The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) Faculty of Education’s (FEd) Master of Arts in Language and Literacy Education (MALLE) alumna, Ms. Maria Alexia Adizon, and LLE Faculty-in-Charge (FIC), Dr. Celeste L. Tayzon participated as presenters at the 8th Annual Conference of the Association of Reading and Writing in Asia (ARWA 2024) on 29 February to 1 March 2024 at Jeju National University, Jeju Island, South Korea. Meanwhile, Dr. Portia P. Padilla, LLE Program Chair, served as one of the conference’s keynote speakers.
Ms. Adizon presented her paper titled “The Relationship of Informal Digital Learning of English (IDLE) With the Vocabulary and Writing Development of Filipino Senior High School Students.” Her study explored the correlation between Filipino senior high school students’ vocabulary and writing ability with their IDLE activities – the informal, self-directed ways of acquiring English through digital devices and resources. Results showed 1) participants’ involvement in various IDLE activities, 2) no significant correlation of vocabulary and writing performance with time spent on IDLE activities, 3) participants’ acknowledgment of the many ways IDLE activities enhance their vocabulary knowledge and writing despite the lack of variables’ correlation, and 4) participants’ writing errors which can be attributed to online interaction and consumption of online content. The author suggests to families and schools the use of IDLE to facilitate students’ English learning. Ms. Adizon gained ideas about this topic after hearing stories of children learning English from videos and taking her LLE 201 subject, Language Acquisition Theories and Principles, where she realized that she learned English partly through exposure to English media.
Meanwhile, Dr. Tayzon’s paper is titled “Fostering Grade 3 Students’ Moral Judgment: Exploring the Effects of Read-Aloud and Guided Reading in the Context of Directed Reading Activity in Filipino”. It assessed how moral judgment was impacted by read-aloud and guided reading in regard to directed reading activities for Filipino children. Results demonstrated that using Read-Aloud Directed Reading Activity (DRA) and Guided DRA (which constitutes teaching children’s literature through engagement activities, narrative discussions, and peer interaction) significantly increases the moral judgment of participants. The study revealed that DRA as a reading strategy can influence students’ moral judgment.
Dr. Padilla discussed “Bilingual and Multilingual Reading: A Glimpse at Underrepresented Languages and Challenging Contexts.” In her presentation, she explained that despite the fact that reading acquisition and development are complex processes which vary across learners, languages, and context, little research has been conducted on reading among bilingual and multilingual speakers in developing countries like the Philippines. She cited some context-related factors which help explain why bilingual and multilingual reading in the Philippines is underrepresented in the reading literature. She also shared the results of her own studies and cited ongoing endeavors that show some ways forward in Philippine reading research.
Ms. Adizon currently works as a Grade 7 Literature teacher in Muntinlupa. For her, studying at UP has always been a dream. She chose UPOU due to its flexibility and took the LLE program to obtain proficiency in teaching English. She described studying at UPOU as exacting but fulfilling. Accomplishing asynchronous activities, working with classmates online, and being exposed to various course materials elevated her grit, ability to collaborate, and reading and writing skills. She said that LLE trained her to be “more reflective and deliberate” in her teaching practice, while UPOU’s online mode of learning aided her in becoming acquainted with the Learning Management System (LMS) and making asynchronous materials – which she has used in teaching remote classes since the pandemic. Ms. Adizon is thankful to UPOU for making UP education accessible to more people.
Meanwhile, aside from being LLE FIC, Dr. Tayzon is also the current Program Chair of the Bachelor of Education Studies (BES). Aside from being the UPOU LLE Program Chair and affiliate professor, Dr. Padilla is a full-time professor and the current Reading/Literacy Education Area Coordinator at the College of Education, UP Diliman.
Written by Efraime M. Cruz ♦ Edited by Portia P. Padilla, Ana Katrina T. Marcial & Charisse T. Reyes ♦ Cross-posted from FED Website
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