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Friday, November 28, 2003
Lee: So-called misguided attitudes
By Kelvin King Lee
Babble On
'I hope that my high school alma mater can improve itself. In the state it is in now, and the number of supposedly "empty glasses" it churns out, I can only wonder at how much longer it can last. It is the oldest Chinese school in Davao, and it once had a reputation for excellence. This has since been lost, its reputation ruined, torn to shreds.'
I WAS shown a copy of an alumni newsletter from my high school alma mater, one of the oldest Chinese schools in the city and one that has gone through countless controversies.
There was an article where an older alumnus assailed a younger alumnus' thoughts on the school's standards, which the younger alumnus had mentioned in an even earlier newsletter (published in 1997).
I find it very funny that the older alumnus would criticize something from so long ago, especially since it was obvious he had read it much earlier. It makes one wonder if there was another reason for bringing up the subject now.
It seems the younger alumnus had expressed his opinion in the 1997 newsletter with the aim of waking the school up, to improve its standards. Something called positive criticism, a concept perhaps unknown to the older alumnus.
Instead of taking heed, the older alumnus chose to focus his attention on the younger alumnus and attacked his so-called "misguided attitude," rather than get to the root of the school's many problems. I find this a pity because I am sure that the younger alumnus meant well and that this older alumnus is capable of enacting change in my high school alma mater. If he had exerted his influence on upgrading the standards of the school, instead of holding on to needless grudges, maybe they could have arrested the problem of a declining student population every year.
Ironically, in that same 1997 newsletter, three different young alumni, including the younger alumnus who was the target of the "misguided attitude" attack, had written about their difficulties with their studies in college. They were all in different universities, yet they all mentioned difficulties in their studies, and these were the better students of the high school, if records are any indication. Surely three good former students having trouble in college says something about the foundation of their high school education?
Another thing I noticed when I read through the article by the old alumnus in the alumni newsletter is that the older alumnus had quoted the younger alumnus' article wrongly. The old one did not quote from the original article correctly, ad verbatim. Either he made a mistake when he read it, paraphrased it, or chose to distort the poor young one's words. You pick.
Then there was a metaphor in the old alumnus' article about empty glasses and how one's life and success depends on one's hard work. Roughly stated, it said something about how one's life can be a full glass or an empty glass depending on one's attitude, basically accusing the younger alumnus' difficulties in college on the young one's attitude.
That metaphor was inappropriate for the situation and the misguided attitude accusation an odd assertion considering that the young alumnus was in the Honor's section back in elementary school, very active in his Chinese high school and was the recipient of many awards and honors from that same school. If he had such a misguided attitude, if he was such an "empty glass," he could not have done so well in grade school, high school and eventually in university and real life, working and studying abroad as well.
The old alumnus also made a remark on how the younger alumnus had supposedly neglected to mention that he (the young alumnus) had spent his elementary years at a Jesuit school. The older alumnus' meaning seems to be that the younger alumnus not being a good student in college was caused by his elementary years in the Jesuit school, not by his high school years.
Let me just say that Jesuit education has a worldwide reputation. To impugn Jesuit education, which has a centuries old infallible reputation for excellence, as being the cause of the young alumnus' failures, especially when that same young alumnus was in the honor's section of the Jesuit institution, makes one wonder at what the old alumnus could be thinking.
To quote this old alumnus correctly by the way and ad verbatim he wrote:
"School plays a very important role in molding and developing students. It lays down the foundation, just like building a house, with a strong understructure it can always withstand any type of calamities."
I agree with him. I am sure it is through the strong foundation that the younger alumnus received in his Jesuit Grade school years that he was able to, as the old alumnus said, "withstand any type of calamities," in both high school and college. If not for those foundation years, I am sure this younger alumnus would have had an even harder time studying in his university in Manila.
And since this older alumnus mentioned studying at different schools in his article, isn't it odd then that the same older alumnus, who seems to think that the old Chinese school has such great irreproachable standards, did NOT let his own children study in his alma mater? If you check the records, his children study in ANOTHER Chinese school. Makes you wonder why he would do that if he truly had such faith in his own alma mater.
All this is enough to make me wonder who has the real misguided attitude.
If this older alumnus and his friends spent more time on the school instead of criticizing other people and their opinions, perhaps Davao's oldest Chinese school wouldn't be having so much trouble.
Perhaps this older alumnus and his companions should spend more time listening to the thoughts and opinions of the younger alumni concerning the school. They maybe surprised at what they will find out.
I hope that my high school alma mater can improve itself. In the state it is in now, and the number of supposedly "empty glasses" it churns out, I can only wonder at how much longer it can last. It is the oldest Chinese school in Davao, and it once had a reputation for excellence. This has since been lost, its reputation ruined, torn to shreds.
The school deserves good influential alumni who have the school's best interests in mind and at the same time allow other concerned alumni to help, rather than alumni who seem to be too busy scurrying around and ripping the school apart with their quarrelsome behavior.
At this point I can only hope, and pray.
(Email me at babbleon@atenista.net)
(November 28, 2003 issue)
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