Philippines on Learning: ABCs or 123s

It has been long since I sat in front of this 11-inch led screen and write something that is of importance. Painful as it is, my fingers seem to feel the utmost duty to write about this bludgeoning quandary. Indiscriminately, it rouse from nowhere. Although this could be a slap in the face. I have written about it before and nothing can stop me from weaving thoughts that irk from my upset psyche again.

Like particles settling from a forgotten suspension solution, the same happens to the tirade of trying to escape from the vortex of mishaps pinning the Philippines’ quality of education at a standstill. Have we yet admitted defeat or lost or libido in such a snail’s pace, it’s for every one  to tell. Comparable to a snake bite, the ostensibly numbing dilemma leaves the country complacent or rather oblivious of the exponentially growing craters in our dreams of a “tuwid na daan” which in turn, nullifies chances for economic growth or survival even.

Should anyone put it in the light of proofs, such as counting professionals sprinkled like confectioners’ sugar on the face of the globe,  the gravity of the matter shifts the focus to the real situation that Filipinos residing in the Philippines come to face on a daily basis.

According to pcw.com, the country boasts of a literacy rate of 95.6%  in the 2008 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS). Some would, at an instant, throw an applause, although this does not correlate to quality education. It may be true to well-off families but to be able to read and write does not assure a better life.

Philippines has ranked 115^th out if the 142 countries pooled in the Global Competitiveness 2011-2012 for Science and Math education (http://www.tempo.com.ph). Seemingly, this two subjects are foundations to advance in the dream of becoming any professional.

Rise now from your deep slumber, 

She's waiting for your hands

to guide her little fingers

as you trace the future her.

On a qualitative note, one could easily describe the ailing situation of education in the country. Documentaries that present a magnified perspectives of the condition is becoming  commonplace. It is but an evolving lackluster show.

The dearth of resources, tangible or intangible, is a an imperative factor that taunts hope to cave in. Thus, we blame the circumstance. Brain drain, for one, has largely imprinted the picture of  Philippine education a duller one. I, as such, have abandoned the course of becoming a full-time educator. I have practical reasons and may as well reap raised brows and side comments but that is not the point.  Teachers’ lack of incentives, once-in-a-blue-moon opportunities for training and retooling, and the enough-to-survive compensation is but a turn off to great mentors to be. To the extent of choosing to become a domestic helper abroad or an agent for a BPO in the country could be a shame. Reality bites and it is painful.

As someone who took up an education course, it is funny how we were trained to use overhead projectors, PowerPoint presentations, video clips and other advanced multi-media instructional materials when some of the schools haven’t even got a chalkboard.

Even concretizing the point is if you turn your attention to statistics. The 1:1 student to book ratio is far from attainable. There is not enough schools to accommodate the growing population of students let alone the hunt for qualified and able teachers.

Most, if not everyone, will point fingers to the small portion of the national budget allotted to education. We are tailing in the list for budget allocation for the education sector among Asian countries. This is a fact that has long been established. The economy itself is a pain. It is a rippling effect as poverty hinders an already poor family from changing their fate when the kid they  had hopes to get a better job in the future they can no longer send to school.

The target is very clear. It is but to find the right grip and sturdy arrows to hit it. After all, it is us who we call Juan dela Cruz and he needs not to let loose and let the shots err.

***author is not claiming photo credit