Mother tongue advocate

I have always wanted to become a teacher since I was a child, and I think I will die a teacher.”

These were the words of Dr. Romeo Macan who grew up with love and passion for teaching.

Macan, 50, is the eldest of 11 siblings. He grew up in Cordova, Cebu where he learned to teach his two brothers and eight sisters to do household chores while his parents were at work.

After finishing his elementary and high school education, he wanted to pursue a college degree but his family could not afford.

He went to Manila where he worked as tutor and domestic help to a family of a realtor.

“My experience there made me a man. My boss was a realtor and his customers were of different nationalities. Interacting with them enhanced my English language and vocabulary. But, after a year, I decided to come back to Cebu because I miss my siblings. Besides, if I had stayed there, I would have continued to be just a domestic help,” Macan said.

When he came back, he landed  a scholarship grant of the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI) and enrolled in an education course in Cebu Normal University (CNU). He started teaching in 1983 as a Grade 1 teacher in Sta. Rosa and Pangan-an Elementary School.

Macan said his style of teaching always involves using the native tongue.

“Dili ko motuo nga makasabot dayon ang mga bata kon mag straight English ko nila (I don’t believe that the children will immediately understand straight English). They can conceptualize a word easily if the teacher uses the native tongue and explains to them what it means in English. The MTB-MLE is a way of bridging languages,” he pointed out.

He shared his passion for Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE), expressing his observations that teachers have been implementing it in their classrooms to promote better understanding even before the MTB-MLE was institutionalized by the national government.

He lamented, though, the teachers’ lack of instructional materials in teaching using the MTB-MLE.

This situation moved Macan, now a CNU professor, to facilitate a workshop on the “Translation of Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MLE) competencies for Grade 1” initiated and organized by RAFI, Akademiyang Bisaya Foundation (ABF) and the Department of Education in Central Visayas last Aug. 1 with the aim of translating educational competencies from English to Sinugbuanong Binisaya for Grade 1.

“There is a need for a workshop in translation so that teachers would know how to use the MTB-MLE in their classrooms,” he said.

Macan is also writing a book to add to the instructional materials for Grade 1 teachers.

“Grade 1 teachers are very critical in the children’s growth and development,” he explained.

Macan is now director of PanRehiyong Sentro Ng Wikang Filipino (PSWF) 7 that helps “preserve, develop, and intellectualize regional language.” His office conducts researches and serves as translators of literatures from Cebuano to Filipino.

Since Macan became director in 2009 after serving for 14 years as assistant director, PSWF 7 finished the tri-lingual dictionary of 1,000 words in English, Filipino, and Cebuano; translated the Code of Ethics for Journalists from English to Cebuano; and initiated activities to promote MTB-MLE.

At the community level, he currently acts as Cebuano consultant for Ang Suga, the official campus publication of CNU; participates as member of ABF; and serves as adviser of the alumni association and vice chair of the Board of Trustees of the Cordova Cooperative Catholic School.

Macan’s love for teaching, specifically using MTB-MLE, is apparent, as reflected during the talks he would conduct for teachers and the advices he would give to teachers, parents, students, and out-of-school youths.

Even during his short stint as a municipal secretary in Cordova, he would hold formal and informal consultations and visit schools in the town to talk with different people using MTB-MLE.

“I do not choose people I would help or share my knowledge as a teacher,” he said.

During interactions with teachers, the common concern is how to improve teaching strategies.

“I would tell them that the best strategy is the teacher’s own strategy. After all, the teachers know the learning ability of their students. I believe in the essence of teacher empowerment, because if a teacher is empowered, he or she is empowered to use the mother tongue,” he said.

Macan also advised his students and relatives to use English at the right environment with the right people.

Macan continues to teach in and outside school using MTB-MLE formally and informally. In school, he is a passionate teacher who observes discipline and proper conduct. Outside the school, he is a selfless teacher who does not expect anything in exchange of his advice or words of encouragement to teachers, parents and out-of-school youths. At home, he is a loving brother and devoting uncle who meets with his siblings every Saturday and cooks for his nephews and nieces.  /Nancy R. Cudis/Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc.