One of the many reasons why the Philippines is in the dumps right now is because of the education system. Using that picture of Mar Roxas teaching children, I hope this article can drive a point to what's wrong with today's Filipino education system. I might as well share some of the problems dealt with today based on observation.
1.) Using biased textbooks by DepEd treating it like as if it's never wrong
Whenever I'm told, "You've got to study history before you consider opening up the nation to foreign investments." then it might be time to say, "Which history books do you study?" I could remember how DepEd textbooks were so bad any teacher is bound to get antagonized by the book they're required to use. If you feed the wrong information to the children, they are going to keep carrying the wrong information until it's corrected out of their thinking. Sad to say, only a few Filipinos can afford good private schools so most children are sent to those incompetent public schools.
2.) A lack of emphasis of improving our English
As I said, enough is enough of that English is the language of imperialism. It gets annoying for any Filipino to speak in English and they're told to stop speaking English and speak Tagalog instead. I can understand if people are to speak in Filipino in a Filipino class but the rest have to be handled in English. Back then, Filipino English was so good it gave the nation an edge. The nation has lost its edge when it came to losing the quality of Filipino English. Come on, Tagalog is not the universal language. Even developed countries where English literacy isn't so good are now demanding English teachers! Filipinos could've taken that opportunity but it may die off soon. The need to prioritize learning English is really important for the Philippines.
3.) Taking science and math subjects for granted or just another requirement
Although not everyone will be using higher science and higher math courses but it's no excuse to do our math wrong. When you start studying math and science subjects - they foster important life values such as patience, perseverance, and critical thinking to name a few. When students are introduced to science and math courses, they are already screened to see who's qualified to take higher math and science courses and who's not. Worse, when students are made to take the math and science courses - the only answer is that it's required. The emphasis on learning is hardly done on. I guess that's why the intense hatred for maths and sciences among teenagers is no surprise! Not every subject will be used for one's working life but they can certainly help you appreciate everything around you better, right?
4.) Some schools teach ultranationalistic values
I could still remember how values education tends to add ultranationalistic values. Not all of them but some of them try to introduce the "Sariling Atin Only" mentality into the children as if they're not using anything born out of foreign influence. The hypocrisy of teaching ultranationalism to children is that they're also using imported equipment or stuff born out of foreign influence. Part of the Filipino education system is inspired by Americans like the use of the chalk/board marker with the chalkboard/white board marker. The books were printed using foreign equipment. Teaching ultranationalism to children is one good reason why so many people hate the idea of opening up the economy of the Philippines.
5.) The DepEd is easily one of the most corrupt government offices
DepEd is easily one of the most corrupt offices. Do you want your school to be on top even when it's not? The simple solution is to pay loads of money and buy the name you don't deserve. Teachers who rightfully fail a student may soon lose their jobs if somebody bribes DepEd. When injustice needs to be faced, a lot of them aren't addressed and resolved no thanks to rampant corruption in the DepEd. I guess that tops eveything to why the Filipino education system is that screwed up.
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