Philippines

Introduction

• Ethnic groups: Tagalog 28.1%, Cebuano 13.1%, Ilocano 9%, Bisaya/Binisaya 7.6%, Hiligaynon Ilonggo 7.5%, Bikol 6%, Waray 3.4%, Other 25.3% (2000 census)

• Religions: Catholic 82.9%, Muslim 5%, Evangelical 2.8%, Iglesia ni Kristo 2.3%, other Christian 4.5%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.6%, none 0.1% (2000 census)

• Languages: Filipino (official; based on Tagalog) and English (official); eight major dialects - Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinan

Learn more about the Philippines

The People of the Philippines

The majority of Philippine people are of Malay stock, descendants of Indonesians and Malays who migrated to the islands long before the Christian era. The most significant ethnic minority group is the Chinese, who have played an important role in commerce since the ninth century, when they first came to the islands to trade. As a result of intermarriage, many Filipinos have some Chinese and Spanish ancestry. Americans and Spaniards constitute the next largest minority groups in the country.

More than 90% of the people are Christian; most were converted and became westernized to varying degrees during nearly 400 years of Spanish and American rule. The major non-Hispanicized groups are the Muslim population, concentrated in the Sulu Archipelago and in central and western Mindanao, and the mountain groups of northern Luzon. Small forest tribes still live in the more remote areas of Mindanao.

Government and Political Conditions

The Philippines has a representative democracy modeled on the U.S. system. The president is limited to one 6-year term, and is head of the executive branch and is Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Provision was made in the constitution for autonomous regions in Muslim areas of Mindanao and in the Cordillera region of northern Luzon where many indigenous tribes still live.

Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (also known as Noynoy Aquino and PNoy) was elected as the fifteenth president of the Philippines in 2010. He is the son of former president Corazon Aquino (president 1986-1992), who was the first female president in the Philippines and the first female president in Asia.

The government continues to face threats from both terrorist groups and communist insurgents, and rising crime and concerns about the security situation have had a negative impact on tourism and foreign investment. The terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), which gained international notoriety with its kidnappings of foreign tourists in the southern islands, and which is also on the U.S. FTO list, remains is a major problem for the government. In August 2001, the government reached a cease-fire agreement with the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). During President Arroyo's May 2003 State Visit to Washington, President Bush pledged diplomatic and financial support for the peace process, a move that both sides embraced.

Current Cultural Presence in United States

According to the 2010 census bureau report, Filipinos are the second largest Asian group (Chinese-Americans being the largest group) in the United States. The number of individuals who identified themselves as Filipino, either alone or in combination with another race(s), was 3.4 million. The number is believed to be higher, with an estimated one million undocumented Filipinos living in the United States.

In 2012, Filipinos were the fourth largest new legal permanent resident immigrant group in the U.S., followed behind Mexico, India, and China.

Filipino families are close-knit and elders often live with their children after retirement. Parents who bring their children to the U.S. also often bring their parents. These multigenerational living situations are not unique in Philippine culture, which has a patriarchal family social structure in which the parents are both the providers and enforcer of traditional culture and social conventions, and grandparents are highly respected in the family as the elders. However, this is often considered unique in the United States. The roles of parents, grandparents, and siblings must be respected and acknowledged by professionals working with Filipinos.

Languages

About 87 native languages and dialects are spoken in the Philippines, all belonging to the Malay-Polynesian linguistic family. Of these, eight are the first languages of more than 85% of the population. The three principal indigenous languages are:

• Tagalog

• Cebuano

• Ilocano

Since 1939, in an effort to develop national unity, the government has promoted the use of the national language, Filipino (may also be written Pilipino), which is based on Tagalog. Filipino is taught in all schools and is gaining acceptance, particularly as a second language.

Many Filipinos speak English as a second language, including nearly all professionals, academics, and government workers. In January 2003, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordered the Department of Education to restore English as the medium of instruction in all schools and universities.

Only a few Filipino families use Spanish as a first language.

Education

• Prior to 2011, the education system in the Philippines consisted of free and compulsory primary education, which lasted six years (ages 6-13) and secondary education, which was free but not compulsory, and lasted four years. At that time, the Philippines had one of the shortest education systems in the world. 2011 marked the implementation of the compulsory K-12 education system, which includes new curricula for each grade. The program consists of kindergarten, primary school (grades 1-6), junior high school (grades 7-10), and high school (grades 11-12). The program is being developed in phases, and the first group of students to go through the full K-12 system will graduate in 2024. The school year consists of 200 days, beginning in June and ending in March.

• In kindergarten, the students learn the alphabet, numbers, shapes, and colors in their mother tongue. The goal is that after grade 1, all students can read and write in their mother tongue.

• In grade 1, English and Filipino (based on Tagalog) are taught, with emphasis on “oral fluency.”

• In grade 4, English and Filipino are taught as “languages of instruction.”

• High school (grades 11-12) courses are based upon a student’s career track. Students can either take a “core curriculum” track or a “specific track.” Students who go through the “specifics track” choose an academic track, a technical-vocational-livelihood track, or a sports and arts track. Students in the academic track will choose one of the following: 1) business, accountancy, and management; 2) humanities, education, and social sciences; 3) science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The technical-vocational-livelihood track specializes in vocational learning, and prepares students to work in the fields of agriculture, electronics, and trade. The sports and arts track prepares students in the field of sports and art.

• As of August 2010, there were 1,573 private higher education institutions and 607 state-run colleges and universities in the Philippines. Institutions in the country typically offer one or few specialized programs, such as sciences, nursing, or computing. In 2010, roughly 60% of high school graduates went on to attend college. Note that this was before high school education was required.

• The literacy rates in the Philippines is approximately 95%, for both males and females (2008 estimate).

Special Education

The Philippines is a participant in the Salamanca Statement of Action on Special Needs Education, and therefore recognizes the principle of equal education opportunities for “all children regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic, or other conditions.” At least one special education center is required in each division and the implementation of special education programs in all school districts where there are students with special needs is required.

Healthcare

• Healthcare is an evolving topic in the Philippines. In 2010, the newly elected government launched a major effort aimed to achieve “universal coverage,” which focused on low-income families enrolled in PhilHealth (a government owned and controlled corporation attached to the Department of Health). The plan would provide more comprehensive healthcare packages and reduce or eliminate co-payments. As of April 2011, 4.4 new low-income families had been enrolled in PhilHealth.

• In the Philippines, there are three major groups of payers of healthcare: 1) national and local governments, 2) social health insurance, 3) private sources.

• As of 2011, the private sector was the dominant source of healthcare financing. Household out-of-pocket payments accounted for 40-50% of all healthcare spending. In 2006, the average Filipino was paying $84 US dollars per year on medical care. Drugs accounted for approximately 70% of the out-of-pocket spending while less than 10% was spend on professional fees.

• The quality of public health services is a widespread concern in the Philippines, and improving access to services is a fundamental goal of the government. Specific national programs and campaigns include strategies to eliminate leprosy, schistosomiasis, filariasis, rabies and malaria; and reduce morbidity and mortlity from vaccine-preventable diseases, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, dengue, SARS, and avian influenza.

• There is a high rate of migration of healthcare professionals from the Philippines to industrialized countries. Nurses and physical and occupational therapists account for a large share of this group. The decision to migrate relates to factors such as economic need, professional and career development, and attraction of higher living standards. Many healthcare workers report that they leave the Philippines because of low wages. Many destination countries require prior hospital experience, which creates high levels of turn-over rates in Filipino hospitals, increased workloads, and continuous hiring of new graduates to replace the skilled staff members who left.

• Mother’s average age of first birth: 23.1 (2008 estimate)

• Infant mortality rate: 17.64/1,000 live births

• Life expectancy: 72.48 (69.52 males, 75.59 females)

Implications for Speech-Language Pathologists

Cultural Considerations

• The extended family is, in effect, the basic unit of Philippine society. Within given households, nuclear families average six to eight members in size. Unmarried adult daughters and sons typically remain in their parents' home and contribute to family support. Additional extended family members such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins also may live in the same house and assume vital roles.

• Infancy is characterized by indulgence, constant attention, and few, if any, demands on the child. The child is frequently cuddled and carried, and crying (even the tiniest whimper) is attended to quickly by feeding, holding, and other consoling tactics. This practice is made possible or easier by the presence of extended family (who can assume significant care giving roles). The emphasis on dependency and physical closeness is further manifested in breastfeeding on demand until a child is as old as 2 years of age and sleeping with parents and, later, with siblings for an extended period of time. The process of toilet training is yet another occasion for helpfulness and closeness for the child. It involves imitation of and assistance from other family members. Because of this assistance, very few children are fully toilet trained before the age of 2 years and may be as old as 4 years. Thus, throughout infancy and the toddler period, child rearing is characterized by significant indulgence, protectiveness, gradual training for responsibility, and minimal adult anxiety about early performance.

• Similar to other Asian ethnic groups, Filipinos typically employ formality and honorific language that conveys proper respect for authority, status, and positions by terms of address and titles. For example, a physician or a lawyer will continue to be addressed as “Dr. Cruz” or “Attorney Ramos” by clients, friends, and colleagues well after more personalized and informal relationships have been established (in contrast to the American tendency to move more rapidly toward a first name basis).

• As members of a high context culture, Filipinos have a highly developed sensitivity to the nonverbal aspects of communication. Filipinos are considerably less dependent on spoken words than are Americans; they watch their listeners carefully and identify body language cues to assess what the person is feeling. This sensitivity is further complemented by a high tolerance for ambiguity that enables Filipinos to respond calmly to uncertainty or lack of information. Again, however, this orientation may conflict with the characteristically Eurocentric utilitarian emphasis on forthrightness and achieving and results in the least amount of time.

• Although the types of “outside” assistance and intervention resources that are sought may vary considerably, the family typically remains centrally involved in the primary care of the child with a disability. As the most reliable source of protection and support for the child with a disability, the family also is the focus of siblings' primary duty and commitment. Parents thus expect their older sons and daughters to continue to provide the primary care for a family member with a disability. In fact, the longstanding tradition of family and small group orientation has contributed to a proliferation of Filipino care providers who have established small group homes or community based residential facilities serving individuals with developmental disabilities. These providers caring for children may naturally view their “clients” as family members and fully include them in daily living activities and socialization experiences that incorporate many aspects of Filipino culture and traditional lifestyle.