Filipino Language Movement (FILM)

The Issue: By the end of the 2005-06 school year, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act mandates that all California teachers be certified as “Highly Qualified” in order to teach within their respective subject areas. The most common ways for teachers to achieve this status is by passing the California Subject Examinations for Teachers (CSET) or by completing over 3 college course units within the subject area.

The Impact: Currently, there is no CSET in Filipino, nor is there an adequate number of college courses in Filipino language, culture or history. Therefore, there is NO REALISTIC WAY in which teachers can be deemed “Highly Qualified” to teach Filipino language courses. As a result, THE EXISTENCE OF ALL CALIFORNIA FILIPINO LANGUAGE COURSES IS AT RISK!!!

• The top three (3) languages spoken in the world (in descending order) are Chinese, Spanish and English. (Geobopological Survey, 2005)

• Three (3) Filipino languages are listed among the top 100 languages spoken by the world population: Tagalog (#58 – spoken by over 17 million), Cebuano (#62) and Ilocano (#94). (Geobopological Survey, 2005)

• Asian and Pacific Islanders (API) are the fastest growing population in the United States. Filipinos are the second largest among the API population in the U.S. (U.S. Bureau of Census, 2000)

• Tagalog is the fifth (5th) most prevalent language spoken in U.S. households. (U.S. Bureau of Census, 2000)

• Among nine (9) prevalent non-English languages spoken in the U.S., eight (8) have CSET availability. Filipino/Tagalog is the prevalent language with NO CSET availability.

• Among nine (9) prevalent non-English languages spoken in the U.S., eight (8) have CSET availability. Filipino/Tagalog is the prevalent language with NO CSET availability.

• The state with the largest population of Filipinos is California. (U.S. Bureau of Census, 2000)

• There are 626,399 Filipino speakers in California (68% of the Filipino population in the state) – more than Japanese, German, Russian, and Punjabi speakers, combined!

• There are 2,933 students taking Filipino as a World/Foreign Language in California.

• In California, there is NO CSET Availability for Filipino (language).

• Three (3) school districts offer Filipino language (Sweetwater, San Diego Unified, and Poway).

• Fourteen (14) schools offer Filipino language through fifty-six (56) middle and high schools classes – with a combined enrollment of 1,725 students. There are 6,275 Filipino American students currently enrolled in San Diego schools.

• In a recent San Diego Filipino Language Survey, 100% of the 406 students surveyed responded that learning Filipino language was important to: 1) their cultural growth, 2) family communication, and/or 3) global cultural understanding and tolerance. (Monzon et al. 2004)

• In San Diego, there is NO CSET Availability for Filipino (language).