Not even found in Tiktik: Another bad word snuck into DepEd materials

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) was once again under fire after another “dirty word” was found in learning materials used by students for the distance learning system amid the coronavirus pandemic.

During the hearing of the House committee on public accounts, Antonio Calipjo-Go, who had earlier complained before the Commission on Audit (COA) regarding the learning materials used by DepEd, said that four parents from Pampanga had approached him regarding a word included in the learning modules of students.

The module, a copy of which was shared by Calipjo-Go during the hearing, tackles Filipino mythical creatures such as aswang, tiyanak, kapre, and maligno, among others.

The definition of aswang, according to the module, states: “Siya rin ay isang diyos pero ang Aswang ay pinaniniwalaan na ito’y tao na kumakain ng kapwa tao, kung minsan ang mga ito ay pinapaniwalaan na may mga pakpak at sila raw ay gising kung gabi para maghanap ng maka*ant*t or maaswang.”

The “dirty word” when translated into English means sex or sexual intercourse.

“This proves na ito ay module na gawa ng DepEd division office somewhere and then ginamit ng bata,” Calipjo-Go said.

“The module itself contains a word na hindi ko pa nakikita anywhere, kahit sa Tiktik,” he added, referring to a Filipino tabloid containing sexual stories.

DepEd Undersecretary Diosdado San Antonio said the particular module mentioned by Calipjo-Go was among the learning materials already corrected by their office.

“Ginawan na po ‘yan ng errata ng division office na concerned… Naglabas ang superintendent ng instruction na mali iyong nilalaman ng learning activity sheet na ito,” San Antonio said.

“Ako hindi rin ako masaya na may mga mali-mali pero dahil nangyayari pa rin ang mga maling ganito ay kailangan mayroon tayong proseso para maiayos,” he added.

San Antonio stressed that teachers should be able to reiterate to students that that specific part of the learning material is incorrect.

This was not the first time that DepEd was criticized over “dirty words” found in learning materials used by students.

In September 2020, the DepEd disowned a self-learning module attributed to the agency which used “dirty” names in its exercises.

In a photo shared by a netizen, the choices in one question mentioned “Pining Garcia,” “Abdul Salsalani,” “Malou Wang,” and “Tina Moran.”