EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATION OF

NON-IP TEACHERS TEACHING IP

LEARNERS IN
STA. CRUZ DISTRICT
Crisanta L. Lanzo
Master of Arts in Education
Major: Educational Management

Objectives of the Study

The main purpose of this study is
to explore the challenges
Non-IP Teachers face
in teaching
the IP learners.

1. To determine the
demographic profile of Non-IP
teachers teaching IP learners
as to their age, gender,
grade level taught, length of
service and number of
trainings attended,

2. To find out what are the

coping mechanisms employed
by Non-IP teachers in dealing
with the
challenges
in teaching
indigenous
students,
and

3. To discover the
educational implications of
having Non-IP teachers
in the IP classrooms.


Statement of the Problem
This study seeks to answer the following questions:

1. What is the demographic profile of NonIP Teachers teaching IP learners in terms

of:
-Gender
-Age
-Grade Level Taught
-Length of Service
-Trainings Attended?

2. What are the major challenges

or difficulties experienced by NonIP teachers in teaching IP learners?
3. What coping mechanisms they
used in dealing with
the challenges or difficulties
they encountered?

4. What are the

educational implications of
having Non-IP teachers in
the IP classrooms?

Scope and Limitation of

the Study
This study will focus on the
challenges experienced by NonIP teachers in teaching IP
learners in Sta. Cruz District
commencing on January 2016
up to February 2016 .

The sample of this study is

delimited to 6 Non-IP
teacher participants
assigned in different grade
level in IP schools of Sta.
Cruz
where majority of
the learners are Bagobo.

The informants are

mixed
of male and female
employing
purposive
sampling
technique

Research Design
The research study is on phenomenological in nature.
Data will be collected from the participants and will be
analyzed qualitatively covering the challenges
experienced by Non-IP teachers teaching IP learners.
Phenomenology describes and interprets phenomena
within the context of human experiences.

Data Collection
The researcher will develop interview guide questions which
will be used to gather the teaching experiences,
point of view of teachers
occurring to their deployment
on teaching IP community.

Data Analysis
The data to be collected will be transcribed
by the aid of my expert friends and coteachers following these three steps: data
reduction, data display, and data conclusion
drawing and verification

Trustworthiness and
Ethical Considerations
are given great
importance in this study.

CHAPTER IV
DATA RESULTS
AND
DISCUSSIONS

teaching IP Learners in Sta. Cruz District.

February 2016
Name
No. of

School

Experience
Amadea
20
Brigida
20
Caren
30
Daisy
8
Jayson
30

Age Gender

Yrs. Of

Location
Trainings

Sta. Cruz North

Attended
54
F

Sta. Cruz North

57

17

Sta. Cruz North

34

Sta. Cruz North

45

Sta. Cruz North

32

16

This chapter presents the

results of the qualitative
research questions generated
from the conducted in-depth
interviews with my informants.
It started with becoming
familiar with the transcribed
data from the audio recording.

In the analysis of data, three

steps were employed:
1. Data Reduction- In this
phase, answers from the
interview were transcribed and
translated into English language
making it sure that the thoughts
still preserved the same from
the transcript , coded, grouped
and organized through NVIVO8
software (trial version).

2. Data Display- findings were presented

in figure form as shown in figure 2 to 4.
Broad themes are labeled as root codes.
Similar responses are shortened and
grouped into branches. The branch
codes are further categorized into roots

3. Conclusion Drawing
and Verification- initial
thoughts about patterns
were developed.

Research Problem No. 1:

What are the major challenges encountered
when teaching IP students?

Figure 2. Responses of Non IP Teachers during In-depth Interview to the Research

Question: What are the major challenges encountered when teaching IP students?

Branch
Codes
IP
IPwords
wordsconnotes
connotesother
other
meaning
meaning
MultiMulti-IP
IPin
inaaclass
classwith
with
different
differentMT
MT

Literacy
Literacydifficulty
difficulty

Root
Codes
Language
Barrier
36.96*

Wearing
Wearingunwashed
unwashed
dresses
dresses
Improper
Improperdisposal
disposalof
of
trash
trash

Manner
Manner of
of talking
talking
Aged
Aged girl-students
girl-students resort
resort to
to
early
earlymarriage
marriage
Harvest
Harvestseason
seasonaffects
affects
attendance
attendance

Cultural
Differences
28.26*

36.96% responses of informants encountered a

lot of language difficulty in teaching IP students.
According to Jayson, in a particular classroom incident when a child mentioned
certain word which means differently and caused misconception, he answered:

One experience is the word lulu in Bagobo it

means washing of feet but sa Bisaya iba na ang
meaning nyan green na siya(Archive##5)

Similar response said by Daisy:

Dali ra sila kahimo og trouble sa ilahang classmates. Distorbohon
nila ilang classmates. Pag badlongon nako sila, istoryahan ko ug
Binagobo samot dili ko kasabot. (Archive##4)

Language can be a major barrier

to literacy. When a person
speaks unwritten language and
is expected to learn to read in a
language he does not
understand, becoming literate
can be a confusing and
frustrating process. Many give
up permanently, convinced that
reading and writing are beyond
their grasp (UNESCO 2000)

Studies also supported that most

indigenous people identify strongly
with a traditional language identity.
The tribe with which they identify is
a language group and in the great
majority of cases, the tribal name is
the language name. Duocat (2009)
states that those who teach in a
language other than that of the
child in the lower
grades are
violating principles of
good
pedagogy and are guilty of cultural
imposition.

More often than not, this type

of education has been the
cause of native children
dropping out of school and
experiencing psychological
trauma, resulting in their failure
to learn to read and write.

International Work Group for

Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA, 2011)
pointed that formal school education
is provided in the national language
and the languages of indigenous
peoples- as well as their traditional
knowledge and skills- are ignored
and devalued. In addition the lack of
qualified bilingual teachers and
learning materials written in the
learners mother tongue tend to
code switch instruction from the
other language to their mother
tongue.

34.78% of the informants responses

focus on their teaching on proper
hygiene of the IP so they will learn how
to value their health. The figure shows
that the informants had experience
teaching IP students hygienic routinary
activities. This is supported by Jessica
in her statement:
Feeling nako ang sanina naa gesuot nga
pangtulog mao ra pud ang gesuot pangeskwela, maligo dili sila magsabon ni
magshampoo kaya daghan kaayo mga alaga
sa ulo. Usahay may maamoy ko nga dili
maayo sa ila. (Archive##6)

experience:
Educate them kung unsa ang
tamang buhaton para dili
manimaho. Educate them kung
unsa dapat ang sanina suoton sa
balay, pag matulog, sa
eskwelahan, ug
dili dapat
balikon ang sanina ug
suot
kung wala pay laba.
Magpunas bago matulog. Tapos
pag maligo, dapat magsabon jud

Australian Health Department (2010)

associated inadequate (poor)
domestic or personal hygiene among
Indigenous communities which may
result to are many sicknesses like
signs of poor domestic hygiene
include: not cleaning the toilet, not
getting rid of rubbish, not washing of
clothes and bedding frequently, not
storing food properly, and signs of
poor personal hygiene include: not
washing hands, not showering, and
not washing hair.

28. 26 % of the informants responses

delved on the IP Culture and Beliefs.
Several ideas came out during the
interview that includes culture of IPs
in terms of manner of talking, helping
their parents during harvest time
which directly affect the performance
of their students and for IP girls once
they reached old age although still
school age, they tend to stop
schooling due to arrange marriage.

According to Brigida:
By nature, sabaan jud na sila
kaayo. Ang ilang istorya murag
singka, pinasyagit. Dagku kaayo
sila og mga tingog. Actually,dili jud
ni sila mga isog nga mga bata, dili
ni sila magsige sinumbagay,
sabaan lang jud ni sila.
(Archive##2)

Caren said:
I do home visitation, talk to their
parents what are some problems
encountered by their children at
home that keep them from leaving
classes (most of them are absent)
only to find out its their culture that
they tend to help their parents in the
farm or at home which affects their
studies. (Archive##3)

IWGIA (2011) articles stated

that most non-indigenous
teachers are not prepared
to teach in indigenous
communities (lack of
cultural training and
understanding of indigenous
peoples values and ways of
life).

ignore indigenous peoples history,

cultures and languages; textbooks
and other educational materials
reflect the values, norms and
traditions of mainstream society.
Schooling has been explicitly and
implicitly a site of rejection of
indigenous knowledge and
language using to assimilate and
integrate Ips into a national
society and identity at the cost of
their indigenous identity and

These shortcomings have

negative impacts and many
indigenous peoples worldwide
share traumatic school
experiences like learning foreign
systems of knowledge in a
language other than their own
and being taught by teachers
from cultures that are different
from and dominant to their own.

Research Problem No. 2:

How do you manage your
class, considering
students culture?

Teacher
Modelling
Expose to reading
materials
Peer Coaching

Culture based lesson

Code swithching
Willingness to learn
ones culture

52.10% of their responses

fall under Bridging
Literacy.
Sub-themes include peercoaching, teacher modeling,
exposing to reading
materials.

According to Adrian when asked about

the she coped with the challenges he
answered:
I slowly exposed them sa mga books
kay they dont love books. So hinayhinayan sila og expose sa mga short
stories and more on ko sa pabasapabasa until makabalo sila tanan
mobasa kay gamay ra jud ang
makabalo nga mobasa tungod sa
language. (Archive ##1)

Daisy, when asked with similar

question as to the managing class in
terms of Bridging Literacy. She
believed that:
Modelling-Teaching with translation.
Ako magbasa una, tapos ang mga bata
na pud ang magbasa then etranslate
nako sa Bisaya or Tagalog ang each
paragraph, then enjoy sila kay
nakasabot na sila. Ganahan sila
maminaw then later on makasabot na
sila unsa meaning ana nga particular
word sa English. (Archive ##4)

QIECB (2003) expressed that the

language background of
Indigenous students can have a
major impact on all educational
outcomes.
Bucknall (1995) states that it was
observed that students may refer
to a tall man as a long man,
words that have specific meaning.

Gledhill(1989) , although it may

appear to the English- speaking
teacher that their Indigenous students
speak and understand English well, in
reality this may be far from the truth.
Lowell et al (1995) suggest that
indigenous students often guess what
to do or say from the situation or from
one or two keywords than they
recognize, and thus often mask the
language difficulties they are
experiencing.

47.80% of the total

responses fall under the
theme: culture sensitivity
where its subthemes
include, culture based
lesson, code switching and
willingness to learn ones
culture.

According to Caren, when asked about

how she let IP students understand
concepts, she answered;
Its been ten years teaching here, so I
manage to study their culture and their
language. Right now, I cannot do the
talking but I can understand what they
are saying. Then I also manage to
adapt their culture and tradition and
its advantageous in my part.

Similar statement is made by Jayson, when asked with

the same question on how they manage their IP class in
terms of culture sensitivity. He said:
Be sensitive to their culture. Sometimes my mouth is
careless, so I must consider every word I say that it
cannot affect the tribe or the community nor their
culture. Be sensitive with our words. I do manage to
speak a little bit of their language and they appreciate it
kay nakita nila na naningkamot pud ko nga makalearn.

As described by the EMRIP: To

provide and receive education
through their traditional methods
of teaching and learning, and the
right to integrate their own
perspectives, cultures, beliefs,
values and languages in
mainstream education systems
and institutions. As concluded in
EMRIP, the right to education for
indigenous peoples is a holistic
concept incorporating mental,
physical, spiritual, cultural and

Research Problem No. 3:

What are the educational
implications of non-IP
teachers teaching an IP
class?

Branch Codes:

Root Codes:

Knowing IP worth in
learning
Strong Virtue of
Respect
Considering IP Beliefs
and Culture

Name of the game is

ADJUSTMENT
Being part of what/
who they are

Drawing out
IP s
Potentials
54.40%*

Matching
Teaching
Learning
Styles
45.60%*

From among the responses,

54.40% focused on the theme
as regards to drawing out IP
potentials. Among their
responses, the following subthemes emerged: knowing IPs
worth in learning, knowing more
their language, considering IPs
belief and culture.

Daisy, Caren and Jay have posted:

I will uplift their capabilities and abilities through
their knowledge and enhance their learning
competence even if they are IP.

Non-IP teachers should strive to understand and

respect IP learners para mas gwapo ang outcome
sa learning process.

If you love your work youll gonna love wherever

you may be. Their culture is very challenging, we
have to adapt it.

For IP students to be fully

engaged in learning and
reach their educational
potential, they need to be
behaviourally, emotionally
and cognitively engaged in
school.

Victorian Department of
Education and Early Childhood
Development states that a
disengaged IP student will
demonstrate none of the above
characteristics or they will have
a very poor attendance record,
and that students are at-risk of
becoming disengaged if they
demonstrate only some of these
characteristics (DEECD 2009).

Biddle (2014) that it is

important for schools to be
aware of the backgrounds of
their students and how that
affects their capacity to
learn. In this way, schools
will be be able to create
learning environment that
recognizes and addresses
distinctive needs of

45.60% of the total

responses pointed out to
the theme: matching
teaching and learning
styles. Several ideas were
pinched out. One of which is
that informants defines is
name of the game is adjustment.

This idea is proved by the

statement of Brigida and Daisy,
who said that:
There is this language gap. But by and
by I was able to manage na.
Willingness to learn their culture is
vital.

Adapt more pa jud sa ilang dialect and

culture kay mas malipay sila nga
makadungog nga nag storya ang
teacher og Binagobo.

Another idea is showing that they

are part of who/what they are.
These ideas were seen in the lines
of Jessica, which states that:
The educational implication is the teacherpupil relationship and adjustment period. At
first when I teach, dili pa kaayo sila
maminaw because dili ko kaestorya sa ilang
language dili pa kaayo ko nila pakitaan ug
respect but once maheard nila nga nagtalk
ka sa ilang language mosunod na sila sa
imoha kay kumbaga nakita nila na You
belong sa ilang tribe.

It is believed that Indigenous

students preferred learning
style is one of observation and
imitation, rather than verbal,
oral or written instruction
(Clarke, 2000; Collins, 1993;
Eibeck, 1994; Jarred, 1993).
Indigenous students have little
patience with an atomized
curriculum (Barnes, 2000)

Summary
Conclusion
And
Recommendation

Summary
This qualitative-phenomenological
study highlighted on a day to day
experience of the Non-IP teachers
teaching IP learners and how they
cope those challenges in an IP
classroom. This also tries to find out
answers on the problems posed in
the earlier chapter of this research.

Based from the in-depth interview

conducted, the researcher has drawn into
conclusions that Non-IP teachers
teaching IP learners experienced
challenges such as language barrier, lack
of hygiene and cultural differences.
Coping up those mentioned difficulties
in managing the IP class, literacy
bridging and culture sensitivity are
required in order to draw out the
potentials of the Indigenous learners
through matching teaching-learning
styles of teachers and pupils.

Recommendations
Based upon the insights the
researcher
gained
from
the
informants in this study and the
review of the literature, the all
above mentioned issues of the
educational implications of Non-IP
teachers teaching IP learners be
bridged to fully give quality
access to education and bridge
literacy among IP learners.

Department
of
Education
can
provide and conduct preservice and
inservice trainings to prepare teachers
for an Indigenous communities. IP
curriculums
should
be
given
considerations too using and providing
contextual material to the learners in
an IP school to encourage reading and
further
learning
of
pupils.

School
administrators
should
emphasized
the
need
for
schools
to
challenge
negative
perceptions of Indigenous
identity such as stereotypes
and racist attitude resulting
to positive school outcomes
and positive conceptions of
themselves.

Pedagogical congruence to Non-IP

teachers
assigned
in
an
IP
community should be stressed to
really know
and understand the
learners and their culture and
provide positive welcoming school
environment in which indigenous
children feel welcome, safe, valued
and happy. Integration of IP culture,
beliefs and language should be also
considered.

On
the
other
hand,
parents together with the
pupils should work hand in
hand in reading practice at
home to ehance childrens
attitude toward their studies
and may learn to give
importance to schooling.

Generally, the researcher

further recommends future
research relative to tthe
study to help find out other
problems and implication
that could help enhance the
teaching-learning process in
an IP classroom.

THANK YOU...
TO GOD BE ALL THE
GLORY