TITLE:
Pedagogy and Cultural Manifestations in the Weaving Practices of the Yakan Tribe
AUTHORS:
Espiridion D. Atilano Jr.
KEYWORDS:
Weaving, Pedagogy, Cultural Manifestation, Social Cognitive Theory, Yakan Tribe
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.2 No.8,
August
25,
2014
ABSTRACT: The Yakan weaving practices were integral to
the personal and cultural life of the tribe. This study sought to describe how the
teaching and learning happen in the Yakan weaving practices as well as determine
the significance of weaving in the economic, social and environmental aspects of
the Yakans’ way of life. Anchored on the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) of Albert
Bandura, learning occurs through the observation and imitation of the innate person
(learner) of the modeled behavior (weaving) in a learning environment (Socio-cultural
norms in the Yakan community.) The study utilized a qualitative and descriptive
design. Pertinent data were obtained through Focus Group Discussion (FGD), Key Informant
Interview (KII) and Fieldwork Observation Checklist (FOC). The respondents of the
FGD were the weavers of the two Yakan communities in the cities of Zamboanga and
Lamitan. The communities also served as the subject of the FOC. Three experts on
Yakan textile and culture were probed in the KII. Purposive Sampling Technique was
used to select the respondents of the FGD and the Snowball method to identify the
informants for the KII. Results show that the Yakan weaving practices are transferred
from one generation to another by the mothers to their daughters. The pedagogy could
either be structured, through demonstration and modeling by the teacher or informal
through observation and imitation of the learner. Moreover, the interplay of culture
is evident in the Yakan weaving through the economic and social practices as well
as the adaptation in the environmental changes of the tribe. Lastly, there is a
need to enhance the teaching and learning of weaving to accommodate more learners
and to strike a balance between the preservation of the tribe’s culture and the
profitability of the weaving textile business.