Language Hierarchy in the Philippines
In the past few years, I've noticed that a lot more children speak English rather than their own local language (e.g., Filipino, Tagalog, Bisaya, etc.). Although nakaka-proud knowing that, at a young age, they already know how to speak a foreign language, I also can't help but think about how this affects not only the future of Filipino society, but also the consequences on a child's ability to comprehend in both mediums.
I know how ironic this post is about concern for local languages, given that this post is mostly in English, but spare me because I, too, have been affected by this.
Napansin ko around 15 years ago, ang nakikita or alam natin na group of people that speak English are around the upper-middle class to upper class families. Lalo na sa mga pelikula, where mostly yung kontrabida is mayaman, and they and/or their child/ren speak English. Kumbaga it's like sosyal.
And gradually throughout the years, more parents often speak English and make their kids watch shows that are in English. Thus, this makes children grow up knowing how to speak in a foreign language more than their native/local ones, no matter the social status. However, the problem lies in the family itself. In most households, the parents are used to speaking in their local languages or dialects and not English in its entirety. This creates a barrier for a child to be fully immersed in a language; when speaking English, a lot of the time mali-mali yung grammar ng parents, hence yung early and firsthand learning nila is confusing and constricts their comprehension.
And sa society naman, I've heard or encountered an experience where a person is looked down upon and deemed as 'poor' and 'unintelligent' kasi hindi sila marunong magsalita ng English kahit they show excellence in Filipino or other fields. And I've also heard some parents talking about their child having to learn English first kasi mas 'sosyal'.
This just shows that we Filipinos are not entirely free from colonialism. And if this goes on in the future, the Filipino language will no longer be prominent.