1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 About the Author Dr. Sterling M. Plata is an assessment reform advocate.

She is the President of the Network of English Language Teachers/Testers, Inc. She is also an individual affiliate of the Association of Language Testers in Europe. Graduated from De La Salle University, she is now teaching at the same place at the Faculty of English and Applied Linguistic.

1.2 About the Journal A journal entitled Standards and Assessment in the 2010 English Curriculum for High School: A Philippine Case Study (July,2010) written by Dr. Sterling M. Plata from De La Salle University, Manila, Philippine was chosen as a review for a course Curriculum & Instruction. This study discussed about the analysis of standards alignment in the 2010 English Curriculum with the overall reform objectives. Included as well is the analysis on the authenticity of the assessment tasks conducted in school. English teachers are required to select what proficiency standards suitable for Filipino high school students in the new English curriculum implemented. Data collection is gathered through English teachers focus-group discussion and policy documents. The result proved that most of the standards focused on the literature rather than language use. It is followed by low performance tasks are associated with the authentic use of language. At the end of the discussion, English teachers are to choose standards English curriculum that have language integration for academic, for social and for literary response.

2.0 REVIEW OF THE STUDY Philippines in fact, is the only English speaking country in Southeast Asia. However, the dismal performance of Filipino students in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMMS) as well as BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) and National Secondary Assessment Test (NSAT) signals the problem with the Philippine educational system and it needs to be revised to meet the current standard. The 2002 Curriculum implementation weaknesses put the study to solve the problem in improving the next curriculum.The curriculum is anchored on a framework called Understanding by Design (UbD). Its to ensure deepening students understanding by aligning standards, assessments and instruction. The overall goal of the 2010 Secondary English Curriculum (SEC) is to develop a functionally literate Filipino who can function in various communicative situations that demonstrate critical competencies (able to express idea & feeling orally, verbally etc). This case study intends to develop high school students functional literacy. The study seeks to answer the following questions; 1) How do the standards in the 2010 English Curriculum support functional literacy and communicative competence? 2) How authentic are the performance tasks? 3) What categories for content standards do selected English teachers choose for secondary school curriculum? The current standards do not include learning how to learn. Besides that, communicative competence includes communicating orally to achieve

communicative goals. However, some of the content standards do not reflect this. Despite the increasing work opportunities in call centers in the Philippines, only five out of 100 pass the examinations that require listening and speaking as it needs authentic communication needs. Finally, the content standards do not include those that are important to reading, writing, listening, and speaking in academic context. It seems that the performance tasks in the 2010 English Curriculum for Filipino students will not prepare students for actual communication. It suggests that the performance tasks should assess and hone those skills that matter in the real world of work and in academic achievement. However, the current tasks in school will not help Filipino students to improve their performance in tests that require critical reading, critical thinking, and effective communication skills.

The results of the focus group discussion showed that the teachers wanted to use both the TESOL standards and the Singapore English Curriculum goals. In the TESOL standards there are three goals, and there are three standards under each goal. Goal 1: To use English to communicate in social settings. Goal 2: To use English to achieve academically in all content areas. Goal 3: To use English in socially and culturally appropriate ways (Source: TESOL ESL Standards 1997). Two of the seven groups chose the Singaporean framework. They reported that the three categories namely language for information, language for literary response and expression, and language for social interaction seemed appropriate in the Philippine setting where language and literature are combined in English classes. These categories are the Singapore standards for their English school curriculum. The results showed that the content standards did not include important aspects of functional literacy such as learning strategies, reading/writing strategies, and other aspects of communicative competence. The teachers also felt that there should be standards that specify the use of language for academic and social purposes. This case study opens a discussion on what Filipino high school students should know and be able to do given the available opportunity for those who are proficient in English. It also opens discussions about proficiency standards that will help teachers, parents, and other stakeholders to make decisions about teaching and assessment.

3.0 DISCUSSION Based on the study above, this article has an interesting connection with the Malaysia English Curriculum. As have discussed above, the Philippines teachers are looking forward of adapting Singapore English Curriculum to their next new curriculum in school. Singapore English curriculum actually has major similarities to our national curriculum in the present.

The concept and focus adapted for the English curriculum in Malaysia delivers as much as the same concept introduced by Singapore English Curriculum. The Three categories listed in Singapore English Curriculum are as followed:

1. Language for information In Malaysia English curriculum, it falls under language use for informational purposes. In a simple explanation, the purpose of the language involves obtaining information for various purposes, processing the information, and presenting it to a variety of audiences. The learning outcomes for informational use are as follows: Obtain information for different purposes Process Information for various purposes Present the information to different audiences

2. Language for literary response and expression

This aspect is similar to Language Use for Aesthetic Purposes in Malaysia English

curriculum. use involves the ability to enjoy literary texts at a level appropriate to learners ability. Learners are expected to be able to express ideas, thoughts, beliefs and feelings creatively and imaginatively. The study of moral values is also given emphasis in this area of language use. The Learning Outcomes are as follows: Listen to, read, view and respond to literary works Express themselves creatively and imaginatively

3. Language for social interaction In Malaysia, the language purpose falls under language use for interpersonal response. The Learning Outcomes (LO) for interpersonal use (English curriculum, 2000) are as follows: Make friends and keep friendships Take part in social interaction Obtain goods and services

In conclusion, it proves that Malaysia English Curriculum has a high standard in education, internationally. For teachers, this curriculum will be a great positive impact on improving students achievement in school if followed as it had outlined. The Philippines would also can take a view on our English Curriculum and put it in comparison with their curriculum as for their next research study regarding this issue. It would be an interesting discussion to compare and contrast our curriculum with theirs as well as adapting our curriculum to in their school.