I volunteered to present at an International Children's Literature course for graduate students here at the University of Florida. I worked with two students taking the course to create a powerpoint presentation and provide information about the Philippines, its culture, writers and publishers of children's lit in the Philippines.
We started the presentation with a video that I got from the Department of Tourism. I also brought an embroidered panuelo (shawl), which is just one of the many of components of the baro't saya- the Philippine's National Dress. The students were fascinated to learn that the panuelo I brought is made from pineapple fabric. Then I showed them my miniature jeepney and explained how this was actually adapted for Filipino use from the army jeep.
Sharon, one of my partner student, went to San Francisco for spring break and brought back several Filipino snacks (dried mangoes, sunflower crackers, machacao etc) that she got from a Filipino store there.
One of my partners, told me that after I left, the professor asked the class what they thought. Someone said that she never thought of going to the Philippines before, but after the presentation, she actually wants to go there! Yehey!
aba! sanay na sanay kang magsuot ng pañuelo, ah! ; )
ReplyDeletehaha nice. at least those people present kinda now know a bit more about the Philippines besides "Tim Tebow's favorite country to visit during spring break." lol
ReplyDeleteakala ko yung book na "Ang Mahiwagang Buhok ni Racquel"... ay.. si Racqel nga ba yun.. :p
ReplyDeleteYeah, si Raquel nga yun... "Ang pambihirang Buhok ni Raquel" ang galing nga nung book na yun eh... it was introducing a sensitive issue-cancer, to kids... Oh and there are a lot of children's books available online- as in page by page! Here is the website of the International Children's Digital Library:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.childrenslibrary.org/icdl/ResultByWorld?area=2&start=0&ilang=English&view=cover&country=country8&type=0&sort=title&pgct=36
I wish! Hindi pa nga ako nakakasuot ng authentic Baro't Saya eh. Dala ko lang yung panuelo to match with my regular long gown na kakulay nya. If i brought a complete ensemble, parang isang maleta na yun, tapos mabigat pa kasi with the embroidery and beads!
ReplyDeleteoo nga, I actually forgot to tell them that Tim Tebow was born in the Philippines and often goes there on school breaks!!! Go Gators!!!
ReplyDeletenaks, serious si ate :)
ReplyDeletesyempre..project to the max! hehehe
ReplyDeletealam mo Ethelee, mukhang technically, we actually have more than 120 LANGUAGES (not dialects) and this is a conservative estimate, as I am basing this figure on my recollection from Dr. Jess Peralta's book on ethnolinguistic groups of the Philippines whose title escapes my memory right now. Ethnologue lists it at 171 active, 4 extinct native languages excluding English, Cantonese etc (http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=PH). A dialect kasi, technically, is a variation of a language. A good example would be the differences in the tagalog of a Bulkenyo and of a Batanggenyo or the Ilocano of Baguio and that of Ilocos Sur. Within a certain place, such as Ilocos Sur, the Ilocano spoken nearer La Union would be different from that spoken in Vigan. Yun ang technically mga dialects. Chika lang from my training as a social scientist hehehe :-) Actually, it is something we really should be proud of kasi. Not many nations can boast of having that many living languages.
ReplyDeleteWinner Ethelee!!!
ReplyDeleteWagi!!!!
ReplyDeleteReally great topic, Ethelee!!!
ReplyDeleteMabuhay ka Ethel!
ReplyDeleteagree ako kay salvageproject!! napakaraming mga wika -- at samakatwid mga kultura -- sa Pilipinas. it's something we ought to be proud of, that despite everything we've managed to hold on to our linguistic diversity (at least so far). but aside from just bragging about the numbers, there's so much to be done to ensure we respect and nurture all our languages and cultures. bakit kaya hindi tayo pinapag-aral ng mga ibang wikang pinoy sa eskwela? bakit walang mga librong pambata sa hiligaynon, kalinga, bikolano, sama, pangasinense, bolinao? bakit hindi i-translate ang travelling exhibits to local languages? so much we can do, the possibilities are endless!! reach for the stars, di ba ethel?!? ;)
ReplyDeletei believe the technical definition of a dialect is a mutually intelligible language variety. in other words, kapag nagkakaintindihan pa ang mga tao (gaya nga ng isang batangueno at isang bulakenyo at isang metro-manileno), dialects yun. pag hindi na sila nagkakaintidihan, magkaibang languages na yun. syempre may grey area, pero sa pagkakaalam ko yun ang working definition.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Ricky, another friend pointed that out- that we have languages and not dialects. I found out that most Pinoys actually make that mistake- but that's not an excuse when I am making a presentation about my own country.
ReplyDeleteIn my cognitive development class, we learned that there are many benefits for multilingual individuals. So I guess we're pretty lucky about that huh? Most Pinoys speak at the very least two languages - English and Filipino. And if you come from outside Manila - meron pang third! I speak Ilonggo when I was a kid because I learned from my mom, aunts, uncles and grandparents.Eh kasi I wanted to listen to my lolo's fantastic kwentos and he hardly spoke Tagalog, so I had to learn!
Oo nga Machel, I looked up the definition also after my friend called my attention to it. I was using the wrong term all along! So we really have a lot of languages. Thanks for sharing the definition.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good observation and idea, Machel!! Di ba ricky? This can actually make exhibits more accessible to the greater public- less intimidating and to some extent more relevant. Pwede naman bilingual ang exhibits, and they do that in some countries, and even in some states here in the US.
ReplyDeleteOo nga naman, although we can surely be proud that English almost comes natural for us, there are a lot that we can do to cultivate the richness and diversity of our cultures. I think that there are some Filipino children's book authors already writing in their native tongue, I just cannot remember who. Pero may nabasa na ako nun dati.
We do have lots of work to do!!!
Hihihi :-) We also have a lot of dialects, aside from a lot of languages. :-)
ReplyDeleteI remember noon, sabi mo Lami means Masarap :-) I didn't know you are fluent in Ilonggo din :-) Halong ka pirmi Ethelee :-) hihihi teach me how to speak Ilonggo when you get back :-)
sa Metropolitan Museum of Manila (at sa Davao museum) bilingual ang exhibits. I would love to be part of a team that makes traveling exhibits! Yung isang kaibigan ko noon, may exhibit in a brief case na dala niya sa mga schools... sa Thailand yun... sana gawa tayo for our local schools when you return, Ethelee :-) Sana may museum na gugustuhin pumasok sa ganitong mga initiatives...
ReplyDeleteWhen I was taking Spanish in college and was doing miserably, I thought " Man! I am not capable of learning a new language!". But now I realized, teka, I did learn Ilonggo when I was a kid. But then again the motivation was different, and cognitively, kids can absorb more new skills/knowledge because their neurons haven't undergone the pruning process yet. Kapag ang neurons ay hindi na-activate dahil hindi nagamit, nagkakaroon ng neural Darwinism- in short, if you don't use it, you loose it.
ReplyDeleteAnd I also think the fact na informal ang learning approach also played a major part of why I learned it fast and easier. Research show that a huge percentage of human knowledge is actually acquired through informal learning. Hmmm, so bakit nga ba uli ako nasa school hahaha!
A travelling suitcase is one of my proposed education program sa AM, di nga lang natuloy. But we could always do that when I get back - sa LLM? hahaha.
ReplyDeleteSuper dami kong gustong gawin when I get back. When I came here eight years ago for my ACC fellowship and visited numerous museums, I had a glimpse of how dynamic education programs can be. Pero now, I am actually getting involved in some of the process- hands-on na! Ang saya!!!
do museum visits qualify as informal learning? if so, you're in the right field!!! ^_^ uy ethel, isang araw baka kulitin kita para magpatulong magdesign ng educational enviro-lessons... bobo ako sa mga ganyang bagay eh...
ReplyDeleteWell, museums are informal educational institutions and according to Falk and Dierking (who is a UF alumna!) museums visits are part of informal learning. They call it free-choice learning. According to the American Association of Museums (AAM), if collections are the heart of museums, then education is its soul :) AAM has a committee on education whose strategic agenda is to "advance the purpose of museums as places of lifelong learning, serves as an advocate for diverse audiences, and promotes professional standards and excellence in the practice of museum education". O, di lan pala informal- lifelong pa!
ReplyDeleteSure sure, I'd love to work with you on lesson plans - yan nga thesis ko eh, although hindi environment syempre. But that's what's great about collaborating, you provide the expertise about the environment and I'll provide the pedagogical support! Excited na ako. Promise mo yan ha!
Ay sya nga pal, Machel, for Summer A, I am taking Science Instruction for Informal Settings, ang cool di ba?
anong languages meron sa exhibits sa Davao Museum? kasi kung English at metro-manila-variety-Filipino lamang, sayang naman ang opportunity...
ReplyDeleteoo ba! sana isang araw nasa posisyon akong mag-advocate for the environment. pag mangyari yun gawa tayo ng lessons at learning activities for the young and old!!! excited din ako ^_^ ang cool ng summer class mo! sa totoo lang, dapat kami ring mga sayangtists kumukuha rin ng mga courses na ganyan... hayy no time no time. kaya turuan mo na lang ako :D
ReplyDeletewow! may panuelo talaga! taob ako dito.
ReplyDeleteSayang nga medyo mahal (at mabigat) yung complete ensemble, otherwise nagdala rin ako nun to wear for special gatherings. Kung panuelo pa nga lang amazed na sila eh, buong baro't saya pa kaya? Ay meron din akong malong pero di ko alam kung paano gamitin except as kumot hehehe.
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