The wisdom in the NSTP

IT IS a quiet wonder to hear young people say he/she is shy, but still strives to speak up and express himself on the first day of class, when each one are strangers to each other. I could understand that feeling of uncertainty and cold fear of nothing in particular.

For the first time, I am really beginning to appreciate the rudiments of this most noble profession and the little perks that it bring. I find it quite humbling to hear college students admit to themselves, albeit in a classroom full of strangers, that their high school education was really inadequate.

One of the most glaring realities among graduates of this generation is the fact that they feel like they were hardly prepared by their secondary education to face the challenges of College life. And yet the youth says they do not have much option at all but to enroll in one of those “affordable” college institutions in the city that caters to young indigents.

It is indeed admirable that such kids endeavored to attend classes especially those studying during night time, because everybody knows that it is not always cool to be walking around a campus sometimes on an empty stomach. The sacrifices that the students have to take on upon themselves in dealing with the requirements of being one is no laughing matter.

During this semester, one of the subjects I was tasked to handle involved the National Service Training Program as mandated in Republic Act 9163. I must say that indeed, this curriculum can boost the youth's need for focus. Included under this particular subject are Self-Awareness and self-assessment, which by and large, are not found in other subject matter.

Teaching the youth to appreciate oneself, by recognizing their strengths and weaknesses gives them a kind of self-confidence that only an educational institution can provide. Although some haltingly and self-consciously tried to express themselves, it is heartwarming to find them very interested to let it out, to tell about themselves.

That is why it is with great pleasure that I discovered the practicality of the NSTP, which has its own nuances where students can easily learn. Moreover, the lessons tackled in this particular subject are those that really matter to every human being living in this planet.

Take for example the lesson on getting to know oneself. At first, the students were hesitant to open up and tell about themselves, but eventually, the teacher had to police the students' enthusiasm as their interest become more manifest.