Language-In-Education Policies in SEA.

LANGUAGE-IN-EDUCATION POLICIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

I. LEARNING OBJECTIVES-

At the end of this lesson, learners should be able to:

- Enumerate the countries that belong in the Southeast Asia

- Understand the linguistic situations in Southeast Asia
- Know the importance of language policies
- Know the language policies in the Southeast Asia
II. INTRODUCTION
The eleven SEAMEO nations' language-in-education policies and practices are discussed and compared in this
chapter. The focus is on the use of ethnolinguistic minorities' nondominant languages (NDLs) in basic education
and the evaluation of the scope afforded to NDLs in education. There are about 1,000 different languages spoken
in Southeast Asia. In fact, Indonesia alone has over 800 different languages. In Southeast Asia, many individuals are
multilingual, if not trilingual. It's typical to use one language at home, another when communicating with diverse
populations, and a third when dealing with formal problems like schooling or government work. We'll try to
explain about language-in-education policies in Southeast Asia in this lesson (SEA). To further understand this
lesson, we are also going to discuss the following:
- Countries belong to Southeast Asia
- Language dominantly used in Southeast Asia
- Linguistic situations on Southeast Asia
- Language policies in Southeast Asia
Throughout the discussion, we will be answering questions concerning these.
III. DISSCUSION
A. COUNTRIES BELONG TO SOUTHEAST ASIA AND THE SEAMEO
- Brunei, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand, and Vietnam
- The Southeast Asia Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) is an intergovernmental organization of
the eleven Southeast Asian countries, which was formed on 30 November 1965 by the Kingdom of
Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and the then Republic of Vietnam.
B. DOMINANTLY USED LANGUAGES ON SOUTHEAST ASIA

- - Malay, with 290 million speakers, is the most widely spoken language in the area. Bahasa Indonesia (156
million speakers), Vietnamese (90 million), and Javanese are other commonly spoken Southeast Asian
languages (82 million). Thai, Burmese, Sundanese, Lao, Tagalog, Cebuano, and Khmer are also spoken by
around 15 million people.
C. LINGUISTIC SITUATIONS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
Table 1 provides a graphic summary of this chapter, attempting to summarize it in a concise manner.
summarizes major policy details and presents an easy-to-understand comparison of Southeast Asia's
language-in-education policies. The story that follows the table summarizes, explains, and interprets each
country's condition.
D. LANGUAGE POLICIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
BRUNEI - Brunei Malay is the official language according to the Constitution of 1959. The education system uses
Standard Malay and English as the media of instruction. Brunei is the only SEAMEO country where the use of local
languages in education is legally proscribed. Only a small proportion of Bruneians receive education in their first or
home language.
CAMBODIA - The Constitution of 1993 establishes Khmer as the official language. Until the late 1990s, the medium
of education at all levels of education was in Khmer. Cambodian pilot projects have so far introduced five non-
dominant languages, namely Brao, Bunong, Kavet, Krung, and Tampuan. Until 2007, there was no explicit policy
support in Cambodia for the use of non-dominant languages in education.
INDONESIA - The official and national language – according to the 1945 Constitution – is Indonesian. Only an
estimated 15 percent of the population can speak Indonesian as their mother tongue. Law No. 20 of 2003 states
that a mother tongue other than Indonesian can be used as the language of instruction in the early stages of
education. Regional languages of wider communication as well as local non-dominant languages are widely used,
though mostly orally, around the country.
LAO PDR/LAOS - According to the Constitution of 1991, Lao is the official language of the Lao People's Democratic
Republic (Lao PDR or Laos). There are at least nine other languages spoken by more than 100,000 people. The main
exceptions are Khmu, spoken by the largest ethnolinguistic minority and accounting for 11% of the national
population, and Hmong, with around 8%. The Education Law of 2000 stipulates the use of Lao in education. This
interpretation has blocked many efforts to introduce NDLs into education.
MALAYSIA - The Constitution of 1957 establishes Standard Malay as the official and national language. The
Constitution also guarantees people's freedom to use, teach, and learn any language. In national primary schools,
Tamil, and Mandarin, as well as other non-dominant languages, can be studied as subjects called 'Pupil's Own
Language' (POL).
MYANMAR - Currently, the main language of instruction in the government system of education is Myanmar
(Burmese), which is the official language according to the 2008 Constitution. Theoretically, the 1974 Constitution
was in effect until 2008, when a new Constitution was approved. Education for All Action Plan recommends special
strategies to teach the national language to minority children at the pre-primary level.
PHILIPPINES - According to the 1987 Constitution, the national language is Filipino (based on Tagalog), and Filipino
and English are the official languages. The Bilingual Education Policy of 1974, revised in 1987, states that English
and Filipino are the languages of education and literacy
SINGAPORE - Singapore is a nation aiming at societal multilingualism and bilingualism. The Constitution of 1965
stipulates four official languages: Malay, Mandarin Chinese, Tamil, and English. English is the main language of
instruction at all levels of education. There is no provision for education in non-dominant languages as such.
THAILAND - Standard Thai is the medium of instruction at all levels of education. Debate on language issues is
intensifying at the Ministry of Education and in the mass media. The Thai Constitution of 1997, along with the
more open Thai society since the 1990s, has provided new opportunities for ethnolinguistic minorities to use their
languages. Two different pilot projects are using Patani Malay, a widely spoken non-dominant language in the
South of Thailand.
TIMOR LESTE - According to the Constitution of 2002, Portuguese and Tetum are the official languages of Timor
Leste. The Constitution also states that English and Indonesian will be valued and developed by the state. A new
language-in-education policy was adopted in October 2008 (Basic Law on Education), making both Portuguese and
Tetum languages of instruction. Timor Leste's Education Policy of 2004-08 used Portuguese as the main language
of instruction, with Tetum used mostly orally as an auxiliary language.
VIETNAM - The Socialist Republic of Vietnam officially recognizes fifty-four ethnic groups. According to unofficial
estimates and linguistic surveys, approximately 100 languages are spoken (Ohnologue, 2005; Leclerc, 2009). It is
estimated that Vietnamese is spoken as a first or second language by about 90 percent of the population. The
success of people from these groups in Vietnamese-medium education has been used to argue that educational
achievement among these groups is comparable to that of the Kinh. The use of non-dominant languages in society
and education is strongly supported by various policy documents (Kosonen, 2004, 2005, 2006a; Vu, 2008), as well
as in the 1992 Constitution and the Education Law of 2005.
IV. CONCLUSION
The idea of using non-dominant languages in the government system of education is somewhat new in Southeast
Asia. Biliteracy and mother tongue-based multilingual education benefit particularly those who are monolingual in
a local language or lack proficiency in the official language. The scope ranges from Vietnam's language-in-
education policy, which for decades has been one of the most pro-NDL policies in Asia. Both countries have
reviewed their language-in-education policies. The concept of bilingual or multilingual education is still mostly seen
as an approach to teach the national language and English. Ministries of Education in the region generally
recognize that some ethnolinguistic groups are not benefiting from education provided in the national languages. If
the current trends, efforts, and advocacy continue in the years to come, it is likely that in some Southeast Asian
countries the situation of non-dominant languages and ethnolinguistic minorities will improve.
REFERENCE :Language-in-education policies in Southeast Asia. Kimmo Kosonen. SIL International & Payap
University. Chiang Mai, Thailand

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LANGUAGE-IN-EDUCATION POLICIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

At the end of this lesson, learners should be able to:

- Enumerate the countries that belong in the Southeast Asia

B. DOMINANTLY USED LANGUAGES ON SOUTHEAST ASIA

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