PIBBA delegates note advancement in language standards

Panelists representing the five political entities of the Pacific Islands Bilingual Bicultural Association conference yesterday disclosed major advancements in the Indigenous Language Development Standards in their respective islands as a result of the PIBBA conference held in Kosrae last year.

During an open discussion, the association grouped together island leaders who shared to other participants improvements on the development standards in their respective entities.

This tradition has been set to measure the impact of the yearly meet which tackles concerns besetting bilingual and bicultural issues throughout the Pacific.

PIBBA International Secretary-Treasurer Dr. Marilyn Salas from Guam has noted on major advancements brought about by the conference to bilingual programs all over the region.

“Every year, we hear new things through reports that each leader delivers. This way, we are aware of the direction we are taking,” said Ms. Salas.

Materials development, improved language curriculum, and the completion of language and cultural books are only some of the accomplishments that have been attained during the past year.

The Republic of Palau, for instance, is close to completing a compact disc which will contain its cultural profile.

“Hopefully by next year, we’ll get to see a sample of this CD which is being made possible through materials submitted by our teachers, students, and community members,” said a Palauan panelist.

Although the state of Kosrae has yet to see the implementation of the language technique development, the last conference has motivated its bilingual leaders to develop tutorial programs and other reinforcements to address such concerns.

“My recommendation is that we continue to attend PIBBA conferences and convince our leaders to support us. We should also continue to locally develop instructional materials in our own God-given languages,” said a Kosraean leader.

The Marshall Islands has already started developing its cultural profile through a historical text book which will embody the Marshallese language arts and other related topics.

The Marshalls is also in the process of creating a computer system which is projected to speed up the development of its instructional materials.

The Federated States of Micronesia have continually been asking for nationwide support for its curriculum minimum standards. FSM is confident that the national congress would back its plans to set reforms on its bilingual programs.

In the Northern Marianas, a pet project called the computer-assisted related language adoption is currently being developed to assist teachers in teaching its Carolinian bilingual program.

This computer software is targeted to bring together all related languages including Carolinian and be accessible to neighboring islands in the Pacific.

The Public School System Curriculum and Instruction Assessment has also been lobbying for more legislation which would support bilingual education programs in the CNMI. (MM)