Cabral vs Luistro and the Importance of Sex Education
Department of Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral may be re-appointed as DOH Secretary. Cabral has earned the admiration of many for supporting for the passage of the Reproductive Health Bill.
Cabral also lead the move to introduce sex education to grade schoolers. She asserted that “The Department of Education knows what is the appropriate type of sex education that they will teach our children. Should we wait for teenagers to get pregnant before we teach them sex education that is appropriate for them?” With this, she has earned criticisms from the Roman Catholic Church.
Enter Armin Luisitro of DLSU, a Catholic brother, who is about to be appointed as the Department of Education Secretary under the administration of Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. He is reported to delay the implementation of the integration of sex education in the grade school curriculum.
Davao City Students Walk Out
Here’s a brief documentary on why some Davao City students walked out of their classes last February 1, 2008:
CHEd Call Center Lab: Another Controversy Brewing?
The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) has raised the red flag on the questionable Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) Call Center Lab deal.
A Troubling Filipino Textbook for College Freshmen
I recently had the misfortune of stumbling upon a Filipino Textbook for College Freshmen which endlessly bothered me. Its title alone, is enough to make you wonder what is happening to the state of our education system and, more importantly, our national language. The book is entitled “FILIPINO 1 AKADEMIKONG FILIPINO TUNGO SA EFEKTIV NA KOMUNIKASYON.” On the cover there’s a sign that proudly boasts that it’s “CHED Compliant.” The authors of the book are Rolando A. Bernales, Glecy A. Atienza, Vivencio M. Talegon, Jr., Amelita P. Achas, Luvismin D. Danao, Elizabeth A. Joson, Petra s. Ornos, Stanley G. Rovira, and Tessie s. Suguran.
The book seems to be an English book, only Filipinized. It uses words such as “varayti,” “varyasyon,” “perspektiv,” “definisyon,” and “morfoloji,” among others. In fact, section 1.5.3 on page 67 is entitled as “2001 Revisyon ng Alfabeto at Patnubay sa Ispeling ng Wikang Filipino: Mga Tuntunin.” What really bothered me about the book is how it seems to perpetuate an English-based Filipino language. Yes, times are changing and language is supposed to be dynamic. But it does not have to be lazy, or lousy.
SONA 2006: Arroyo’s Agenda for the Education, Health, Social Welfare and the Environment
Here’s an outline of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s agenda, plans, projects and priority bills for education, health, social welfare and the environment:
Rock Ed Philippines
Just when I though the Filipino citizenry doesn’t care much about the children of this nation, I hear about Rock Ed Philippines. Rock Ed has a ten-year program of alternative education activities. The movement is called Rock Ed because the organization has decided to utilize rock music as an avenue towards educating the youth.
In Rock Ed’s activities, poets, musicians, actors, entrepreneurs and other professionals are the teachers. Classes are held not just inside classrooms, but also in bars, sports fields, restaurants, etc.
Rock Ed is composed of private citizens and NGOs. Thus, any concerned Filipino can volunteer to join and help out. Students, educators, professionals, corporations, private schools, institutions, photographers, writers… everybody is encouraged to contribute towards ending poverty by rocking the Philippine educational system.
Rock Ed Website: http://www.rockedphilippines.org
Rock Ed Email Address: rockedphilippines@yahoo.com
Money = Quality Education?
The Philippine Star reported last Sunday that the Department of Education needs about PhP133 billion to “improve” the quality of education in the country. Reportedly, more progressive countries, notably Thailand, Malaysia, USA, New Zealand and Japan are spending as much as PhP47,700 (Thailand) to PhP293,440 (Japan) per student. Meanwhile, the Philippines spends only about PhP6,000 per student. Although I agree that education should be a top priority in all aspects, I do not think that we should think that money is the best or only solution to the dismal state of the Philippine Education System.
Yes, there is a lack of classrooms, a lack of quality educators and a lack of books, and other resources. But these are not the real reasons for our education woes. In my opinion, the problem lies in the attitudes of the educators, the students and even the government. We keep in wailing and whining “if only.” Because we dwell on what is not and what cannot be, we fail to use our imagination and be creative. There are a thousand different ways to revolutionize our education system, if only we stop pointing our fingers on our lack of funds.
Lessons in History
Our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, once said that for a nation to be able to move forward to its future, it is necessary to study its past.
The reported defective Asian and Philippine History textbooks are syptomatic of the countless maladies afflicting our public education system. And although we might see it as a petty concern, it can, undeniably, significantly affect our nation’s development (or lack of it). Unless the present understands fully its past, it can never move towards a better future.
There are two kinds of lies, one is the denial of the truth and the other is the omission of the truth. Althought he two are distinct from one another, the two yields the same perversion of the truth. Either way, both leads to misinformation. Misinformation which lead to the belief in false truths and the education of false values and the indoctrination of flase virtues. Thus, the lack of sufficient inormation in the said History textbooks may lead to the catastrophic miseducation and formation of the youth. The youth, who are te key stakeholders of our nation’s future. If the youth are taught lies and untruths, there is not much we can hope for or expect from our nation’s future.
The objective of teaching History is not only to make the students learn and memorize facts and figures, but more importantly, it is to imparrt essential lessons from the past to attain a sufficient national identity and pride, and to avoid making the same mistakes committed in the past in order to make the future better than the present.
If there is one valuable lesson that we can learn from his mistake, it is that there is much to be wary about in our faulty education system. There are only two probable reasons why these faulty history textbooks reached the unsuspecting students. Either the people in the government are student or they are corrupt. If the goal of the Department of Education officials is to educate the students, there could have been no way that the eported faulty textbooks could have reached the students’ hands.
Something has to be done to correct the horrendous mistake or (as I see it) crime that has been committed in betrayal to our nation and its youth, lest we want to nurture a miseducated generation on whose naive hands our nation’s future is held.
28 years old from Davao City, blogging since 2004. :)
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