Many tips are offered in the internet on how to motivate students, and they run from 10 to 20 and more. But looking back to my high school days at the UP High School, I could see who were the really dedicated teachers who inspired us to study. All of them did.
For example, our teacher in math, Mrs. Yap was always giving us problems to solve on our seats and on the board. She never tired of explaining to us how the answers came about. Then there were also surprise quizzes which made us so agitated that probably that was why the ideas had sunk in our minds. And one thing she really showed us? She revealed to us through her smiling face that math is not that difficult really.
Another teacher, Ms. Luisa nee Canieso (Doronila) gave us drills in English, whether through classroom tests or take home assignments. She was very precise in what she had wanted us to learn. In fact, when there was a big issue at school, where our drama club (she was our adviser) was dissolved due to our having worn black sweatshirts and pants, sunglasses, and the organizers' having covered the windows with newspapers to make the Multipurpose Hall really dark so that we had to light up candles, Dr. Canieso was very cool about it. Why did the senior faculty dissolve the drama club? Because the "children" were being made objects of Satan; it was satanic to be having dark hall rooms and dancing there. Instead of repWe udiating the comments of the senior authorities, Dr. Canieso told us, "Class, you are all mature to judge what you had done, whether it is right or wrong."
Yes, she recognized our ability to decide for ourselves how we had wanted to look, regardless of whether we preferred aping the Beatles or not.
But I can really remember that she spoke flawless English in the classroom. I did not hear her utter a single Pilipino or Ilonggo word as sh e hailed from Negros Occidental.
We also had Ms. Gloria Quitco, our Biology teacher who has such flawless skin until now that we also felt very eager to see her. She always came prepared to show us the parts of a plant.
Of course we also had terror teachers, those who dissolved our drama club. I remember one who, during the trial for the retention of the club, had told in no uncertain terms that we were being tempted by the devil in that multipurpose hall. Another teacher asked each one of us if what we had done was wrong or not. Many of my classmates and I were so disappointed when the so-called tops in our class had spoken and chosen to condemn our club. They really sounded very fake.
Now we don't know where they are. But I do remember their family names. I guess they just did not want to lose their standing in class and so pretended that they were morally higher than us.
One thing I can that really encouraged us were the surroundings. Our school had four buildings divided into rooms. Outside the windows you could see greenery, green grass Folks and fresh air. That was the 60's.
And so we did not have to feel so stressed out learning because we could look outside and relax our minds, a belated deduction now. Moreover, our teachers always had time to give us a one-on-one conversation and so we could talk to them about our angst and worries about our lessons or the blocks to our graduating on time.
Then what did the many senior graduates in the new millenium of UP High do? They declared that the buildings are dilapidated and so they had agreed with the top officials of UP sell the use of the land to a big commercial company. Now you see not a shadow of our school but "Buy this and that Teeshirt." From being a shaper of minds for greater roles in society, it now shapes everyone to become individualistic, and develop an attitude that to become somebody in this world, one must have a lot of cash for buying imported goods.
I think the very low ranking of our 15 year-old students in the latest global study on educational rankings, is just the logical result of a society that is steeped in commercialism. It is also the result of students do not think in terms of serving in the country but outside. Their sights are on going abroad and earning dollars and yens, or whatever whereas during our time, our ambitions were to write a good book, to discover new inventions, to become known in society through excellent achievements.
What music propelled us to move in this direction? The Beatles, who wrote songs with lyrics that spoke of the individual's role in society as in the song, Imagine, A Day in the Life, and love songs that had pure intentions. Of course, western feminists' analysis of Beatles songs now show some of them having anti-women contents like that song with this line: "You better run for your life little girl..."
Our teachers were all very encouraging as our school was deemed a notch higher than others. There was pride all over in being able to teach at UP High, and for us, students to be studying there. What we can glean here is that pride in being where we are studying is highly important.
Some of us who were quite slow in class were made to go to an office where we were told to read books and answer questions about them. I remember having read Mein Kampf by Hitler there. But I think it ingrained in me the inhumanity of the Nazi regime. Anyway, in this method of teaching, I learned to extract ideas from books, and not just how to breeze through them.
By the way my mother and her second husband were busy with their businesses and so it was my sister, Adelina who was always reminding us to look after our education at school From her, I learned equality between women and men. Her friends, Malou Canieso, Tessie Abaldonado, and Glo Quitco through some week-end gatherings were always around us and that presence of intelligent women propelled me to be as intelligent as they are.
But nowadays, with most parents gone abroad, how many of the students really experience parental attention on their studies? This is one aspect that the study did not look into, I guess. The value of this factor is very important in assessing the standing of students in class as they are still on that stage of needing a push, encouragement, and applause for whatever little or big successes they experience in school.
I think no matter how big the budget of the Department of Education will have year in and year out will come to naught unless attention is paid inside the classroom -- what happens in the interaction between teachers and students; what occurs in the minds of the students when they are in school; and how adequate are the libraries in providing thought-provoking books and gadgets that will make the students love the art and science of learning.
Global studies on educational rankings should also look into the socio-economic background of students to make the results really reflective on the conditions of the students and to provide adequate solutions on how to sold underachievements.
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