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Saturday, September 03, 2005
Roperos: Economics of teaching
By Godofredo M. Roperos
Politics Also
There was that news days ago that said that, in Cebu City, less than 10 percent of education graduates that applied for a teaching assignment passed the exams. In real terms, only 92 examinees out of more than a thousand got 60 points or more in the test.
The low figure has induced a grim reaction from Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osme-ña, who believes it is due to the poor quality of instructions in our schools.
"That may be so," countered an old friend, a retired civil servant, "but if one has a special something, even if he did not pass the exams, he can still get an assignment. Passing the board or any exam no longer matters."
He has a grandniece trying to get appointed as a schoolteacher the past two years since she passed the board but never got quite lucky. I felt his bitterness when he wished aloud that a lifestyle check should also be undertaken on the appointing authorities of the Department of Education (DepEd).
I could sense what my friend had in mind. With so much talk floating around about how some non-deserving education graduates were able to get teaching assignments for some consideration, he cannot put a cap to his bitterness.
And so, it goes without saying that one need not pass any exams really, or be bright enough to impress men like Osmeña. Or even just have a good academic standing to maintain a respectable public image of competence and dependability.
All that one may need really would just be the financial wherewithal to gain entry into the public school system. After all, the administrative procedures on recruitment appear to have a built-in opening for the human "factor" to get in.
There are, for example, legal requirements to meet, such as giving priority to someone who resides in the barangay where the school is located. There is the screening done by school officials to determine the priority status of an applicant.
Here, the human factor creeps in.
There are an hundreds of teachers who passed the board two or three years ago who are getting tired waiting to be called for assignment. In fact, there are many education graduates who have volunteered to teach in schools without pay.
I know of a number of applicants, who have been given teaching assignments under the municipal school board fund, that have not yet been paid the past three months. Not only are they assigned to mountain barangays where they pay for transportation and accommodation, they also have to provide for their school needs and supplies.
But back to the lamented poor showing of teaching applicants in Cebu City. There is really a question on the quality in their university training. The problem could be traceable, too, to the kind of mentors our colleges and universities have.
I have talked with a number of college students recently and I noted that most of them could point only to very few inspiring mentors. One could feel it in their enthusiasm when they talk about the teachers.
Well, when the teacher is just there to earn a living and is not truly committed to teach and guide their young wards, there is not much quality from those we expect to harvest.
Indeed, whatever has been sown in the minds of the students is what we should expect to reap. Getting quality graduates begins with quality mentors.
(September 3, 2005 issue)
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