Characteristics of Select Philippine Mother Tongue Languages Used in Basic Education Teaching and Learning

The study used the 2013 and 2019 National Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) data sets to analyze performance according to categories of language complexity based on syllabic complexity, orthographic depth, and other related items. The languages selected for analysis were those among the officially supported mother tongue languages of instruction in the Philippines. The study was guided by the methodology described by Brunette et al. (2019), who studied the effects of language complexity on reading outcomes in Uganda. Analysts assessed whether the level of complexity was in any way predictive of the average increase or decrease in L2 and L3 scores across schools as measured in 2019. However, three languages - Chavacano, Ivatan, and Sambal - were not included in the analysis due to a lack of schools that reported using them as a mother tongue language of instruction in 2019. Dr. Jason Lobel, a linguist with extensive background in Philippine and North Bornean languages, established the language complexity categories. He described the features of each of the languages studied and used these features to classify each language into a category of complexity. The central part of this document is Dr. Lobel's work, which provides a detailed description of the characteristics of each language and how they were classified into a category of complexity. The languages studied include Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilonggo, Waray-Waray, Central Bikol, Ilokano, Kapampangan, Maranao, Maguindanaon, Tausug, and Chavacano. Each language is described in terms of its phoneme system, syllabic complexity, orthographic depth, and other related items. The language complexity categories are based on these characteristics, and the study used these categories as the outcome variable in regression analyses of the EGRA scores. The study found that language complexity was a significant predictor of reading acquisition outcomes in the Philippines. The results of the study have implications for the development of literacy instruction materials and early literacy assessments. Understanding the characteristics of languages, such as deep (opaque) versus shallow (transparent) orthographies, can be helpful when designing more effective literacy instruction. The study provides a reference guide for individuals developing literacy instruction materials or early literacy assessments to help identify elements of the languages that may be particularly difficult to teach or that have an impact on developing reading instruction materials for young learners. The document includes a glossary of technical terms and a brief literature review to explain the factors that influence reading acquisition. The accuracy of the linguistic characteristics of each language and the basis for their classification by complexity is the sole responsibility of Dr. Lobel, the lead author of the report. The language names and their spellings follow academic and historical conventions, according to the author, rather than current official government spellings within the Philippines itself.