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Wednesday, June 07, 2006
So: Educate me
By Jocy L. So
Unraveling
"The secret in education lies in respecting the student." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
SCHOOL year 2006-2007 has begun. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo recently lambasted the acting education secretary for blundering through a statistical report about classroom shortage. It seems however that the president's anger is misplaced. Losing face because of erroneous data is nowhere nearly as embarrassing and infuriating as the fact that the education in the Philippines plain sucks.
When the government is more concerned about spin and lip service, when parents are content with finger-pointing, when teachers and school administrators are wallowing in self-pity and helplessness, when ordinary Filipino citizens, including myself, remain passive instead of actively seeking solutions for the education mess we are in, we are gravely insulting and disrespecting those whom education seeks to serve -- our students.
Classroom shortages, overcrowded schools, and teachers who are underpaid, under-trained, and under-appreciated clearly manifest the need to have a comprehensive assessment of the reasons, effects, and possible answers to the education crisis. By the way things are going, we seem to be telling our children that "Your education doesn't matter, you're not top priority, you're not expected to excel and succeed, you're on your own."
And this kind of message will have a lasting impact on our society and nation. We need to start changing things. How? As a teacher, I believe that education is a crucial key in unlocking a brighter future for each student and for this nation. I believe there are three messages we need to be telling to our students that will help shape how we solve the crisis in education.
1. "You matter." We need to show our students that they're special and that we value their education. This goes from the government in how they prioritize its budget down to each local government unit and each household. In last Sunday's Inquirer report, Lope de Vega National High School, a public school in Northern Samar, showed what active community participation can do to a struggling school.
Teachers give remedial classes on Saturdays, parents help repair classrooms, and local government officials purchase books for the school. Everyone participates in making the schoolwork.
Ensuring quality education for our youth is not the responsibility of the school or the government alone, but it's everyone's responsibility.
Schools need to partner with parents and guardians, and parents and guardians need to seek ways to help out in school. We need to show our students that we take time, effort, and energy to give them the best education available, because they matter.
2."You can do it." My friend Joni teaches math. Not everyone is good at math. There are students who will flunk math at some point in their life. What bothers Joni is not how her students react to a failing grade, but how some parents demand a change of grade. In the US, the world's most powerful nation, students' math skills are deteriorating because many teachers allow students to pass even if they actually flunked. Thus, there are American high school students with the math skills of a Grade 3 pupil.
Avoiding or passing the problem to someone else will not solve anything. We need to expect excellence from our students, but we also need to make sure we give them TOOLS to succeed. Excellence is not about perfecting a test, but it's about giving your best in all that you do, including learning.
There should be an emphasis on learning TOOLS because there's an inherent weakness in the traditional way of teaching that emphasizes memorization of facts, definitions, and formulas, instead of developing students' analytical skills, creative thinking, and problem solving abilities.
We need students to feel confident that even if they're tackling a new lesson or a complicated problem, they have the tools (reading skills, research know-how, etc) to tackle the challenge. We cannot dismiss struggling students are merely lazy or stupid (which they're not), we need to figure out how we can help them be the best that they can be. We do this by expecting the best from them, telling them our expectations, giving them the tools, and believing that they can succeed.
3. "You can have fun." School should not be a drag. We need to motivate students to perform better and what sure way to do that but to show them that learning is fun! This does not mean watering down our expectations. It just means we search for new ways to teach. Whether it's by using rap to remember the multiplication table or singing out the names of the Philippine presidents or using food to teach science, learning can be fun. But beyond the style of teaching that we can employ, school and learning can be fun if students feel good about themselves and they achieve.
It's the same in our work places. When we feel that the companies we work for is looking out for our best interest and that we are achieving well at work, our job satisfaction goes up. Same with students. Show and tell them they matter. Expect the best and help them reach their goals. That should make learning fun.
Whether we're curriculum advisers, DepEd officials, government officials, school administrators, parents, or teachers, we must all remember that education should seek to serve the students. Let's not waste their time. Let's not insult their intelligence. Let's not let them down.
Jocy L. So teaches at Davao Christian High School
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (June 7, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
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