Probing Linguistic Inequalities Using Critical Pedagogy in a Philippine Classroom

EMI has been in place in the Philippines for a century because of American colonization. English is an official language used in many formal domains; consequently, it is the language of social and economic mobility. This notion is rarely questioned by Filipinos, even if they have been “miseducated” by colonial mentality (Constantino, 1970), and are largely unaware of how EMI reproduces inequalities. Additionally, dominant discourses on EMI in Philippine education (Bernardo, 2008) are polarizing: they focus either on the benefits or detriments of English, leaving students with a scarcity of alternative discourses to articulate their experiences with English. This chapter explores how linguistic inequalities from EMI are probed through a critical pedagogy classroom. I show how my students critiqued the role of EMI through different discussions. Students articulated how English contributes to inequalities and oppresses some learners. Despite this, they highlight a move away from exhausting and exhaustive discourses that only emphasize EMI’s advantages and disadvantages. They argue for a middle ground, recognizing the liberating potential of EMI through promoting Philippine English and strengthening multilingual education. Overall, through critical pedagogy, students are able to reimagine how English can be used as a tool for social reconstruction in the Philippines.