Ask a Filipino teacher (or DepEd official) this question:
With learning materials already in abundance on the internet, why can’t we just use it for our students?
One of the replies I have received was that the materials still need to be “watered-down” before it is used, meaning a Grade 8 courseware will have to be revised for Filipino 3rd year high school students! This just means that materials used by schools overseas cannot be used outright in the country. There is no one-to-one grade equivalence — grade 5 materials in the Philippines maps to grade 3/4 overseas!
My question is this – what is the difference between a Filipino 10 year old and an American/British/Canadian/<insert your favorite nationality here> 10 year old in terms of his/her ability to learn? Frankly, I do not see any difference! If this is so, then how come we cannot just use the materials available online, e.g. Curriki.org?
Another question – how come Filipino kids who migrate overseas can adapt and learn at the same pace as kids their age?
And one last question – how come teachers who migrate overseas can quickly learn how to teach kids using the same resources that are available online?
I am confused – what seems to be the problem?!
Image from Flickr:woodleywonderworks.
10:40 pm - 1-28-2008
It boils down to pedagogy.
5:24 am - 1-29-2008
@Weng – Are you implying that the reason why we can’t use the material is because the teachers don’t know how to impart these to their students?
I guess that answers the “Are the students really the problem” question then.
5:55 am - 1-29-2008
Sadly, many Filipino teachers still do not know how to make use of the internet as a tool to help them in making activities in the classroom. When I facilitated a workshop at a national convention in Bacolod for teachers, I realized that many still do not even know how to use the internet! We cannot blame them though because we have to realize that the internet is still not so accessible to most teachers. Or if ever it is accessible, they do not know how to make good use of it.
Well, awareness is one of the problems.
About the learning materials in the internet, yes, they are abundant. However, not all resources are applicable to Filipino children because of the “western” approach. Meaning, some of the ‘terms’ or ‘ideas’ used are not in the circle of experiences of a typical Filipino child. Thus, children cannot relate well with these activities. What I think we lack are local resources (of activities, worksheets, lesson plans) for teachers that can be used for or applied in their classrooms.
Hmm, there are so many things to improve on in the educational system of our country. But i think we, teachers can start in our own classrooms. We should just be as resourceful and creative enough to think of various activities for the students to maximize their learning.
4:06 pm - 1-29-2008
Great post. I couldn’t agree more. (and that’s a great picture!)
4:16 pm - 1-29-2008
The educators are the ones limiting a child’s development.
I bet that those “higher ups” (and sadly the more experienced and seasoned teachers) do not even know what to do with current technology trends that’s why they hide behind time-and-tested standards.
Take a look at any school now and take a survey: which educators use laptops/lcd projectors and which use manila paper/OHP?
There are many factors involved too… primarily the availability of materials in a school. But still, the problem will still stem from the educators.
Kids nowadays are ready for anything. It’s going to challenging for educators to be ready for the kids’ needs.
5:43 pm - 1-29-2008
Good points, Rom. Good to bring this up and start the dialog and sorry for this longish comment.
It’s systemic, I suppose, but saying this will not solve the problem. Students are not the problem, too.
“How come Filipino kids who migrate overseas can adapt and learn at the same pace as kids their age?”
“How come teachers who migrate overseas can quickly learn how to teach kids using the same resources that are available online?”
Let me add: Pinoy students and teachers even sometimes surpass their Caucasian peers.
I suppose you asked these questions rhetorically. In both questions, the answer is the system, with many contributing factors like culture and economic survival.
A Pinoy teaching abroad is motivated enough to excel — not just because of better pay but also because they have to keep their jobs. Plus the teacher abroad has resources, ample books and internet connection being a couple of these.
I feel that if we examine the Pinoy students who excel abroad, you’ll find motivation coming out of diligence that in turn was inculcated by Pinoy parents’ values.
Let’s look at motivation again. Teachers must balance between motivation and helplessness. I realized, after conducting several workshops with public school teachers, that our public school teachers are genuinely eager to improve their students condition. (btw, I came from a public high school so I also have direct experience on the sacrifices of teachers).
Most of the public school teachers I’ve encountered show enthusiasm and caring for their students. This maternal trait is common to most teachers (sorry for being gender-biased, but most of our teachers are female). Teachers who go abroad bring this trait with them, which explains the extra effort they make.
So if caring and enthusiasm is present in our teachers here and abroad, the difference then is the availability of resources and the culture of the students they teach.
The effectiveness of our teachers, no matter their sacrifice, will eventually reach a plateau that is dictated by availability of resources. I’ve seen teachers spending their own salaries just to put up educational posters. I’ve met teachers who have literally begged alumni and public officials for money for repairs and books. My co-teachers and I at UP (when I still taught there) used our own money to duplicate readings to share with our students.
But there’s a limit to this and it is often reached when the teacher faces economic realities. This is where self-preservation then becomes the priority.
In my high school, the principal complained that the freshmen being brought to her school from the other public schools could not even read! And yet they passed all 6 levels of primary school (adding 7th grade is therefore not an answer too!). How could this happen?
I know there are other factors contributing to the decaying system — so many of them, in fact na kalat tuloy ang sinusulat ko at napa-Tagalog, hehe. But we need to start somewhere and focus on that starting point. For instance, just raising funds for better books and cleaning up the corrupt process of developing textbooks is a good start.
What we should really emphasize here is that, to paraphrase de Bono, we are discussing this not to find out which point of view is right, but to generate ideas that will bring effective change.
Btw, I blogged about how our principal changed our once-dilapidated school into a better one: http://indiosign.blogspot.com/2007/08/how-principal-redesigned-our-formerly.html
5:44 pm - 1-29-2008
I guess you’d have to be a teacher teaching in a local (Philippine) public school to understand. Why would you be suggesting something that isn’t accessible to most people in the Philippines. Learning how to use the internet and look for resources is – I’m sure, very easy for Filipino public school teachers here. But the question is, do they (students and teachers) really need it- or should they focus more on having basic school needs that they aren’t getting and continually hoping to get? You shouldn’t question the local teachers’ ability to teach and deliver, maybe you should ask yourself why you had to go abroad and teach foreign nationals – then you’ll find the answer to your question.
7:21 pm - 1-29-2008
About the materials, it’s a known fact that many of our schools lack resources. However, teachers should never make this an excuse why students “can’t learn”… Teachers just really have to be resourceful and creative enough. =)
2:27 pm - 1-30-2008
Seems like home schooling (unschooling?) is becoming a more viable option. Not for the faint of heart though (methinks).