The Structure of

K to 12
Language Arts
Curriculum
 The Nature of Language

• The Language Arts and Multiliteracies Curriculum

(LAMC) in the K to 12 Basic Education is composed of
Mother Tongue, English, and Filipino. Aside from the
mother tongue and Filipino, English is also included in
the curriculum as it is one of the most common spoken
language in the world. English in the curriculum
followed a unified framework to facilitate the transition
and acquisition of the language.
 Philosophy and Rationale

• Language is the basics of all communication and the

primary instrument of thought. Thinking, learning, and
language are interested. Language is governed by rules
and systems ( language conventions) which are used to
explore and communicate meaning. It defines culture
which is essential in understanding oneself ( personal
identity), forming interpersonal relationships
( socialization), extending experiences, reflecting on
thought and action, and contributing to a better society.
• Language is the foundation of all human
relationships. All human relationships are
established on the ability of people to
communicate effectively with each other. Our
thoughts, values and understanding are
developed and expressed through language.
This process allows students to understand
better the world in which they live and
contributes to the development of their personal
perspective of the global community. People use
language to make sense of and bring order to
 An effective language arts and multiliteracies
curriculum satisfies the following principles
• Develops thinking and language through interactive
learning;
• Develops communicative competence and critical
literacy
• Draws on literature in order to develop students’
understanding of their literary heritage;
• Draws on informational texts and multimedia in order
to build academic vocabulary and strong content
knowledge;
• Develops students’ oral language and literacy through
• Emphasizes writing arguments, explanatory/informative
texts and narratives;
• Provides explicit skill instruction in reading and writing;
• Builds on the language, experiences, knowledge and
interests that students bring to school;
• Nurtures students’ sense of their common ground in
using language/s for communication as present or
future global citizens to prepare them to participate in
school and in civic life, and;
• Assesses and reflects the students’ ability to interpret
and/or communicate in the target language.
 Communicative Competence
• Communicative Competence is a synthesis of
knowledge of basic grammatical principles, knowledge of
how language is used in social settings to perform
communicative functions, and how knowledge of
utterances and communicative functions can be
combined according to the principles of discourse.
Communicative competence is classified into the following
competencies.
1. Grammatical/Linguistic Competence means the
acquisition of phonological rules, morphological words,
syntactic rules, semantic rules and lexical items.
2.Sociolinguistic Competence refers to the
learning of pragmatic aspect of various speech
acts, namely, the cultural values, norms, and other
sociocultural conventions in social contexts.

3. Discourse Competence is the knowledge of

rules regarding the cohesion (grammatical links)
and coherence (appropriate combination of
communicative actions) of various types of
discourse (oral and written).
. 4. Strategic Competence is to DO with the
knowledge of verbal and non-verbal strategies to
compensate for breakdown such as self-correction
and at the same time to enhance the effectiveness
of communication such as recognizing discourse
structure, activating background knowledge,
contextual guessing, and tolerating ambiguity.
 Multiliteracies
• Multiliteracies (multi literacy practices) recognize that
there are many kinds of literacy at work within our
society. These include traditional literacy practices
using texts as well as new literacy practices using
texts of popular culture such as films. Social literacy
encompasses how we communicate and exchange
meaning in our society while professional literacy links
with the notion of literacy for school of the workplace.
• Component 1 illustrates learning processes that will effect acquisition
and learning of the language. It explains the HOW of language learning
and therefore serves as guiding principles for language teaching.
• Component 2 describes knowledge and skill areas which are essential
to effective language use (understanding of cultures, understanding
language, processes and strategies) which will be developed through
language arts (macro-skills).
• Component 3 shows the interdependence and interrelationships of the
macro-skills of the language (listening, speaking and viewing; reading,
viewing and responding; writing and representing) and the development
of thinking skills (critical thinking, creative thinking and metacognition)
allowing students to make meaning through language.
• Component 4 explains the holistic assessment of the Language Arts
and Literacy Curriculum which serves as feedback of its effectiveness to
students, teachers, school administrators, and curriculum developers.
 COMPONENT 1: Language Learning Process
• 1. Spiral Progression
Skills, grammatical items, structures and various types of texts will be taught,
revised and revisited at increasing levels of difficulty and sophistication.
• 2. Interaction
Language learning will be situated in the context of communication (oral and
written). Activities that simulate real-life situations of varying language demands
(purposes, topics, and audiences) will be employed to help students interact with
others thereby improve their socialization skills.
• 3. Integration
• The areas of language learning – the receptive skills, the productive skills, and
grammar and vocabulary will be taught in an integrated way, together with the
use of relevant print and non-print resources, to provide multiple perspectives
and meaningful connections. Integration may come in different types either
implicitly or explicitly (skills, content, theme, topic, and values integration).
• 4. Learner-Centeredness
Learners are at the center of the teaching-learning process.
Teaching will be differentiated according to students’ needs,
abilities and interests.
• 5. Contextualization
Learning tasks and activities will be designed for learners to
acquire the language in authentic and meaningful contexts of use.
For example, lessons will be planned around learning outcomes, a
theme, or a type of text to help learners use related language skills,
grammatical items/structures and vocabulary appropriately in
spoken and written language to suit the purpose, audience, context
and culture.
• 6. Construction
Making meaning is the heart of language learning and use.
Learning tasks and activities will be designed for learners in such a
 COMPONENT 2: Effective Language
Use
• 1. UNDERSTANDING CULTURES.
Learning language through text types and literary
appreciation exposes learners to different cultures of the world,
including one’s culture. Learners develop sociolinguistic and
sociocultural understandings and apply them to their use of the
language (Mother Tongue, Filipino, and English). Sociolinguistic
understanding refers to appropriate language use.
• 2. UNDERSTANDING LANGUAGE.
Learners apply their knowledge of the system of the
language to assist them to make meaning and to create meaning.
They come to recognize the patterns and rules of the language
which emerge as they interact with a plethora of texts (literary and
informational) to make meaning.
• 3. PROCESS AND STRATEGIES.
Learners select from a repertoire of processes and
strategies by reflecting on their understanding of the way
language works for a variety of purposes in a range of
contexts. They deliberate on how they use language and
apply different language strategies, depending on their
purpose, context and audience. They use language as a
way of coming to grips with new ideas, resolving
difficulties or solving problems. They use strategies such
as brainstorming and discussion as a way of developing
ideas.
 COMPONENT 3: Making Meaning
through Language
Language is the major instrument in communication (oral
and written) and the heart of which is the exchange of
meaning. Language learning should focus on guiding
students make meaning through language for different
purposes on a range of topics and with a variety of
audiences.
The skills, grammatical items, structures and various
types of texts will be taught, and revisited at increasing
levels of difficulty and sophistication. This design allows
students to progress from the foundational level to higher
• The Language Arts and Multiliteracies Curriculum
(LAMC) is composed of five (5) intricately intertwined
and integrated sub-strands (listening, speaking, reading,
writing, and viewing) that serve as building blocks for
understanding and creation of meaning and for effective
communication across curricula (Matrix 1).

• The revised curriculum re-organizes the Integrated

Language Arts Curriculum according to the content
standards that must be met by all students at the end of
basic education. This is not inconsistent with the
proposed 5 sub-strands of the Language Arts and
Multiliteracies Curriculum (LAMC) but fleshes out the
 COMPONENT 4: Holistic
Assessment
Characteristics of Assessment
• 1. Proximity to actual language use and performance
Assessment procedures should be based on activities
that have authentic communicative function rather than
ones with little or no intrinsic communicative value.
• 2. A holistic view of language Assessment procedures
are based on the notion that the interrelationships
among the various aspects of language, such as
phonology, grammar, and vocabulary, among others
cannot be ignored. Also the four skills of language-
listening, speaking, reading, and writing-are seen to be
parts of a structurally integrated whole.
• 3. An integrative view of learning Assessment attempts
to capture the learner’s total array of skills and abilities.
It measures language proficiency in the context of
specific subject matter. Assessment procedures are
based on the idea that various aspects of a learner’s life,
both academic and personal, are integral to the
development of language proficiency and cannot be
ignored.
• 4. Developmental appropriateness Assessment
procedures set expectations that are appropriate within
the cognitive, social, and academic development of the
learner. This characteristic of assessment makes it
particularly valuable for second language learners who
come from culturally diverse backgrounds and who may
• 5. Multiple referencing Assessment entails
obtaining information about the learner from
numerous sources and through various means.