Lived Experiences of English Teachers of Talaingod Manobo Students: Pedagogical Challenges in Focus

Jay  H. Cabal,

Lived Experiences of English Teachers of Talaingod Manobo Students: Pedagogical Challenges in Focus

Abstract:

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the instructional issues and challenges of non-indigenous teachers teaching Talaingod-Manobo students. This study also aimed to determine the coping mechanism of teachers to overcome the instructional issues and challenges and to discover the insights that could be shared by the informants to their peers and to the academe in general. This study utilized the purposive sampling technique. It included 10 teachers teaching English to Talaingod-Manobo students. Seven teachers were considered in a focus group discussion (FGD). In-depth interview and focus group discussion were employed in the collection of information. Utilizing thematic analysis, the researcher identified various themes. For the instructional issues and challenges on non-indigenous teachers teaching English in Talaingod-Manobo students, cultural incongruence in instruction, challenging classroom environment, language maintenance, cultural incompetence, culturally irrelevant teaching materials, were the themes. The coping mechanism of teachers to overcome the instructional issues and challenges included advocating multilingual instruction, developing strategies, professional culture, immersion in the digital world, classroom climate, and cultural sensitivity. The insights shared by informants were, reciprocal learning, affirmative reception for students, and understanding cultural diversity.