Education is a big problem and opportunity in the Philippines. The standards of education are really quite poor. There are numerous facets to this problem, and the biggest perhaps does not start with teachers but with parents. The problem for many parents is creating an environment for learning in the home. The Filipino family is so indulgent and unstructured from my experience. Parents really take no steps to extend the knowledge of their children beyond their own shortcomings. Kids simply run around the yard chaotically. There is no sense of purpose, no plan and no structure. There is also no peace in which to engage in study for those who are able to establish a sense of purpose.
The social context in which kids participate is no better. If kids talk about serious conceptual issues with their children, then they will carry these ideas into the playground. If that education is lacking from amongst the majority of kids, then they will either be alienated for such talk, or they will drift into groups whom they can more comfortably relate. If there is no such group, they are unlikely to develop those skills, unless they are lucky enough to find the company of adults who support them.
From the perspective of formal education, the big problem is the nation's teachers are not particularly well-trained, and the students lack structure and general knowledge. This is going to slow the pace of learning. More particularly it is going to kinder more conceptual development. Abstract and critical thinking skills which play a big part in developing Western education are largely absence. They are not too prevalent in Western cultures either, but in Asia, they are essentially absent.
This is precisely the reason why Asia needs to introduce Western educational standards, and yet in the Philippines the constitution prevents Western interests from participating in education; at least from an equity standpoint. This fact poses a great opportunity cost to Filipinos in several respects:
1. The best and brightest in the Philippines are being denied the opportunity to fully develop their minds. In addition they are made to feel inadequate when they achieve degrees in engineering in the Philippines, then realise their general knowledge is below some technician from a Western nation. They suffer the indignity of having to ask the technician how to do their job, even though they might be getting paid more. They get these jobs in the West only because they are very cheap labour, because there is a skills shortage, or no one will live in the conditions they are willing to tolerate.
2. There are a great many students in Asia (i.e. Not just the Philippines) who go to Western countries looking for a better quality of education. If they take these opportunities, they are less likely to go back to the Philippines.
The implication is that the Philippines is denied better educational standards which would otherwise give their people a better opportunity to earn more money and achieve higher levels of productivity. They are also being negatively impacted in terms of personal or cognitive development, such that when they step out of their 'deprived nation' they are made to feel inadequate or unprepared for their shame of not being given the best chance for success. This is an unnecessary state of affairs, and it is just one of the reasons why the Philippines Constitution needs to be repealed, and a more appropriate framework for personal development established.
Another silly provision in the constitution prevents foreigners from investing in land in the Philippines. As a result, Filipino pastures go under-utilised, development opportunities are overlooked and Filipinos who remain under-employed or unemployed grow impatient waiting for their opportunity. The Philippines as a result has high levels of alcoholism and simply low productivity since many are not raised in a culture where they have had to work.
Andrew Sheldon
NZ Property Guide
Philippine Real Estate Guide
Foreclosed Japan Guide
Applied Critical Thinking, Strategy, Integrity Investments SheldonThinks
The social context in which kids participate is no better. If kids talk about serious conceptual issues with their children, then they will carry these ideas into the playground. If that education is lacking from amongst the majority of kids, then they will either be alienated for such talk, or they will drift into groups whom they can more comfortably relate. If there is no such group, they are unlikely to develop those skills, unless they are lucky enough to find the company of adults who support them.
From the perspective of formal education, the big problem is the nation's teachers are not particularly well-trained, and the students lack structure and general knowledge. This is going to slow the pace of learning. More particularly it is going to kinder more conceptual development. Abstract and critical thinking skills which play a big part in developing Western education are largely absence. They are not too prevalent in Western cultures either, but in Asia, they are essentially absent.
This is precisely the reason why Asia needs to introduce Western educational standards, and yet in the Philippines the constitution prevents Western interests from participating in education; at least from an equity standpoint. This fact poses a great opportunity cost to Filipinos in several respects:
1. The best and brightest in the Philippines are being denied the opportunity to fully develop their minds. In addition they are made to feel inadequate when they achieve degrees in engineering in the Philippines, then realise their general knowledge is below some technician from a Western nation. They suffer the indignity of having to ask the technician how to do their job, even though they might be getting paid more. They get these jobs in the West only because they are very cheap labour, because there is a skills shortage, or no one will live in the conditions they are willing to tolerate.
2. There are a great many students in Asia (i.e. Not just the Philippines) who go to Western countries looking for a better quality of education. If they take these opportunities, they are less likely to go back to the Philippines.
The implication is that the Philippines is denied better educational standards which would otherwise give their people a better opportunity to earn more money and achieve higher levels of productivity. They are also being negatively impacted in terms of personal or cognitive development, such that when they step out of their 'deprived nation' they are made to feel inadequate or unprepared for their shame of not being given the best chance for success. This is an unnecessary state of affairs, and it is just one of the reasons why the Philippines Constitution needs to be repealed, and a more appropriate framework for personal development established.
Another silly provision in the constitution prevents foreigners from investing in land in the Philippines. As a result, Filipino pastures go under-utilised, development opportunities are overlooked and Filipinos who remain under-employed or unemployed grow impatient waiting for their opportunity. The Philippines as a result has high levels of alcoholism and simply low productivity since many are not raised in a culture where they have had to work.
Andrew Sheldon
NZ Property Guide
Philippine Real Estate Guide
Foreclosed Japan Guide
Applied Critical Thinking, Strategy, Integrity Investments SheldonThinks
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