Netizens at Odds with the Education Department: Analysis of Impoliteness Strategies on an Online Platform

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the Philippines, along with other nations, to restructure its educational framework to meet the evolving needs and challenges of the time. Consequently, this reorganization has led to changes in the learning delivery modalities (LDMs). The Philippine Department of Education (DepEd) has faced significant criticism on social media regarding issues related to preparation, flawed materials, and implementation. By employing a pragmatic analysis approach based on Culpeper's theory of impoliteness strategies, this study examines fifty Facebook comments criticizing the said department and its new LDMs. The findings reveal that critics employed various impoliteness strategies, including bald-on-record impoliteness, positive impoliteness, negative impoliteness, off-record impoliteness, withhold politeness, and impoliteness meta-strategy. The study's outcomes suggest that analyzing impoliteness strategies in online comments can provide insights into how such remarks serve as social actions. Researchers working with these textual forms, as well as those specializing in the study of genres and languages, can benefit from the findings of this study. The implications of the findings are discussed for policymakers, educators, and students within the Philippine education system.