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AUTHOR Spencer, Mary L.TITLE History and Status of Vernacular School Materials and
Instruction in the Micronesian Region, with Commentson Literacy and Emerging Local Educational Needs.
INSTITUTION Guam Univ., Mangilao. Coll. of Education.PUB DATE Dec 86
NOTE 52p.
PUB TYPE Reports - Descriptive (141)
EDRS PRICE MF01/PC03 Plus Postage.DESCRIPTORS Chamorro; Educational History; *Educational Planning;
Elementary Secondary Education; English (SecondLanguage); Ethnic Groups; Foreign Countries;*Instructional Materials; *Literacy; MaterialDevelopment; *Native Language Instruction; *RegionalDialects; Uncommonly Taught Languages; WrittenLanguage
IDENTIFIERS *Micronesia
ABSTRACTA discussion of vernacular instruction and
instructional materials in Micronesia, a group of Western Pacificislands north of the equator, ch7.onicles the development and recenthistory of vernacular and English literacy, reports on historical andcontemporary efforts to develop a written vernacular, and documentsthe status of oral and literacy skill development in both English andthe vernacular. Problems with the skills of educational personnel whoprepare vernacular instructional materials are discussed. Extensiveappended materials about the Micronesian region include descriptionsof its geography, political and administrative characteristics,cultural and linguistic diversity, education systems, and criticalproblems and unique features of education. (MSE)
)000000000000000000000000000000000(*******X*MX***3000000000000000E* Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made *
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.
HISTORY AND STATUS OFVERNACULAR SCHOOL MATERIALS AND INSTRUCTION
IN THE MICRONESIAN REGION- WITH COMMENTS ON LITERACY AND EMERGING LOCAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS -
"PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THISMATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCESINFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)"
Mary L. Spencer, Ph.D.Department of Behavioral SciencesCollege of Arts and Sciences
and
Project B.E.A.M.College of EducationUniversity of Guam
Mangilao, Guam 96923
December, 1986
U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONOt,ce of Educational Research and Improvement
EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIONCENTER (ERIC)
/This document has been reproduced asreceived from the person or organizationoriginating itMinor changes have been made to improvereproduction Quality
Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent officialOERI positbn or policy
PEST COPY AVAILABLE
Table of Contents
Page
A. Early Work to Develop the Written Vernacular Languages 1
B. Contemporary Ef ,rts to Develop the WrittenVernacular Languages 5
C. Status of English Oral and Literacy Skill Development 9
D. Status of Vernacular Oral and Literacy Development 17
E. Problems with the Skills of Educational PersonnelWho Prepare Vernacular School Materials Overview.. ... 17
Appendix:* 23o Geographical Characteristics of the Micronesian Region 1
o Political /Administrative Characteristics of theMicronesian Region 3
o Cultural/Linguistic Diversity in the MicronesianRegion 7
o Education Systems in the Region 7
o Unique Features and Critical Problems ofMicronesian Region Education 11
References
* Prepared by Project BEAM staff.
A.2.1:v
HISTORY AND STATUS OFVERNACULAR SCHOOL MATERIALS AND INSTRUCTION
IN THE MICRONESIAN REGION- WITH COMMENTS ON LITERACY AND EMERGING LOCAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS -
In the Micronesian Region, where the indigenouslanguages are traditionally oral, the process of preparingwritten versions of these languages has created prospects forimportant advances in the development of literacy and forpromoting the quality of education in the Region in general.
A. Early Work to DeveloR the Written Vernacular Languages
The first attempts to develop literacy in the MicronesianRegion were made by Spanish Catholic priests in the Marianasas early as the 1600's. In the four years following hisarrival in Guam in 1668, Father Diego Luis de Sanvitoresfounded three seminaries for the education of the Chamorrogirls and boys. His religious efforts were funded by QueenMaria Anna (for whom the Mariana Islands are named), wife ofPhilip IV of Spain, because of her interest in the Christianeducation of native children. According to earlier scholarsof the history of Guam and the Northern Marianas (Thompson,1947; Joseph and Murray, 1951), the establishment of missionschools began in 1674, and by the end of the Spanish period,ever; village in Guam had a school where children weretaught reading, writing, arithmetic, Spanish, music,handicrafts, and Catholic doctrine. Spanish records donot document the extension of this form of schooling tothe Northern Marianas.
According to contemporary scholars of the Chamorrolanguage (Underwood, 1986), the focus of these efforts was todevelop a rudimentary spelling system and to translate theBible and other church documents into the language of theindigenous Chamorros. Until recent times, written materialsin Chamorro continued to emphasize biblical and catechismmaterials, with few if any strictly educational materialsbeing developed. Changes in the early Chamorro orthographyreflected changes that were taking place in the spelling ofCastillian Spanish in Spain at the time. However, attemptsto develop a Chamorro literature appear to have been absent,with the main function of written Chamorrn being toaccelerate the conversion of the Chamorro people toCatholicism.
In the 1800',I,, tne American Protestant missionaries fromBoston established mission schools in Kosrae and 1.ter inPohnpei and the Marshall Islands (Arttila, 1965/. Theydeveloped the earliest orthographies and basic teariingmaterials in several of the Micronesian as ea languages :e.g.,Marshallese, Pohnpeian, Kosraean, Trukese), and did soexpressly for the purpose of educating both children and
1
adults. The purposes of their schools appears to havecombined ministry training and attempts to initiate thedevelopment of literacy in the members of their churches.
After establishing their first mission school in Kosraein 1852, they worked extensively in English as aninstructional medium. In 1879, they moved the missionschools they had established in the Marshalls and theGilberts to Kosrae. A girls school was added in Kosraein 1886. After the installment of the initial mission schoolin Ebon, an atoll of the Marshall Islands, schools sprangup in other Marshall Islands as well.
The work was systematized, and a little printingoffice was set up. Native children were trainedas typesetters, for the teachers were anxicAls toget the Bible into Marshallese hands as quickly aspossible. To that end, the Bible was translatedinto Marshallese. A training school was establish-ed to teach theology to native Christians whowere to assist in the field. This was the schoolwhich was moved to Kosrae in 1879. (Source: (Ant-ttila, 1965, based on Fensham, F., and Tuthill, B.,1907.)
A girl's boarding school was begun in Pohnpei in 1882,and ended six years later when the Spanish banished theProtestants from Pohnpei and installed Spanish as themandatory language of instruction. In another development, amission training school for young men and women of theMortlock Islands and Truk was established in Truk in 1886. Agirls' school was also established on Truk by a missionarywoman about the same time. The language of instruction wasprobably a mixture since the key educators were nativeEnglish speakers who were learning the languages of thestudents as second or additional languages. A printing presswas put into operation in one of the Trukese mission schoolsin 1892.
The missionaires translated the Bible, reducednative languages to writing, put out grammars,readers, textbooks, and dictionaries. (Source:Anttila, 1965, based on Fensham and Tuthill,1907.)
Although Spanish priests from the Philippines were inthe Palaus in the late 17th century. Spain apparently made noeducational attempts until tne late 19th centur,i. Yap toowas almost untouched by European languages and, educatior,during this period.
During the brief German occupation of Micronesia from1885 until the first World War, Germany made almost noinvestment in education. Education was lett almost enti.el,
b
IA
to the various missionary groups. During this time, schoolattendance for children 7-13 years of age was mademandatory. In the Palaus, the men's houses were replaced byschools for young men. Nearing the end of the German period,in 1905, the American Protestant Missionaries of Bostonreported 3,517 students in their missionary schools. At theonset of WWII, Germany steamed out of Pacific harbors andwere quickly replaced by Japan.
Yanaihara (1940) reports that in 1914 the Japaneseclosed the mission schools in Micronesia. Others report thatsome mission schools were allowed to continue if they did notdisturb peace and order. Lessons in the Japanese language,arithmetic, and singing were given by the Japanese.- TheJapanese-sponsored native elementary schools were set up innumerous administrative centers. About 1921, there were 17Japanese schools with 2,300 children about 8 - 12 years ofage. Conflicting reports surround the issue of the languageof instruction. While some (e.g. Yanaihara, 1940) insistthat only Japanese was used, others (e.g. Anttila, 1965)report first-person accounts by Micronesian teachingassistants who claim to have translated the Japaneseteacher's verbal instructions into the vernacular, in aconcurrent bilingual instructional method. But there Is noargument in the reports that the vernacular languages werenever used in written form during the period of the Japaneseeducational system. Reports on the schools for 1924(Japanese Government, 1925) show that half of the totalschool time was spent in learning Japanese ("pronunciation,easy conversation, reading and writing of the composition inKata-kana characters"). For second year students, Hira-ganacharacters and Chinese characters were added. In 1926, ninemission schools continued to operate. Most taught in the
"vernacular, but some had converted to Japanese as thelanguage of instruction. School attendance was quite high in-ome islands, such as Yap (98 percent), where the populationis concentrated. But where students were widely scattered,as in Truk (about 50 percent), it was reported to be muchlower (Price, 1944). Even Micronesians who completed thefive year course (most had only three years reportedly couldnot read a Japanese newspaper, book, or magazine. Thus,written language, even one in which instruction was provided,had been taken from the students' grasp during the Japaneseperiod.
Once the hostilities of WWII began, information oneducation in Micronesia ceased to be reported. However, theAmerican Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions reported(1948) that with tne exception of a handfui of Germanmissionaries, no foreign missionaries were pernitted in theRegion between 1941 and 1946.
The major investment in literacy and education in theMicronesian Region was made under U.S. sponsorship afterWorld War II, and with particular emphasis after the mid-
3
0
st...e.),
*
19601s. For this undertaking, English has generally beenput forward as the prestige language (Underwood, 1984),a position reinforced by the fact that English proficiencyis an essential qualification for those aspiring to. holda government job - the main source of salaried employmentin the Region. English is formally studied as the mainacademic subject in all schools within the Region.
. AlthoughEnglish is the predominant language of the schnols in Guam,and is rapidly assuming this position in the Commonwealthof the Northern Marianas, the vernacular languages co.tinueto be the mediums of instruction in public elementaryschools everywhere else in the Region. In the few highschools within the Micronesian Region (beyond Guam and CNMI),English is officially designated as the language ofinstruction; however, in actual practice, the vernacularlanguages are used extensively in these settingp as well.Except in Guam, English is a second and usually non-dominantlanguage for the majority of-School teachers. Except forGuam and the CNMI, English is present in the community onlyas a government and tourist language, or a lingua francaamongst Micronesians of diverse linguistic groups. Thus,students will develop in a linguistic community in which theindigenous language of their culture is the primary lin-guistic input, with English and other languages of theRegion heard as rare or only occasional inputs.
Within this linguistic and educational context, the de-velopment of universal literacy and Effective education willbe very difficult to realize if the educational materials andthe medium of instruction are designed to be based only inEnglish. Understanding that children learn most quicklyto read and write in a language which they already speakand comprehend aurally, and that teachers teach most"effectively in a language in which they are proficient,educational leaders and policy planners for the MicronesianRegion have, in the recent past, attempted to developcurriculum that combined English as a Se:ond Languagematerials (for both oral and reading development), andlocally produced vernacular language materials. Due toproblems inherdnt in the specific English materials enjoyingthe most widespread use (the South Pacific Commissionreaders), as well as with the vernacular material developmentprocesses and resources, the development of literacy andeducational quality is not progressing as rapidly as isneeded, desired, or possible.* This is not to ignorethe several other very important dimensions in the complexmultidimensional situation of educational development InMicronesia. However, most observers of education in thisRegion would rate problems with educaticral materia:s. and
*For example, preliminary results of an evaluation of SPCmaterials show readability levels in the first grade formaterials recommended for grades 5 and 8.
the process of developing appropriate materials, as a keyobstacle to progress (e.g., Title VII evaluation reports onKosrae and Belau, 1983-84; 1984-85).
8. Contemporary Efforts to peyelop the Written VernacularLanguages:
During the early post-WWII American period of the1950's and 1960's, when educational development was selectedas a major strategy to represent the U.S. involvementin the Micronesian Region, educational decision makerswere undecided about the most appropriate language usepolicy for the schools. Many of the imported teachers and"experts" opposed the use of the vernacular languages in theschools, arguing that vernacular materials wauld not behelpful to students as they entered all-English highschools and colleges. The importances of English was alsopegged on the hope of developing a lingua franca thatwould permit peoples of the Region to communicate acrosscultures and political jurisdictions with one another.Robert Gibson, High Commissioner of the Trust Territory anda major educational influence of the times, vigorously ad-advocated the use of the vernaculars for school materi-als and for the instructional mediums.
Strong contemporary efforts to develop the vernacularlanguages in written form emerged in the 1970's. A resolu-tion of the Micronesian Congress in 1959 set the stage bycalling for the use of the vernacular languages in all pub-lic schools of the Region. In response to this call,in 1971. the University of Hawaii initiated the PALIProject which designed and implemented a program todevelop vernacular dictionaries and reference grammar booksfor each of nine Micronesian languages. All departmentsof education in the Region sent people to the Universityof Hawaii to participate. The project used a strategy ofpairing an outside trained linguist with an indigenous lang-uage informant who was simultaneously receiving linguisticIt is remarkable that most of the dictionaries were complet-ed (Carolinian, Ulithian, Satawalese, and Mortlokese beingthe unfinished exceptions). They and the reference grammarsthat accompany many of them supplied the essential bedrockresources for the development of indigenous vernacular lite-ratures, writing systems, educational materials, and forvernacular materials for all other major societal functions,such as business, gove-imient, and the media. Seemingly un-noticed is the corps of highly trained indigenous linguistswho evolved from this process. Most of these individualshave continued to be active. and many now play orominentroles in education, government, and political functionscf the Region.
Simultaneously, instructional elementary school staffhad obtained the first Title.VII bilingual education grarts.
5S
0.1
In 1968 the first such program was initiated on the island ofRota in CNMI. In 1970, the first bilingual education programwas begun in Guam' with U.S. federal support. Otherjurisdictions in the Region soon followed these examples,creating important resources for vernacular materialdevelopment. These basic bilingual education programs inMicronesia have always been viewed as having as their mainfJnction, the development of vernacular materials.Unfortunately, this perception has prevented the evolvementof the instructional focus in designated project classroomsand schools that would be most desireable; a focus which isjust now beginning to become evident. Nevert4pless, theearly bilingual education grants to LEAs may be legitimatelycredited with most advances that have been made to date onvernacular material development, dissemination, and classroomuse. Although they have been coordinated with otherfederally and locally funded programs that assisted withthese objectives, the bilingual education grants havesupported curriculum writers, specialists, andpreparation/printing costs for many of the materials nowavailable to children in the Region. Curriculum writers forthe grants have written vernacular materials which have beendesigned mostly for children in grades one through five.
The important role played by the University of Hawaiiin the creation of the written vernacular languages wasextended by three cther federally funded projects. In theSpring of 1974, a program known as BETT (Bilingual EducationTeacher Training) for Micronesian Region teachers wasestablished. All LEAs took the opportunity to send classroomteachers and curriculum writers. A group of more than 20participants attended regular University of Hawaii classes inESL and linguistics. Especially designed courses incurriculum development anc the writing of vernacular readingmaterials were offered to the participants. As a part of thetraining, the participants assembled a 60 page storybookwritten in some of the dialects of the nine officiallanguages of Micronesia.
After the initial ore year BETT training, mostparticipants returned to their islands and Joined the ongoingbilingual education programs. These programs continued tcsupport curriculum writers and artists. and at this pointabsorbed the newly returned BETT participants as theydeveloped the new vernacular materials. EducationalInterest and appreciation of these materials periodicallyexpanded and cohst-acted. The logistical and tec'inicalproblems of producing and having the materials printedhave been discouraging t'Ircughout the years. The creationof the PALM project, Pacific Area Language Materials, inthe latter 1970's. supplied a resource' fo_indatioh for
6 9
training, technical assistance, and actual printing andproduction of materials that had always been missing in thepast. Many materials were produced during this period.In 1983, PALM islued,;a. catalog which inventoried thematerials it and';itlW1.0S_had produced (PALM, 1983), Nothorough inventory,jiai/peen undertaken since that time.In activities in 0647ess at this moment, the TTPI SEAgrant is attempting to inventory all vernacular materialswithin its jurisdictions (Tawerilmang, 1986). Table 1offers informal estimates based on Title VII evaluationreports and estimates made by project personnel. Thesesame materials today form the basis of most firstlanguage literacy and education throughout the MicronesianRegion.
PALM functioned in coordination with a continuation ofthe BETT project, known in its newer form as BEPM, BilingualEducation Program for Micronesia. This too was a teachertraining project in the main, again based at the Universityof Hawaii, but also with the participation of curriculumwriters and specialists who received technical training andimplementation time necessary to the work of PALM. The PALMproject expired as OBEMLA phased out the material developmentcenters in 1983-84. Many of the works in p.-ogress in thevernacular languages throughout the Region were unfinishedwhen PALM was closed. Extended activities have beencoordinated by the zontinuing efforts of key PALM staffmembers in the years since, through a patchwork of smalllocal and federal budget allocations from a range of sources.However, on the whole, the materials development activitiesof the Region have significantly constricted since the endinoof PALM. Many observers are of the opinion that current andfuture vernacular material development efforts must be morelocally based, with local educators responsible for allaspects of the process. This would not preclude theaccessing of training and technical assistance beyond localisland boundaries when necessary, but it would relocatecontrol and capacity in the hands of local educators andeducational systems within the Micronesian Region per se.These same observers suggest that materials writing hasbecome a skill that is fairly well developed and under localcontrol, with the expectation of continuing local support;however, that the printing process and other aspects oftechnical quality and production are the elements of theprocess that continue to create the biggest obstacles.Examples are offered of as many as 40 or more materials incamera-ready condition having been turned in to a localgovernment printer one or more years earlier, with no productavailable to classrooms even now. On-site observatio.o5 ofthe curriculum and material development process show thatillustrators want and need training and advice. Theyfunction without access to basic art supplies and materials.Material designers and develope-s are unawa-e of cLethods formaking materials pedagogically sound ad have r.ot hadopportunities to examine high quality mater:als in various
Table 1
1982 - 83 Status of Vernacular Publications*,
with Comments on Changes**
Language UndeirPiltit Ready For't Published TotalDevel.-::;Version Publi- Potentialopment Cation Materials
Comments
Carolinian
Chamorro
Kosraean
Marshallese
Belauan
Pohnpeian
Trukese
J- Ulithian
0 Woleaian
0.-Satawalese
Yapese
4- Mortlockese
q-Pingalapese
Q- Mokilese
Kapingamarangi
42,--Sapwuavik
(Ngatese)
Nukuoro
1
13
19
15
10
8
9
4
5
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
33
35
21
17
10
41
47
24
51
0
16
0
0
0
0
0
0
52
38
39
4
0
22
9
10
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
11
29
15
0
21
5
9
1
0
0
16
0
0
o
0
0
0
97
115
94
36
41
76
74
39
56
40
0
0
o
0
0
0
Range of student/teacher/lessons,1-5.
Elementary language arts.
Student LA bqoklets, 1 -4;somescience/math/ss, 4-6,
Elementary language arts.
Language Arts, 1-6; content areas,some for 4 -6.Mostly ladtuage arts, 1-6.
Student/teacher language arts, 1-3
None in use. Mostly language arts,early elementary.
LA, and other content areas,l -5.
Materials for the Outer Islandsof Pohnpei have been developedto pre-pilot and pilot stage insmall quantities.
* A typical 4th to 6th grade booklet is approximately 400 - 700 words in length.
** Source of the 1982 - 83 status report is: Instructional Materials Catalog, 1982/83,for Pacific Area Bilingual Education. Honolulu, Hawaii: PALM Project, University ofHawaii, 1983. Comments are based on on-site visits and discussions with Title VIIproject staff during the 1985-86 academic year.
8 11
content areas. Knowledge necessary to becoming well-informedconsumers of vendor services such as typography,illustration, photography, and printing is illusive.
y,
,Although the federally supported materials developmentprefects in Micronesia laid the foundations needed to createvernacular orthographies, dictionaries, and the beginnings ofan educational material storehouse, the process wasprematurely halted. Many efforts were unfinished at the endof PALM, and arrangements for completing the building oflocal capacity to carry on these activities in the absence ofthe University of Hawaii project were not in place. Thefailure to bring closure to this process of building localcapacity for developing vernacular educational materialsgives rise to a sense of urgency now as the role andresources of the United States become increasinglAdistanceofrom the Micronesian educational systems.
C. Status of English Oral and Literacy Skill Development.
It would be appropriate at this point to document thestatus of English and vernacular language development(listening, speaking, reading, writing) in the variouslanguages of the Micronesian Region. If, for example,English oral language development has been established, thegoal of achieving age-appropriate levels of literacy inEnglish could be attained by focusing efforts on theselection of higher quality English textbook materials andmore training of inst,uctional staff to use these materialseffectively. The availability of many very high quality.materials in the vallous subject areas in English wouldsimplify such a task. However, if students have low oralEnglish language proficiency, and particularly if it isalso low in their teachers and communities as well,then the logic or developing more vernacular educationalmaterials becomes more compelling. Unfortunately, for manyof the same reasons that educational development and literacyis not advancing as fast as might be desired, neither is theorganization of educational testino and documentation. Thus,in the presentation below, interpretation must be basedn a widely mixed set of instruments. on samples notdrawn randomly, on evaluation designs with a myriad ofunconventional intervening factors, and on some scraps ofevidence tnat can only supply a speculativg, base forhypotheses in need of testing.
English oral language proficiency has most often beenassessed in the Micronesian Region (excluding Guam) via tholistening test of the Micronesian Achiev.ement Tvst SefleA(M015), or with locally developed tests which are similar it
design (Figure 1). These tests all consist mocLtly of itemsthat have children point to pictures of common objects oractions as the English term for these is pronounced bv
the examiner in large group testing situations. The MATSis based on the SPC oral language and reading materials.Therefore, the content is familiar to most students throughtheir daily experience with these materials - - the major- ifnot the only written curriculum materials in their schools.The MATS is used to test students in grades 3 to 6.Result:- in the 1979 fieldtest of MATS showedstudent= differed in their listening performance asa function of how remote their islands are; bu:. in general,students' performance on listening is superio- to that inreading or math (Table D. In recent years and in many loca-tions in the Region, students answer most such listeningitems correctly by the time they are tested in the fifthgrade. Unfortunately, the lack of validity data onthe MATS makes, it difficult to know how difficultthis or other s'ctions are, either to native Englishspeakers of various ages or to limited English proficientstudents at various stages of second language development,No frequency or difficulty analysis of the test content isprovided with the test. However, the 'tems seem to be low indifficulty.
Speaking has not traditionally ,aen assessed anywherein the Region. In a recent study (Spencer, Palomo, and Vela,1986), results of the English version of the LanguageAssessment Scales with Chamorro students, K-12, fromGuam were analyzed. In this Central Guam, nonrandomly drawnsample of summer school students, 56 percent received scoresplacing them in the LES category (Table 3). Most noticeablewas their inability to produce connected spoken sentences inEnglish, although their English listening skills appeared tobe adequately developed. In a very recent replication ofthis study with elementary grade students in Guam'sChamorro bilingual education program, almost identical re-sults '-sere obtained. Preliminary findings from a LAS pre-test in CNMI in January, 1986, indicate that the majorityof students there also obtained LES test results. In viewof the fact that Guam is considered the most advanced schoolsystem in the Micronesian Region, followed by CNMI. andthat both place strong or in Guam's case almostexclusive emphasis on English, the finding that over halfof the local Chamorro students are LES conditions one'sexpectations for the English oral proficiency of studentsin the other jurisdictions of Micronesia where Englishis much less common in any domain of life. cor example,in a series of case studies of students in Ulithi, an outerisland of Yap State, conducted by the proposed projectdirecf-nr and her Outer Island students during the summer of1985, the Bilingual Syntax Measure was administered. Ofthe 14 students tested, only one achieved a score in theupper ranges of Lim:ted English Speaking, and this was a
child who had traveled to Hawaii, Guam, and the United Statesmainland extensively with her parents. Most other studentsscored in the non-English or lower part of the limited Englishspeaking range, even though several had had more tha six
10
Ar06,
fg?°;s17:.!:.,.11.,
lir,
k ap
ir
_ Alk`
CD
,
ti)
\, , oki).....0.0000
Figure 1. Listening items, Level A, Micronesian Achievement Test Series.
Table 2
MATS English Listening Subscale Results forTrust Territory of the Pacific Islands Students, 1979*
Level No. of Items N M SD
Level 1
Grade 3 30 1,230 16.3 5.5
Grade 4 30 1,085 18.7 5.4
Level 2
Grade 4 35 1,149 19.8 6.1
Grade 5 35 1,040 21.1 6.1
Level 3
Grade 5 35 1,147 17.1 7.0
Grade 6 35 1,093 17.9 6.5
(Source: MATS Norms Tables, ETS, 1979)*Kosrae, Marshall Islands, Belau, Pohnpei, Truk, Yap
Table 3
English Oral Language Proficiency on the LAS for a Sample ofChamorro Students of Guam, Grades K-12, 1982.
Subscales Numberof Itecs
LAS I
Y SDLAS II
T SD
Minimum Pairs 30 24.40 5.60 21.20 4.30
Lexicon 20 18.45 2.09 19.97 .18
Phonemes 36 28.10 7.70 34.20 6.40
Sentence 10 7.80 2.10 9.40 1.90Comprehension.
Production 5 3.00 1.20 3.40 1.10(Rating Scale)
Total Score 100 71.00 17,20 80.20 18.00
Level 5 3.301 1.40 3.40 1.10
Valid Cases (11 76) (II 31)
Total Records 92 36
1 Total records n 91Valid Cases 75
12
eIr
NA years of English as a second language instruction. These re-sults were particularly disturbing in view of the factthat all of their school materials are in English. Since the,Ulithian dictionary has not been completed and since noschool materials are available in the schools'in Uli-thian, literacy instruction there currently encounters almostinsurmountable obstacles. A random sample of Kosrean first,third and fifth graders were tested with the LAS in summer,1986. The mean English proficiency level was less than 1.5,non-English speaking, for all grade groups (Spencer, et al,1986).
Guam is the only school district in the MicronesianRegion that has systematically tested its students' readingachievement with a U.S. developed norm-referenced achievementtest. In its most recent report of results (T4ples A and5) students obtained average percentile ratings on theSRA test of reading between the 20th and 25th percentilesexcept for grade 1 students who were at the 33rd and 44thpercentiles, respectively, in 1984 and 1985 (Guam DOE, 1985).In the CNMI, the Metropolitan Achievement Test is occasional-ly given to provide clues to long range planning. A review ofthese confidential results over a seven year period showsan upward climb of reading achievement results, but withoutcomes of recent years falling below U.S. Mainland norms.
Other school districts in the Region have opted notto use U.S. norm-referenced tests because of the expectationthat their students could not cope' adequately with thelanguage and content of the test matc?rials. The MATSwas designed to serve as a substitute achievement test.Progress in achievement and education in general is evidentfrom the fact that some school districts are nowdiscontinuing their use of the MATS because of a"topping out" effect (e.g., in Pohnpei and CNMI). Unfortu-nately, the simplicity of the most difficult items on theMATS lead many educators to suspect that even thehighest student reading and math levels are quite low (Figure2 and 3). This tends to be supported by the fact that 70%of all students enrolling in the University of Guam, and 96%of Trust Territory students, must take basic ESL classes todevelop English speaking, listening, reading, an writingskills sufficient to carry them through freshman introductorycourses (Scraggs, et al, 1985). Nevertheless, the growth thatwould be needed to accomplish this is so extensive that manystudents (even though they represent a highly select group tobegin with) do not succeed and must give up their hopes o'pursuing a college education. Another glinpse at Englishliteracy shills may be gained by considc,ing the results ofthe Iowa Test of the Basic Skills as administered to theteachers of one of the states of the Federated State ofMicronesia in 1985. On the average, these teachersobtained reading achievement scores ranging from gradeequivalents of 5.0 to 6.4. Further evidence of problems withEnglish literacy comes from a study of Kosrean sixth graders
Table 4
1984 Test Results by Grade Levels in Percentiles
Up-dated to the Nem-41985) Norms
- Guam -
Grade Composite Reading Math. Language Ref. Soc. Sci. Applied
Level Score 'Arts Mat. . Stu. Skills
1 17 33 31
3 25 18 27 45
5 28 23 30 32 47 39 38
7 32 24 33 32 36 32 32
4
Table 5
1985 Test Results by Grade Levels in Percentiles
- Guam -
GradeLevel
CompositeScore
Reading Math LanguageArts
Ref.
Mat.
Soc.
Stu.
Sci. AppliedSkills
1 29 44 39
3 38 23 48 54
5 31 24 36 33 48 39 37
7 33 25 34 31 36 30 31
9 29 25 36 28 33 33 31
11 29 21 36 35 25 23 21 25
12 31 24 35 38 30 24 24 26
14
DANCING
Look at Mary.
Mary is eincing.
Ken dancing, too.
Ken: "Mother. Father.
at me.
I can
I'm dancing."
Mother: "I can you, Ken."
Mother is
Father is latighing, too.
look
laughing
at
dance
see
is
GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE
Figure 2. Reading items, Level 1, Micronesian Achievement Test Series
15_t 6
ETSUSE
O
e
L.
AN ACCIDENT
There was once an accident in a home in
Tom's village. The was in John's home.
wife went out to
in her garden. She her little
daughter in the
ETSaccident USE
house 99
John's99
left 09wife 9work
The child was asleep her
mother left her, but soon woke up
and for something to play
. There were some matches in a
on the floor. The child picked the
box up and started playing with the matches.
ETSUSE
box9
looked
she
there 9when 9
0with
She lit some of the matches and dropped
on a mat on the
The child did not herself, but when
her mother
mat was fire. She put the fire out
quickly.
home, she found that the
Ersburn USE
came 9909floor
herself 9on 9
9them
O
GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE
Figure 3. Reading items, Level IV, Micronesian Achievement Test Series.
16 19
(Spencer, et al, 1986). A group of students testing at thenear English fluent level of the LAS Oral English test ohowedthat even when they could decode 4th grade English passages,they could not comprehend the meaning and relied primarily onmemorization of phrases for content recall.
D. Status of Vernacular Oral and Literacy Development.
In all parts of the Micronesian Region, except Guam andCNMI, the listening and speaking skills of studentsin their indigenous vernacular languages are currently sostrong that the prospects of assessing these skills strikesmost educators as a foolhardy extravagance. In Guam however,it has long been understood that Chamorro is decl4ning amongyouth as a language of communication. The Spencer, Palomo,and Vela study (1986) demonstrated with the Sensuran Fino'Haya, a test of Chamorro listening and speaking which isparallel in construction to the LAS, that only rarelyare children identified who can speak Chamorro in sentenceform, although their listening comprehension skills for thelanguage appeared to be fairly well developed (Table 6).
Recently, in CNMI, concern has emerged over the oralproficiency of Carolinian children in their traditionalCarolinian language. To date, this cw:cern is anecdotaland has not been systematically documented.
Most LEAs in the Region have developed criterionreferenced tests at various grade levels which attempt toassess reading skills in the vernacular. Each of these testsinclude a small number of items, and usually f3cus onvocabulary-picture matching or perhaps a few cloze itemswith a word matching response system like that used in theMATS English tests. None include adequate types nornumbers of reading comprehension items, leaving us withlittle information on the development of reading comprehen-sion in the vernacular languages of the Micronesian Region.However, in Spencer, et al's study in Kosrae (1986), Kosreanteachers tested Kosrean reading comprehension and strategiesof a random sample of third and fifth grade students. Al-though decoding was adequate for most students, very fewrated well in comprehension and almost all relied heavily onmemorization of phrases as their main recall /comprehensionstrategy.
E. Problems with the Skills of Educational Personnelwho Prepare Vernacular School Materials Overview
At a time in history when the Trust 'Territory of thePacific Islands is on the very& of mating the shift away f. on:U.S. sponsorship of its educational systems, and at a timewhen Guam and CNMI are both striding vigorously to%vard
17
Table 6
Chamorro Oral Language Proficiency on the Sensuran Fino' Jaya for a Sampleof Chamorro Students of Guam, Grades K-12, 1982
Subscale Number PRETEST 1 POSTTEST=of Its= Mean Raw Score Mean Ram Score
(SD) (SD)
Destingto ha 30 25.10 27.11$
Sunido - Pares (6.58) (4.60)
Bukabulariu 15 10.37 11.60(3.06) 4(2.22)
Sinangan 10 5.79 7.22(2.57) (1.73)
Dmstingto Na 35 29.88 32.73 $Sunido - Sinangan (5.62) (6.36)
Eukabulario 2 21 7.21 11.02(6.57) (5.76)
Warta* 5 1.12 '1.27(0.41) (0.56)
Total Score 300 37.01 46.32(13.94) (14.08)
Level 5 1.15 1.47(0.53) (0.90)
Pretest Total Records 70Pretest Valid Cases 67
Posttest Total Records 70
Posttest Valid Cases 55
Stetistically significant, paired T-test, two tail, .05 probability level.
* A production test which requires an integration of lexicon, syntax, and semanticfacility to form cohesive and connected sentences.
18 21
U.S. educational standards, any assessment of education mustdeal seriously at some level with the fact that every schooldistrict in this Region is undergirded by multiple non-English primary languages. This is a multilinguisticenvironment, and this fact will unavoidably affect education.Effective education and high levels of achievement willdevelop in this Region only within a framework which makesmaximum use of the natural resources deriving from theindigenous languages, cultures, and Pacific environmentsof these students.
For the LEAs in the Trust Territory, concerns are mostintensely felt for rapidly developing any remaining elementsof the types of capacity building which will most urgentlybe needed to carry on educational improvement in the yearsto come when U.S. resources are no longer jpvailable.Unfortunately, there are many critical needs which fall intothis category. Key among these are: 1) the need forvernacular materials and the local capacity to develop these;2) the need for teachers with four year degrees; 3) the needfor school buildings and for high schools; and 4) the needfor improved English and content area curriculum andmaterials. Teacher training and technical assistance tocurriculum development can be provided to some degreeby the multifunctional service center for the MicronesianRegion, Project B.E.A.M. and by the IHEs of the Region.Local funds and communities are committed to physicallymaintaining their schools, even if the necessary new build-ings are lacking funding. But even though local funds andintent are committed to vernacular material development,this one particular activity continues to have capacity-establishing gaps that must be met now if they are tobe continued after the Trust Territory is dissolved. More-over, materials development is a prohibited activity ofmultifunctional service centers. Therefore, the buildingof local skills to create vernacular school books and materi-als must be developed independent of any existing resources.In this Region, it is elso an activity which needs coor-dination of technical resources and the provision of assist-ance most likely available from an IHE. Therefore, ad-dressing capacity building must be undertaken by the Univer-sity of Guam, the only 4 year IHE in the Region, in a projectseparate from any ongoing projects or grants.
Further justification for this distinct project and itsrelatiorship to other federal and local projects is providedlater in the Coordination section.
Basel on on-site visits throughout the MicronesianRegion, reviews of existing materials, and mu:tipleconferences with leaders of the developing orthographies andmaterials development activities. a preliminary series ofspecific needs has emerged:
1. As Table 1 shows, the,-e is an inadc-ul,ate supply of
vernacular materials in all languages of the Region,relative to the instructional needs in language arts,matn, science, and social studies. This need pertainsat all grade levels, although some grades are moreadequately supplied at present than others;
2. Previous materials development work has proceededbefore curriculum frameworks in language arts and thecontent areas were developed. Therefore, there is apressing need in each LEA to review existing materialsin an effort to plan how they fit into the new ordeveloping curriculum frameworks, and to identify spe-cific gaps in the various dicficulty and topic ranges.There is a need to identify needs for teacher guides,lesson plans, student workbooks, student exercisepackages, basal texts, supplementary readers, activityand extension materials such as manipulables and games;
3. There is a need to plan the development of vernacularmaterials with a knowledge of the underlying readingdevelopment processes, and with a knowledge of howconceptual development in the other content areasproceeds. This means that such materials shouldincorporate linguistic objectives, make use of what isknown of how text structure impacts learning andinstructional effectiveness, how materials may bedesigned to facilitate ease of teacher use; and thebenefits of coordinating teacher and student materials;
4. There is a need to raise the quality and range ofcontent in the vernacular materials. For example,curriculum writers need to have access to high qualityinformation on Micronesian studies, Pacific literature,modern approaches to teaching math and to teaching abroader range of mathematical concepts than currentlypresented in Micronesian schoois; or alternatively, toprovide practical mathematical skills for agriculture,marine occupations, and business and commerce. Alsopromising is the prospect of incorporating Pacificgeography and science into vernacular materials;
5. There is a need for professional training and technicalassistance for those local members of vernacularmaterials development teams who are responsible for theillustrations, photograpns, layout, book design. andother artistio/gr3phio aspects of the process. Duringthe PALM Project much of the art and graphic wok forthe vernacular materials being developed was done byprofessional artists in Hawaii. Very few of theillustrators or graphic artists who are of theindigPnous cultures of the Micronesian Region have everreceived professional training or coacing. Most havetrained themselves or have worked under the tutelage ofrelatives or local m.mtnrs. They typically wori without
0
20
knowledge of technical advances that would broaden therange of their creative projects, or which could in-crease their productivity. They rarely have the oppor-tunity to network'and collaborate with other artistsengaged in the same type of work. They work under greatconstraints as art supplies, tools, and equipment areeither in very short supply or nonexistent. Neverthe-less, there are many very talented illustrators andgraphic artists in the Micronesian Region, and quite aa number of them are attached to local Departments ofof Education. These individuals and their educationalleaders pave expressed needs for training, technical as-sistance from other professional artists and instructorsof relevant artistic processes, access to supplies/tools/equipment, and opportunities to network and collaboratewith other artists doing similar material qevelopmentwork. The provision of this form of professional de-velopment opportunity would enhance the whole scope ofcareer prospects for these individuals while simultan-eously filling a crucial gap in local capacity to de-velop vernacular educational materials;
6. The local materials development process needs to beanalyzed and upgraded. Evaluators and educationalconsultants repeatedly observe that this processconsumes a major share of resources but lacks essentialcost-benefit planning and access to training/technicalassistance/and linkage with outside resources necessaryto effective and efficient functioning. This meansanalysis and assistance at every level of the processis needed:
1) using the curriculum as a basis for decisionsregarding which materials should be developed; 2)designing specific materials from an educational,psychological, curriculum, and product point of view; 3)preparing draft copies of materials; 4) developingartwork and layout for materials; 5) pilotingpreliminary materials; 6) publishing materials; 7)disseminating and maintaining materials; 8) developingand maintaining collaborative associations with outsideconsultants and vendors essential to the materialsdevelopment process; 9) establishing local self-sufficiency capacity in the materials developmententerprise;
7. Curriculum and instruction specialists at the locallevel need to develop skills in conducting qualityreviews of materials and need to be, familiar with stateof the art quality and variety in educationalSuch wills will be essential to their self-sufficiencyfor developing vernacular materials, but will also servethem in their selection and planning for the use ofEnglish language materials;
8. Orthographic efforts in the vernacular languages of theRegion need to be overviewed for their current status.Discussion and planning are especially needed onquestions of dictionary re'ision or expansion, and thecurrent condition of local public sentiment regardingthe new orthographies and the use of these in vernacularschool materials. Technological advances in personalcomputers and printers may significantly simplify theprocess of revising and expanding vernaculardictionaries, compared to the PALI dictionary andreference grammar procedures of ten years ago. Theorthographic experts of the Region need to be exposed toinformation and examples of these technologicaladvances. Also, in a number of instances, communitycontroversies over the new orthographies inhibited thedevelopment and use of school materials. Ovv the pastthree to five years, educational and communiry leadersin some places have developed effective strategies forresolving these conflicts. Information on these andother promising planning approaches needs to be examinedand disseminated;
9. Educational leaders from the full range of specialistareas need to understand the relationships betweencurriculum, classroom instruction methods, teacher/stafftraining, testing and evaluation, school improvementplans, language policy, parent/community involvementand the educational materials chosen or developed.
APPENDIX:
DESCRIPTION OF EDUCATION AND THEEDUCATIONAL CONTEXT IN MICRONESIA ,S
o GEOGRAPHICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MICRONESIAN REGIONo POLITICAL/ADMINISTRATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF THEMICRONESIAN REGION
o CULTURAL/LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY IN THE MICRONESIAN REGIONo EDUCATION SYSTEMS IN THE REGION.o UNIQUE FEA2URES AND CRITICAL IROBLEMS OF MICRONESIAN
REGION EDUCATION
Prepared by the Project B.E.A.M. staff, Spring, 1986
pescription of Education rid the Educational Context inrikEeDnia
Several types of orienting information and data whichdocument need for the proposed project will be presented inthis section. The number of non-English languages spokenby students, the frequency of Limited English Proficient(LEP) Students, and other information on the educationalstatus of the instructional personnel and scho4,1s will bepresented. Because of the great distances between the Micro-nesian Region and the funding agency, and because of the uni-que nature of life and schooling in this Region, an over-view of the Micronesian Region will be provided for thereader's reference. In addition, a detailed eescriptionof the material development problems to be addressed bythe proposed grant will be undertaken.
A. Geographical Characteristics of the Migrgnesian Rggign
Geographically, Micronesia is a group of islands lyingjust north of the equator in the Western Pacific, on theother side of the International Dateline .irom the U.S. Themajor islands or island groups are Guam, NorthernMarianas, Belau, Yap, Pohnpei, Kosrae and the Marshalls.From the center of the Region (Guam, Saipan), it isapproximately 9,000 miles to Washington D.C. The portion ofthe Region nearest to the U.S. is the Marshall islands whichlies some 2,300 miles Southwest of Honolulu. The furthestpoint is Belau which is only 600 miles from the Philippines(see Map No. 1). The best indication of its distance fromthe U.S. Mainland is the fact that Guam, Truk. Yap, and,Saipan are only nriF time zone removed from Japan and thatthe quickest way to fly from Cuam to the Eastern U.S. isthrough Tokyo.
With.n the Region, the distances are still enormous.The islands are stretche, c.it over three million square milesof the Pacific Ocean which is equal )n area to thecontinental U.S. Yet, :n Keeping with the term Micronesia(meaning "small islands"). there is only ,n approximate totalland mass of 700 square miles among the more than 2,100islands. In combination with the distances, from the U.S.Mainland, the intra-regional distances present numerouslogistical problems. These are complicated by the fact thatregular air service is limited to three weekly flights to
2 7
lisp1
ibir/NAWA
47A/WANMICRCtIESIA
pm"eiNts,GmAeiA'
CNMIMARSNALL1
12
n,L.E AU
..'" YAP
KOSRAE ".1
.0fRaimammo
w sullig.4 //e
.100ASIX01" IS
PACIFIC
MOW"
OCEAN
NANO/ /AN
&ASTRAL/A
28
fxpl 4641°4 &c .coditys
29
most of the major centers. These flights (provided byContineatill Air Micronesia) are affected by frequentmechanical breakdowns and storms which can occur at any timeof the year. Guam serves as the transportation hub for theRegion and has daily air service to the Commonwealth of theNorthern Marianas, Hawaii, and the U.S. Mainland. Service toone of the island entities (Kosrae) is available six days aweek from Pohnpei on a nine-seater missionary airplane thatis understandably full almost everyday.'- The missionaryairlines provide limited service to Pingalap. an outer islandof Pohnpei, and to Ulithi, an outer island of Yap.~ Access tothe many other outer islands is possible only by fieldtripship which maintains four to six week visitation cycles, andsome outer islands are accessible from central :slands bymotor boat. The limited transportation services complicatednot only travel, but mail and shipment of supplies andequipment. Map No. 2 outlines the distances and the mostrecent air fares from Gua,, to various points in the Regionand to Hawaii, and the U.S. Mainland. he fares are subjectto change. Ironically, these logistical constraints serve insome ways to bind the Region together through needs tocooperate and share resources.
B. Political/Administrative Characteristics of theMicronesian Region
The Region has five distinct political entities, eachwith a separate political relationship with the UnitedStates. Each entity has had unique historical ci-cumstanceswhich have contributed to the formation of unique politicalstates and the distinct socio-cultural conditions containedin each area. The five entities are Guam, the Commonwealthof the Northern Marianas (hereafter referred as the CNMI),the Republic of Belau, The Federated States of Micronesia(hereafter referred to as the FSM), and the Republic of the
-Marshall Islands (See Map No. 3).
Guam is the easiest to describe. It is a U.S.Territory that has been under U.S. sovereignty since l898.It is governed by an Organic Act passed by the U.S. CongressAn'j it people are U.S. citizens. The island is c,..r-entiyre-e;:amining its pcl :itical relationshjp with th...s. U.S.government and it is-possible.that.a "Commonwealth" statuswill eventually be. the end result::
The other four entities mere-formerly part of.the TrustTerritory of the Pacific Islands which was granted to theUnited..StateS by the:United Nations to administer in 1946.Prior tb. World War II, the Japanese admiristered the Region
30
eft
It
S
0 RENO,NEVADA
1, 0
MP NO. 2
COMPARISON OF TOTAL, AREA WITH CONTINENTAL UNITED STATESAIR ROUTES IN MICRONESIA
11.am WM ea. EN, mwo ......
SAIPAN
GU
YAP
BELAU \do es
%lb
TRUK
P ems
1.11
0061*
weSti Ds00
WASHINGTON, 0.0
ALMAJURO
KOSRAE
'41so ...0...0.10
AIR FARES (Economy Round Trip)
Cluom-Washington. O.C. - 81.353 Ouom-Truk - 8402Ousm-Honolulu - 708 Gumn-Pohnpol - 512Ouornwebipon - 105 Guogro4Coorao - 802Oumn-Yop - 3140 Guern-Metjuro - 550Gum n-Elolou - 502
31
C000 I."'
J4
(except for Guam). Prior to World War 1, the Germansexercised control over the Region. In the 19th century,Spain claimed sovereignty over the entire area, but itsinfluence was felt mostly in Guam and the other MarianasIslands.
Within the past decade, the Trust Territory has defineditself into four entities: CNMI, Republic of Belau, FSM, andRepublic of the Marshall Islands. The Northern MarianasIslands became a Commonwea4th of the U.S. in 1978. It isgoverned by a '_avenant signed with U.S. officials and itspeople are treat d as U.S. Citizens although they will not befull citizens Lltil the full dissolution of the TrustTerritory. The remaining three entities (The FA.M., TheRepublic of the Marshalls and the Republic of Belau), haveeach negotiated a compact of Free Association with the U.S.The compacts now have the approval of the U.S. Government andthe local plebescites and are pending action in the UnitedNations. Each of these entities has defined relationshipswith the U.S. Government and the people have many of therights of U.S. Citizenship. All three have technicallyretained their sovereignty (hence the titles Republic). TheTrust Territory Government, headquartered in Saipan,continues to exist but its role and responsibilities arecontinually beinc; reduced, pending the official dissolutionof the Trust Territory. The CNMI has already separateditself fully from t;ie Trust Territory. The Federated Statesof Micronesia (FSM) is more politically, linguistically, andculturally complex than the Marshalls or Belau, which aregenerally homogeneous societies that are geographicallyisolated from the rest of Micronesia. The FSM has fourstates (Yap, Truk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae) which functionrelatively autonomously. The central government of the FSMis in Pohnpei and lines of authority and responsibility arebeing constantly developed and refined.
The varied nature of government structures andjurisdictions in the Region present many challenges toagencies which attempt to provide services on a region-widebasis. Presently, there are three SEAs in the Region (CNMI,Guam, and TTPI) and eight LEAS (CNMI, Guam, Belau, theMarshalls, Yap. Truk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae'. Guam and theCNMI Departme,its of Education function simultaneously asSEAs/LEAs for their respective areas. Negotiations whichtake into account each SEA'S needs and status can becomeexceedingly complicated. However, many difficulties areaioided by the general desire to cooperate regionally and thefrequent ,ocal government efforts at regional cooperation.It should be noted that. none of these political changesaffect the eligibility of the Region to receive title VIIservices.
3b6
C. Cgiturai/Linguistig Diversity in the Micronesian Region
The Region contains within it a great deal of culturaland linguistic diversity. This diversity was originallydeveloped by the migration patterns into the Region andecological surroundings (high islands versus atolls). Theoriginal pre-contact cultures have been further complicatedand influenced by association with various nations, the revelof socio-economic development and the nature of contacts withthe non-Micronesian world. Culturally, the islands representmany distinct groups which are usually distinguishedaccording to language. Many share commonalities ign kinshipsystems, belief structures, and traditional politicalstructures. The groups which can be easily distinguishedfrom the rest are the Chamorros of the Mariana Islands whohave incorporated many cultural elements from the Hispanicworld and the Kapingamarangi/Nukuoro people who areculturally and linguistically Polynesian.
The cultural diversity is made mare intricate by threeconditions. The first is that many of the political entitiesor subdivisions contain two or more indigenous cultures andlanguages. Some of the more pronounced multilingual areasare Pohnpei (six indigenous languages) and Yap (fourindigenous languages). Secondly, due to widespreadaccelerated 6lange, the cultural groups are experiencing a"widening cultural generation gap" which has generated broadconcern among many Micronesians. This phenomenon of rapidchange has seen younger islanders culturally misinterpretolder islande-s. The third condition is the arrival of non-indigenous cultures and languages. Guam, with itssignificant population of Asians is the most dramaticexample. However, the CNMI is also affected by this trend asare other more accessible areas of the Region. Table 1
provides the 1980 Census data on the population of thepolitical entities by language spoken at home. Thisdocuments the complexity of the ethnolinguisticcharacteristics of the Region.
D. Education Systems in the Region
The Region currently contains eight relativelyindependent school systems (one for each administrativeentity or subdivision). The systems of Belau, the MarshallIslands, and the four states of the FSM share manysimilarities because of their common experience in the Trustrerritory framework since the conclusion of World War II.
Speak Only English
Carolinian. Ulith.. Wol.
Chamorro
Alpena=
Mer.111046Kosraean
Samoan
Filipino Languages
Polynesian (except .8amoan)
Pchnpalan. Pings lap. Mokil
Trukasa
Yapese
ce paimien
Other Languages
TOTAL
3 7
TABLE NO. 1
ETHNOLINGUISTIC CHARACTERISTICS OF MICRONESIAN REGION:FIVE YEARS AND OVERSource: 1080 U.S. Census
GUAM CI4M1 MARSHALL BEL.AU
33.182
45
32.034
1.744
56
25
1.018
15.487
72
06
49
20
261
0.115
92.978
710
1.710
0.516
102
18
101
538
1.405
1
186
5
161
34
732
14.315
302
1
14
11
72
22.302
15
21
38
30
3
12
2
1.409
20.361
104
1
4
30
17
20
0.032
102
0
21
0
12
19
1.409
10.771
87
2.100
2
7
II
0
200
53
23
0
3
29
3.460
810
8.045
123
11
21
45
11 2
13
32
28
816
14.102
0
153
21
,1.240
10.007
9
2
91
4.307
0
0
10
1
22
0
1
a
104
4.470
93
3
2
a1
0
5
1
27.398
Total
34.8110
3.072
40.502
2.032
4.5501
22.475';=
42 '"Z
2542.0-rf
3.5Sb
107.891
38 .
While this was formerly, true of CNMI, the changes takingplace in this LEA in the past few years cause it to morenearly resemble the Guam system now. Guam and CNMI systemsare fully grade 1-12 systems. The other six LEAs provideeducation to grades 1-8 to most eligible students, althoughin many places the shortage of classroom facilities limitsschooling to 3-4 hours per day, with double shifts necessaryto accommodate the enrollment. High schools were constructedin the centers of these entities only in the late 1960's.Because of the shortage of facilities and teachers, onlyabout 50 percent of the graduating eighth graders areadmitted to high school. Because of the lack of studenthousing at these centrally located high schools studentsfrom the outer islands (particularly females) are at a greatdisadvantage if they wish to obtain a secondary leveleducation.
Guam's school system is much more cosmopolitan innature. It features a K-12 structure and parallels serviceand practices typically found in "stateside" school systems.A longer and closer administrative and political relationshipto the U.S., as well as many opportunities for access to theU.S. have contributed to the development of thesecharacteristics. The CNMI's school system is a rapidlychanging structure which can be currently seen as being inmid-point between Guam and the rest of Micronesia. Allsystems in the Region are currently progressing toward U.S.models of education, but the possibility of re-orientingtoward different or locally-developed models has been
.frequently raised as a crucial issue by influential writersand educators in the Region. (Aguon, 1979; Nevin, 1974;Lingenfelter, 1981).
The preparation levels of teachers and certificationpractices in the Region vary from locale to locale. Thefacts that many teachers do not have baccalaureate degreesand that most institutions of higher education (IHEs) do notprepare teachers to work in ways tailored specifically forMicronesian school systems, dramatize the need forsignificant levels of teacher training and Technical As-sistance to the LEA (See Table 2). All LEAs are striving todevelop staff competencies and to achieve an instructionalstaff with baccalaureate degrees. However, the needs forimprovement in all aspects of the schooling enterprise are sonumerous, intense, and diversified (e.g., curriculum,materials, school and classroom environments, teacherqualifications and instructional skill, administration,planning) that effective schooling in the Micronesian Regionmust be viewed from a long term perspective and as an exceed-ingly complex challenge.
LOCATION
TABLE NO. 2
INSTRUCTIONAL PERSONNEL
CNMI
FSM
Koeree
Pohnpei
Truk
Yap
MARSHALLS
BELAU
GUAM
TOTAL (except Guam)
TOTAL (including Guam)
TOTALNO. OF
TEACHERS
BACCALAUREATEDEGREE ORABOVE (X)
NOBACCALAUREATE
DEGREE (1)
355 30X 82X
79 12x 88%
95 12X 88X
870 21X 79X
203 10X 90X
400 2X 98X
317 11X 09X
1.544 95X 5X
3.419 12X ow X
4.963 37X 83 X
Sources: Telephone cells to etch LEA in Much. 1988: TTPI Repdrt to U.N.. 1984;Pacific Basin Consortium Proposal. 1902; Guam Department of Education. 1983;1900 U.S. Census.
4 u
10
The financial base for these school systems is highlydependent upon direct federal grants to local governments.Only Guam and the CNMI have strong private sector economies,but both of these entities still have the majority of theirwork forces employed by government agencies (federal andlocal). The school systems are funded out of the generaloperations budget of each political entity. For theMarshalls, F.S.M., and Belau, it is estimated that 85% of theoperating budget revenues are from federal sources. Thefigures for Guam and the CNMI are 12Y. and 35% respectively.
This financial picture is complicated by theexpectation that the populations in all entities (except forGuam) will double by the end of this century Barringwholesale changes in educational models, the need forteachers will double during the same time. This trenddramatizes the continuing need for training, curriculum andmaterial development, technical assistance, and supportservices.
The expectation of a decreased federal role in all ofthe entities in the Region in the impending post-TrustTerritory years only points up the urgent need for capacity-building at the local level now. It is a goal commonlyarticulated, generally desired, and featured prominently inall education training and support activities.
E. Unigue Features and Critical Problems of MicronesianRegion Education
In comparison to the U.S. Mainland, Micronesia offerssome unique characteristics and challenges. These areidentified below because they affect the planning anddevelopment of the proposed project. They are of greatimport in understanding the contours of how specific plans,activities and key events were conceptualized. Thesefeatures are:
1. The majority of the students in the Region can beeasily classified as LEP. In fact, in most areasoutside of Guam and to a more limited extent, the CNMI,few models of native-English speakers are available.The total numbers of language "minority" students in theRegion total over 90% of the total enrollment (Table 3).This means that virtually all educational activity inthe Region is aimed at LEP children. Special distinctions,about sLrvice to LEP children and programs designed for
. them are generally unnecessary in areas where there isno English "mainstream".
4 '111
Table 3
Estimates of LEP Students in the Micronesian Region
Public School Enrollment*
1. Guam
ChamorroFilipinoCNMI*
MicronesianKorean
ChineseJapaneseVietnameseOther Pac. Is.
Other Asian
- 13,394- 6,546- 240
337
271
170
110
57
69
48
Total - 21,252
Total Enrollment - 25,168
* Refers to Chamorros/
Carolinians from CNMI.
2. CNMI
ChamorroCarolinianMicronesianFilipinoKoreanJapaneseOthers
2,715
818
506
111
71
23
390
Total 4,634Total Enrollment - 4,774
3. Belau
Belauan - 3,508
Total - 3,508Total Enrollment - 3,512
4. Marshall Islands
Marshallese - 11,304
Total - 11,304T,,tal Enrollment - 11,399
5. Yap, FSM
Yapese 992Ulithian 588Woleaian 440Satawalese 213
Total 2,233Total Enrollment - 2,439
6. Pohnpei, FSM
PohnpeianMokilesePingalapeseSapwuavikNukuoranKapingi
1.0
Total
Total Enrollment
7. Kosrae, FSM
Kosraean
Total
Total Enrollment
8. Truk, FSM
Trukese
5,457150323
238191
213
6,572
7,557
1,807
1,807
1,884
- 15,287
Total - 15,287Total Enrollment - 15,609
ESTIMATED REGIONAL TOTALS
T EP - 66,607
'total Enrollment - 72,342
Percent LEP - 92%
Sources: Telephpne calls to eachLEA; 1980 U.S. Census; TTPI Reportto United Nations, 1984; ESEA TitleJ Proposals from the TTPI, September1981.
* Systematic testing for oral English proficiency and English literacy is currentlynot occurring in most of the Micronesian Region school systems. A study on a sample ofChamorro students in Guam showed 56% were LES or NES. A similar study in CNMI recently'showed over 85% tested as LES or NES. Testing is not done elsewhere but we estimatethe entire language minority population in the FSM islands, Belau, and the MarshallIslands are also LEP. The dominant languages in all of these jurisdictions are theindigenous Pacific languages. Over 95% of students from these islands who enroll atthe University of Guam are placed in remedial oral, reading, or writing courses.
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2. The level of University training among teachers in theschool systems in the Region is generally below 'heBA/BS degree except for Guam. As Table 2 shows, thenumber of degreed-teachers amounts to 12% of the totalteaching population in the areas outside of Guam.Teacher training opportunities are limited to threeIHE's in the Region: the University of Guam, theCollege of Northern Marianas (Saipan) and the CommunityCollege if Micronesia (Pohnpei). However, only U.O.G.grants baccalaureate degrees. There have been "off-campus" or extension courses offered by the Universityof Hawaii, and other U.S. universities and colleges, butthese frequently do not count towards a degree.
3. The geographic and political features of the Regionhave tended to keep the Region separated from the fullrange of services and information available from U.S.Mainland sources. The same features also keep theRegion from utilizing each island's experiences in theselection and use of consultants, in trainingactivities, and in arrangements for implementing thematerial development process. Access to information isproblematic and frequently arrives too late to be of anyvalue.
4. Education assistance to the Region in the form oftraining and technical assistance has frequently beenprovided by non-Micronesians. The development ofMicronesian expertise in the capacity oftrainer/consultant/expert has been a very recentphenomenon and the notion of using Micronesians toprovide training/technical assistance to each other isstill relatively novel. In the realm of materialsdevelopment, past federal and local investments in thedevelopment of indigenous linguistic experts. dictionarydevelopment, and the early stages of curriculumdevelopment and vernacular material writing has sown theseeds of local capacity. What is needed now is aneffort which consolidates these resources, provides theadvanced levels of organization, training, and technicalassistance required to bring them to maturity andoperational facility, which generates long range plansand refinements in the materials development process,and which provides linkages to technical and equipmentresources not available in each of the island entities.Unless such an effort is made at this time, man,'observers believe that the human and material resourcesdeveloped in the past will be scattered and lust tofuture efforts, leading to a start-over position in onlya year or two.
io`
5. In recent years, there has been tremendous effort onthe U.S. Mainland to improve the quality of Americaneducation for all students. This is evident in the"school effectiveness" literature. In the MicronesianRegion, the results of American educational research onschool effectiveness must he applied very cautiously dueto the sharp contrasts between U.S. Mainland schoolingcontexts and those in the Micronesian Region, andbecause very little baseline educational research hasbeen conducted in Micronesia. One strategy for settingappropriate priorities and for identifying promisingapproaches is to describe critical problems in Microne-sian schools, and to use this listing as a backdropfor training, development, technical assistance, andresearch efforts. Based on document research, requestsand discussions emanating from Micronesian educationalleaders to the proposed project director during thepreparation of this proposal, the experience of bilingualprograms operating in Micronesia such as Project BEAM,program evaluations of Title VII and other programs inthe Region, and the extensive on-site school visitationsand training and technical assistance experience of theproposed project director and staff, the criticaleducational problems of the Micronesian Region havebeen identified, and include:
a. Basic English and vernacular readirr- materialseither do nt2t exist for some LEA's or do not existin a sufficient range or quantity;
b. The qualifications and effectiveness of teacherswill continue to be major issues for many years.Most teachers are currently accustomed to a systemwhich dlscourages them from taking profc:ssionalresponsibility for what occurs in their ownclassrooms, and which substitutes strict guidanceand direction from others on virtually every aspectof classroom routine and instruction;
c. In many of the LEAs, elementary school childrenreceive only four hours of education per daybecause of a shortage of school buildings,equipment, materials, and teachers. This meansthat time on task for instruction and practiLe ofe,y basic skills (e.g., writino instruction andindependent reading) is not available;
d. Half or more of LEAs in area 15 do not keepadequate o- accurate records of oroJect activities.Lists of student's names and records on each childare nut ma:ntained, making follow-up of ,ndividualstudents and long range evaluation and plznningvery oiffi:ult;
14 4 4
e. Most LEAs in the Region lack testing andevaluation staff who have received professionaltraining and experience in the technical skillsthey wish to use;
f. All LEAs lack well-planned structured ESL programswhich are coordinated with other courses ofinstruction. In most LEA's, English languageteaching materials and approaches have not beenchanged for over CO years and have not beenadequately evaluated;
g. There is an absence of visible examples ofeffective bilingual and ESL classrooms awl programswhich could provide models of educationaleffectiveness;
h. There is an inadequate level of effectiveadministrative, planning, management, andcommunication skills, in many of the educationalprograms within the Region;
i. In most LEA's, students must learn to speak,understand, read, and write English in non-- Englishenvironments from limited English proficientteachers. Strong English oral and literacy skillsare not available to students, teachers, or withinthe general community which might help students touse books in English their only writtenmaterials;
j. Important facility problems exist in every LEA,including school conditions ranging from disrepairto dangerous occupancy, gross inadequacies innumbers of schools and classrooms, lack ofelectricity and water, absence of libraries in mostLEAs at the school, classroom, and communitylevels.
A number of critical questions emerged from thispicture;
1. Are the Idimentary elements for establishLng literacyin any language available'
For some ethno-linguistic groups in the MicronesianRegion the answer to this question is no (e.g. Ulithi.Mortiokese, Nukouro). For these groups, a combination ofcircumstances mitigates against literacy. 41ilthough English isconsidered an important part of the currizAum. it is rarelyuseJ fur any function other than talking to the ra,-e English-speaking visitor, parroting the English drills of- tho South
Pacific Commission materials in-school, or in the event thestudent leaves the home inland for advanced schooling oremployment. Orthographies and dictionaries were nevercompleted in these local languages and therefore no nativelanguage materials were ever developed. The isolation, lowlevel of educational expenditures, lack of school books andmaterials and "outer islander" status for many of thesegroups has mitigated against the written development of theirnative languages. For these particular languages, thegreatest need seems to be for vernacular dictionary work andthe development of an abundance of vernacular materials.Project BEAM, the Multifunctional Center for the Region,is not permitted to undertake either of these tasks. Untilresources are made available for these and relatedmaterial development endeavors, it is not realistic to expectuniversal literacy to develop for these and similar ethno-linguistic groups.
cor a majority of the students in the Region, therudimentary elements in the form of orthographies are there,but are beset with problems stemming from the lack of aliteracy tradition in the local languages.
2. Is an understandable education in any or all contentareas available to the student, or are steps being takenwhich will soon render the instruction understandableto the students?
This concern is particularly relevant in Guam, Pohnpeiproper, Yap proper, and increasingly, CNMI. Systematicprocedures for identifying LEP students, placing them inappropriate programs, and monitoring their orogress are not
'carried out in either of the English dominant school systems(Guam and CNMI). Both of these LEAs have new SEA grantswhich will presumably work in this direction. TheMultifunction Center, Project BEAM, will provide training andtechnical assistance as these SEAs request it. In Yap andPohnpei states, where schooling is predominantly in theindigenous non-English language, methods of serving theseneeds for students who do not speak Yapese or Pohnpeian,respectively, seem more promising when Approached throughtraining and technical assistance in Ea techniques. Ina few rare instances (e.g. in a school on Pohnpei properserving primarily Kapingamarangi students), there is someinterest in a limited trilingual approach English-Pohnpeian-Kapinga). In all locations, the availability o-:' eitherbasic or supplementary content area materials in thevernacular languages would help serve this goal.
3. Are students being provided instruction in the quantityand quality necessary to develop their age-specificpotential? (Are they being sufficiently challenged'Are expectatioix of their learning and perfolmance
16 46
e
capabilities sufficiently high?)
Although these considerations apply to all eight LEAsin the Micronesian Region, some LEAs, and therefore, someethno-linguistic groups, are more severely affected thanother.,. Based on fieldwork at each of these sites, theproposed Project Director finds indications of particularlysalient needs: 1) throughout Truk State; 2) in all outer-island schools; 3) in all LEAs where elementary studentsreceive split-day instructional schedules; and 4) in allLEAs where access to secondary education is severely limited.This view is shared by the professional staff of Project BEAMand numerous other observers of the educational system of theRegion.
...
A related consideration is the quality of the Englishcurriculum and the materials which define this curriculum.In six of the eight LEAs, the English materials of the SouthPacific Commission (SPC) form the English curriculum. Theseconsist of oral language drills written by Gloria Tate and aseries of short readers. These materials are based on theaudio lingual approach to ESL. It appears that a seventh LEA(CNMI) is transitioning away from these materials. CNMI hasbegun piloting several U.S. textbook series. Kosrae issupplementing SPC materials with an assortment of trade booksat each school. Pohnpei, Belau, and the Marshall Islandshave small pilot projects underway in which basal readersfrom the U.S. based Laidlaw, H&J, or Ginn Publishers arebeing tried. Truk may pilot U.S. textbooks on a small scaleduring the 1986-87 school year. The SPC materials have beenused extensively in this Region for over 20 years and havenever been formally evaluated. In an analysis that isunderway (Spencer and Lang) preliminary results show thereadibility levels of SPC readers to be very low. Forexample, SPC readers 5A (which is used in grades 5-8 inMicronesian schools) has a lale-Chall (1979) readabilitylevel of grade 1.7.
Regardless of which English curriculum or materials areused, educators will have to be trained in how to use themeffectively. Most educators (including curriculum writers)in tht Region have never seen or used high quality readingand content area book/material series. Most have never hadaccess to teacher guides to assist their daily instructionplans. While Project BEAM will be providing training inmethods for reviewing and evaluating English textbooks. itcan be expected that structured training and exposure tonigh quality commercial English education products (e.g.textbook series, trade nooks, classroom paraphernalia,audit- visual materials, and computer software) could enrichand stimulate the vernacular materials development process.For this reason, the proposed grant will bring curriculumplanners and writers into contact with an array of con-
temporary trade book and textbook series, and with expertsinvolved in state of the art development of these materials.
4. Are home/school cultural and learning/teaching stylecontrasts affecting educational progress?
Culture contrasts appear to negatively affect learningin most of the ethno-linguistic groups of the Region.Concerns appear to be greatest where the culture is quitetraditional compared to the American style school fJrmatintroduced in its mIdst. Recently, the proposed projectdirector and other Project BEAM staff have been introducingthe findings of the Kamehameha Early EducationjProject onhome/school compatability through training on classroom ma-nagement and comprehension-based reading. These conceptshave been ajdressed in a more formal way in universitycoursework developed and taught by the proposed projectdirector and attended by bilingual educators from aroundthe Region. These courses include Culture and Education onGuam, Research Methods, and Cross-cultural Child Developmentin Micronesia. Structures for student and teacher involve-ment (Phillips, 1972, 1974), cultural conflicts associatedwith the use of American practices in Micronesian schoolssuch as cafeterias and lending libraries in "high-reciprocity" cultures (Lingenfelter, 1981), the exclusive,ise of gender-mixed learning contexts (Spencer and GilbertLewis, 1986), and sociolinguistic norms which appear to in-hibit children from freely vocalizing in the presence ofadults (Spencer, Palomo, and Vela, 1986) are among some ofthe emerging issues of this nature. Sot of this growing'body of information will be useful t. the proposed projectin its training and technical assistance activities with cur-riculum writers as well as with other educators. Some ofthis information is specific to certain ethno-linguisticgroups. and some is relevant to all groups in the Region.
5. Are teachers prepared to meet the challenges ofbilingual education on a daily basis with theresources at hand?
Teacher training needs in the Micronesian Region arenumerous and can be catalogued in terms of skills and contenttopics. However, beyond this there is a pervasive realitywhich is evident in nearly all of the LEA s. Teachers.particularly outside of Guam and the CNMI, frequentls, lackthe confidence as well as sills to manage their classroomsin an independent and autonomous fashion. in large part,this is due to administrative practices and the general low-levei of teacher preparation. Directions on instructlorialmethodologies, materials, and schedules are frequently giveras orders rather than suggestions. Teachers are nut
4618
typically consulted about the materials selected and mandatedfor use in their classrooms. Additionally, federal bilingualeducation programs have frequently focused only on materialsand curriculum, with teachers expected to implement allactivities as directed. While Project BEAM, theMultifunction Center, will strive to train teachers in a waythat adds to their professional standing as autonomousindividuals, as well as to upgrade their instructionalskills, the materials that teachers are given to use intheir classrooms must be developed in ways that reinforcetheir professionalism. For the proposed grant, there isthe clear implication that teachers must have opportunitiesto have input into the materials development process in bothinitial planning stages as well as during a field testingphase. Currently, such opportunities are not regularlyavailable at either point in the process. An additionalimplication for the proposed project is that in additionto student materials, a variety of teacher materials shouldbe developed in a coordinated way. These might includelesson plans, suggested activities, classroom organizationand management, suggestions, and delineation of skillsbeing developed by each lesson. In the proposed project,training and technical assistance will be given to curriculumwriters in the range of such possible teacher materials,exemplar materials, and demonstration/practice/coaching inthe development of such materials. In addition, teacherskill and facility in using such materials will need tobe developed via both in-service and pre-service training.The proposed grant will provide some of this training, butwill also supply training modules on this topic to otherfederal, local, and extraregional service providers in theRegion as well as to UOG College of Education faculty.
6. Are materials in the students' primary language andEnglish available in sufficient variety and numbers tosupport education in all grades?
This issue represents the main rationale for thecurrent proposal. None of the indigenous ethno-linguisticgroups of Micronesia have a fraction of the Ll materialsneeded to support an educational program in which skills pergrade level are developed in a manner comparable to U.S.standards.
1
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