is, when it comes to language learning.

Bilingualism

The chances are the brain of the bilinguals may look and work differently

than those who are monolingual. What does it really mean to know a language?

Language ability is typically measured in two active parts which are speaking and

writing and two passive parts, listening and reading; a balance bilingual person

has near equal abilities across board in two languages. Most bilinguals around

the world know and use their language in varying proportions and it really

21
depends on their situation and how they acquired each language; it can be

classified into three general types: 1.) Compound Bilinguals; where the learner

develops a linguistic code simultaneously with a single set of concepts as the

learners begins to process the world around them. Mostly happens to toddlers

who are still observing their surroundings, 2.) Coordinate Bilinguals; it is those

who work with two sets of concepts, learning the other language academically

while continuously using their native language at home and when speaking with

friends, and there is what we call 3.) Subordinate Bilinguals who are learning a

secondary language by filtering through their primary language.

All type of bilingual people can become fully proficient in a language

regardless the accent and pronunciation. The difference may not be apparent to

a casual observer but recent advances in brain imaging technology have given

neurolinguists a glimpse into what specific aspects of language learning affect

the bilingual brain (Nacamuli, 2015). It’s well-known that the brain’s left

hemisphere is more dominant and analytical with logical processes, while the

right hemisphere is more active in emotional and social ones; it is a matter of

degree not an absolute split. The fact that language involves both types of

functions while lateralization develops gradually with age, has lead to the Critical

Period Hypothesis. According to this theory, children learn language more easily

because the plasticity of their developing brains lets them use both hemispheres

in language acquisition while in most adults, language is laterlized to one

hemisphere, usually the left. If this is true, learning a language in childhood may

give you a more holistic grasp of its social and emotional contexts. Conversely,

22
recent research showed that people who learned a second language in

adulthood exhibits less emotional bias and more rational approach when

confronting problems in the second language than in their native one.

Regardless of when you acquired the additional language, being bilingual

gives your brains some remarkable advantages; some of these are visible, such

as higher density of the grey matter which it contains most of the brain’s neuronal

cell bodies and synapses. The grey matter includes regions of the brain involved

in muscle control and sensory perception such as seeing and hearing, memory,

emotions, speech, decision making and self-control. Thus, giving more activity in

certain region when engaging a second language. The heightened workout a

bilingual brain receives throughout its life can also delay the onset of diseases,

like Alzheimer’s and dementia by as much as five years.

It may be intuitive today, but it surprised earlier experts; they considered

bilingualism as a handicap in which slows down the child’s development by

forcing them to spend too much energy distinguishing between languages.

Where a more recent study did show that reaction time and errors increases for

some bilingual students in cross-language tests, it also showed the effort and

attention needed to switch between languages triggered more actively in and

potentially strengthened the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex; the part of the brain

that plays a large role in the executive function, problem solving, switching

between tasks(multi-tasking), and focusing while filtering irrelevant information.

Bilingualism may not be a definition of being smart, but it does make you more

healthy, complex and actively engaged which could enhance your capability to

23
comprehend and understand your environment that copes you up. (Nacamuli,

2015).

In International Baptist College and Seminary, almost all in the High

school department knows at least 2 - 3 language thus showing that the students

may have the ability to handle task all things at once and it quite shows a proof

that having the ability to speak or switch from language to language can

determine a student’s success rate in academics.

Language Dominance

As Stated by Eduardo Hemàndez-Chávez, Marina Burt & Heidi Dulay,

“Language dominance is, on its face, a relatively simple concept. It refers to the

degree of bilingualism manifested by individuals who know two languages, that

is, the relative level of proficiency in each of the languages. A person may know

both equally well, in which case we speak of balanced bilingualism. Or, the

speaker may exhibit greater control of one over the other, in which case we

consider the first language to be dominant over the second.” This would mean

that even if a person is a bilingual it is rare to be able to speak two different

languages with near-native fluency due to the fact that some phrases or words in

one language may not match with the other language and thus the person might

refrain from using their second language and instead focus on the language they

are most comfortable with.

A bilingual is a person who speaks two languages with native-like

fluency. However, this kind of “balanced” bilingual is rare. In the vast majority of

24
cases, bilinguals have a dominant native tongue and a second language they

can speak with some effort (Ludden, 2017). Thus bilinguals are not always fluent

in all of the languages they speak and so there are moments that Language

Dominance emerges due to the fact that they are more comfortable with their

native language rather than their second language. What makes rational thought

or a second language difficult is the constant need to inhibit ingrained patterns of

behavior.

When we speak a second language, we need to inhibit our native

language. And when we think rationally, we need to inhibit our natural intuitions

(Ludden, 2017), which means to say that the reason why most bilinguals have a

hard time in speaking two languages with near native fluency is due to the lack of

ways in how a bilingual can inhibit certain patterns of behaviour or natural

intuitions.

Shared Language

Shared language is a way for people to develop understanding amongst

themselves based on language (e.g. Spoken, text). Different groups share

distinct ways of speaking. For example, a family or group of friends, or a

professional organization can invent words that are understood only within the

group, and not by outsiders (British Library). This includes codes and slangs

which are very common nowadays. Shared language is basically what people

use to understand themselves easily. Some people prefer to use slangs to speak

since it’s faster and easier for them to use. Slangs are usually derived from a

25
certain language/s and adding a twist to it. For the people today, English is the

main shared language used in the world today, as it is the language which many

people are common with. In short, it is a commonly understood set of references,

visions, experiences, and/or interactions that provide a foundation for strong

communications (IGI Global). Since English is the main shared language today, it

is one of the chosen language of the researchers to be added to their survey

aside from the Filipino language. Shared Language can develop as time passes

for a certain set of people (e.g. friends, class). A peer or a group of people should

understand each other to work efficiently, as said by Clare Anderson (2017), Real

understanding occurs when everyone is ‘on the same page’. So it’s better to

learn the preferred language of the people around you to easily mingle and work

with them.

Language Variation

No two languages are the same, yet there is more than just variation

between different languages, there is also variation within one and the same

language ( Daryen Vandeputte 2016). Language has many different aspects, it

has quite a lot of varieties depending on where and how you choose to use it.

There is Academic Language, language used in accordance to your academics,

Social language, language you mostly use on a daily basis or the language that

you use to communicate with friends and family and other kinds of languages

that you may use depending on your need. The study of language variation is an

important part of sociolinguistics, to the extent that it requires reference to social

factors. Languages vary from one place to another, from one social group to

26
another, and from one situation to another (Richard Hudson 1996). This means

to say that language is not bound by a single social group nor a single place nor

is it bounded by a single situation, rather it is unrestrained and depends on the

situation and or place where it is used.There is no doubt that language varies

from one country to another and even within a single country, we may find a

number of local varieties and even within individuals, some may have a variety of

linguistic ways to express the same thing. This fact is explained by sociolinguists

as language variation. (Naima Ammour 2012). This signifies that language has

many different forms in accordance to one’s country or culture thus giving way to

language variation. Many of the developing nations of the world face the

challenge of trying to communicate with a multilingual population, a population

which may include well over a hundred dialects or languages. Even among

nations where a single national language is firmly established, gross dialect

variations of the national language and pockets of minority languages still exist.

(Gary Francis Simons 1979). This

Is to say that although to have a rich and diverse culture and language

variety may be beneficial to a country, it may also prove to be a challenge,

especially when the government tries to reach out to the distant minorities in their

respective countries. Therefore, Language variation can either be viewed as

beneficial or non-beneficial based on how you choose to view it. If the thesis is

pushed to a wider scope the researchers would most likely Tackle Language

Variation as their thesis is about the effects of Language preference and

Language variation can be assumed as a preferred language by the minorities.

27
 Chapter III

Methodology

This chapter describes and discusses how the researchers gathered the

necessary data and information that was used in the entire study. This describes

who the respondents are and what is the focus of the research. This also shows

the procedure of data collection and instruments used; this chapter also

discusses the type of research, research method and data gathering procedure

that the researchers did to acquire their data.

Research Design

This study is a mix of Qualitative-Descriptive and Quantitative Research

type wherein the researcher used the Chi-Square Method to compute the data.

Qualitative research is a type of social science research that collects and works

with non-numerical data and that seeks to interpret meaning from these data that

help us understand social life through the study of targeted populations. Methods

of qualitative research include observation and immersion, interviews, open-

ended surveys, focus groups, content analysis of visual and textual materials,

and oral history.(Ashley Crossman 2017).The Researchers decided to use the

Qualitative-Descriptive Method of Research due to the fact that the survey was

not determined on a numerical basis but on an informational basis.

After conducting the survey the researchers then used the Chi square

method (x squared is equal to Expected minus Observe time 2 and then divided

by E) to determine the numerical quantity of the obtained data. A chi square tests

28
the relationship between two attributes (Abbas Keshvani 2014). The researchers

therefore decided to use the Chi-Square method as it was very suitable for the

study due to the fact that their survey tests the relationship of the two attributes,

English and Filipino, to the academic performances of the respondents to their

Language Subject.

Research Instrument

The instrument that the researchers put together was made to

gather enough data to identify the possible effects or if it may or may not have

any on the student’s performance on their language subjects. It consist of 10

question, that has something to do with their preferred language, where these

would answer the sub-problem of the study.

Sampling Scheme

The study has used a deviant sapling scheme which is learning

from highly unusual manifestations of the phenomenon of interest, such as
outstanding success, notable failures, top of the class, dropouts, exotic events,
and crises. To obtain information on unusual cases, which can be especially
‘problematic’ or especially ‘good’ exemplifies the logic of purposeful, extreme
group sampling.

The study has used the grades of the respondents in their

Language Subjects as the phenomenon of interest and collected data from the
phenomenon. The information collected has been about how well they have been
performing in their subjects, which would then be related to the study’ s their
Language Preference.

29
Data Gathering Procedure

The first step that the researchers did was to ask permission from the

Thesis Adviser who is also the Class Adviser of the Respondents where the

researchers obtained their data from, the approved questionnaires was

distributed afterwards and then collected in order to complete the data.

The researchers then asked permission from the language subject

teachers of the Grade 9 students to collect the student’s data; it was conducted

after assuring the confidentiality of that section. After it was collected, the

researchers gathered the needed data and it was statistically treated.

Statistical Treatment

The researchers used descriptive mean to identify the language

preference of the respondents

∑f

x = ———

Where;

f = frequency

∑ = Sum of the frequency

n = total numbers of respondents

30
Description of the Respondent

The students from Grade 9 were the chosen respondents for the

study. They are arranged according by their grades from their language subjects.

Their performance in their language subjects is our primary point in arranging the

Grade 9 students

Validation of Instrument

A pilot testing was conducted on the other grades of Junior High

School before the final survey was released to the Respondents. Their

comments and questions about the survey helped polishing the questionnaire. It

was also consulted to the group’s Thesis Adviser and Statistician and their

comments were also added to the revision of the final survey.

31
 Chapter IV

Interpretation of Data and Analysis

TABLE 1

Language Preference of IBC Grade 9 students when communicating.

FILIPIN
O ENGLISH
F % F %
22 85% 4 15%
What is your mother tongue?
Which language do you use most often when 26 100% 0 0%
talking with friends and schoolmates?

Which of these do you use most often at 22 84.62% 4 15.38%

home?

Which language lets you understand the 20 76.92% 6 23.08%

lessons more at school?

In which language are you most confident to 21 86.77% 5 19.23%

speak with?

In which language do you often find words 11 53.85% 15 46.15

that are unfamiliar to you?

In which language do you have a wider 15 38.46% 11 61.54%

vocabulary in?

The table presents the different instances where the respondents use their

preferred language.

32
 As the table shows, 85% of the respondents have the Filipino

Language as their mother tongue, whereas 15% has English as their mother

tongue.

26 out of 26 or 100% of the respondents answered that they use Filipino

Language when talking with friends and schoolmates while none of the

respondents use English when doing the same thing.

It also exhibits that 22 out of 26 or 84.62% of the respondents use

Filipino Language at home while the remaining 4 out of 26 or 23.08% answered

that they use English Language.

The table indicates that the language in which they understand the

lessons more at school was their Filipino Language as 20 out of 26 or 76.92%

answered. Meanwhile, 6 out of 26 or 23.08% absorb the lessons more when it is

taught in English.

It is evident that in the fourth row of the tables that 21 out of 26 or

86.77% are most confident when expressing themselves in the Filipino language.

On the other hand, 5 out of 26 students answered that they are most confident

when speaking the English Language.

11 out of 26 students answered that they often find words that are

similar to them when speaking the Filipino Language while there are 15 out of 26

students answered English while doing the same thing.

33
 15 out of 26 students or 38.46% answered that they have a wider

vocabulary in Filipino Language while there are 11 out of 26 or 61.54% answered

that they have a wider vocabulary in the English Language.

TABLE 2

Situations where the students use their preferred language

34
 FILIPINO ENGLISH
F % F %
Do you prefer books that are in the 12 46% 14 54%
language of English or Filipino?
11.54
3 % 23 88.46%
Do you prefer movies in English/Filipino?
19.23
6 % 20 80.77%
You prefer English/Filipino music.

There are many possible reasons that a language can affect a student. The

researcher chose 3 situations where the students may use their preferred

language throughout the study

It shows that 12 out of 26 or 46% of the students prefer books that are in

the language of Filipino. On the other hand, 14 out of 26 or 54% of the

respondents answered English.

Displayed also in the data, there are only 3 out of 26 or 11.54% of the

respondents responded that their preferred movies are in Filipino. However, there

are 23 out of 26 or 88.46% students who have answered that their preferred

movies in English.

It also shows that there are 6 out of 26 or 11.54% students who prefer

Filipino music while there are 20 out of 26 or 80.77% students who prefer English

music

35
 TABLE 3

The significant relationship between language preference and their

performance in language subjects

36
 CHI-
SQUARE

INTERPRETATIO
CV DECISION N

Which language do you use most often 0 NOT

when talking with friends and schoolmates? ACCEPTED SIGNIFICANT

Which of these do you use most often at 3.64 NOT

home? ACCEPTED SIGNIFICANT

Which language lets you understand the 9.67 REJECTED SIGNIFICANT

lessons more at school?
In which language are you most confident 5.46 NOT
to speak in? ACCEPTED SIGNIFICANT

In which language do you often find words 8.39 ACCEPTED NOT

that are unfamiliar to you? SIGNIFICANT

ACCEPTED NOT
SIGNIFICANT
In which language do you have a wider 3.50
vocabulary in?

Tabulated Value: 9.49

The table shows that the computed value is 3.64 which is lower than the

tabulated value which proves that whether the mother tongue of the respondents

is English or Filipino, it will have no effect with their performance in their

language subjects.

The computed value in the question number two is 0% which is lower

than the tabulated value that's why it demonstrates that whether you use Filipino

language or English language when you're talking with your friends, it will not

affect their performance in their language subjects.

Whether you use English or Filipino most often when you're at home, it

will not affect the grades of the students on their language subjects because

37
according to the data that we've gathered, the computed value is 3.44% that's

why it doesn't have an effect because it is lower than the tabulated value.

The grades of the students on their language subjects are affected with

which language let them understand the lessons more at school. The computed

value is 9.67% which means it has an effect because it is higher than the

tabulated value.

The computed value in the question number 4 is 5.46% which is lower

than the tabulated value that's why, it shows that it does not affect the students'

performance in their language subjects whether they are more confident in

speaking Filipino or English language.

It is not significant to the students' academic performance on their

language subject if they more often find words that are unfamiliar to them in

English or in Tagalog because its computed value is 8.39% that is lower than the

tabulated value.

If the student has a wider vocabulary in English or Filipino, it does not

mean that it will have an effect on their language subjects because the computed

value is 3.50% which is lower than the tabulated value.

The Table shows the Significance of the problem to the effect of it to the

success of the students to their language subjects. It shows that what is used

when talking with friends, when at home, what the language the respondents

may be confident with and with words the respondents are having difficulties with

has no effects whatsoever with their performance when it comes to their

38
language subjects while the language that lets the respondents understand the

lesson more at school has a great effect since it is what is used12 everyday to

grasp something new from school.

CHAPTER V

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

39
 This chapter elaborates the summary of findings, conclusions and

recommendations of the study. It follows what were presented in the statement of

the problem in the study’s Chapter 1.

Summary of Findings

The following are the breakdown findings from the results of the study’s

collected data.

1. Language Preference of the Grade 9 - Immanuel Students.

Majority of the respondents or 60.77% appeared to prefer using the

Filipino Language, while 39.23% of the total population has preferred using the

English Language, thus, making the English Language most dominantly used by

the respondents.

2. The performance of Grade 9 Immanuel Students in their Language

Subjects.

Out of 27 respondents, 2 or 8% of the respondents that has a grade of 75-

78 in their Language subjects, 15% obtained a grade of 79-82, the students that

had grades of 83-86 were 27%, the grades around 87-90 were composed of 23%

, and 27% of the total population had the grades of 91-94 in their Language

subjects. This shows the breakdown of the whole population by their grades.

3. The Relationship between the Language Preferences and Performance of

the Grade 9 Students in their Language Subjects.

40
 It was interpreted as such; the computed X2 value obtained that was lower

than its tabulated data at .05 level is accepted and the value that is greater than

the tabular value of 9.49 is considered rejected. Thus, the null hypothesis is

rejected, meaning that the preferred language has no major effect to the

respondent’s performance in their language subjects.

Conclusions

In alignment with the findings made, the following ideas were concluded:

1. That the grade 9 students of IBCS prefer the English language more than

the Filipino language.

2. The English language is more used when communicating, reading,

listening and writing than the Filipino language.

3. There is no relationship between the Language Preferences and

Performance in Language Subjects of the Respondents based on the data

gathered. Which shows that whatever may the student’s preferred language may

be, it has no major effect with their performance in their language subject.

Recommendations

And with the findings throughout the study and conclusions that was made, the

study can recommend that:

1. Teachers should be able to help students be reinforced on what language

preferences they have and assist them to adapt the different learning methods

that will fit the different preferences of their students.

41
2. For schools to consider the language preference of their students when

making their lesson plans to allow their students to absorb more of their lectures.

3. Future research, to present new outputs with follow-up studies that will

find out the possible relationships of language preferences to other factors such

as course teaching methods, hobbies/interests, and study habits and such. That

the future research may study the association between student performance,

combined with gender, age, and their reading proficiency.

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