pa-seryoso

The Role of Educational Philosophy on Building the Future in the Era of Terrorism, Post-Capitalism, and Moral Skepticism*

Suicide bombers are becoming a regular in the news, people are so busy on how to keep the economy from declining, and so many people are more focused on how to get on the top of their careers without caring much about their values. There are arguments as to who should be the leader, people complaining about everything and it has become rare to see people who believes and follows, truly follows, God. There are people who utter their belief and faith in God and after they go out of their churches, they are back to their old selves again – the merciless, gluttonous, self-righteous, greedy and so much more. So much for the song “Banal na aso, santong kabayo…” These people are only good when they are inside the walls of their church but once they get outside, they forget that God is inside everyone, that good deeds are not only done to churchmates. People killing people for their principles which makes me wonder why “not taking another’s life” is not a part of their principle. It is now scary to help other people because of the high chances that you might be abused. So much for the “Laglag Panyo Gang”. You go out of your way to pick up their handkerchief and they stab you in the back by picking your pocket. People are using good deeds for their evilness. People cannot trust the government because it is the biggest robber there is. It makes you think where the good people have gone.

Then Jose Rizal suddenly comes into mind with his quote “Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan.” Did he really believe that? Rizal died more than a century ago. Where are the youth that he spoke of? The country has forever been in a decline. Where is the country’s hope? We see some of them studying but not really into it because studying can be so “boring”. We see most of them in the streets, some wanting to study but unable to, some are getting odd jobs just to get through the day, some don’t even care, some succeed but are not given enough opportunities here so they go abroad where they truly shine, and some, very few, stay with hope and faith in their heart.

With the very few hopeful who stay, it makes one wonder where this hope is coming from because of all the hardships and injustices they witness everyday. I have an Idea, an idea that might just sell, an idea that may be true and may also serve as a springboard of hope.

This hope and faith came from 15 years of education. 15 years of interacting with people from different walks of life. 15 years of bugging their parents for school projects. 15 years of assignments, seat works and exams. 15 years of listening to teachers. How many teachers do we have from kinder to college? Let’s say there’s one teacher for kinder, from grades 1-3 there are one teacher per level, hence, 3 teachers. In grades 4-6, there are 8 subjects, hence, 8 teachers per level. 8 multiplied by 3 is 24. In high school, again, 8 subjects multiplied by 4 years is 32. In college, a student enrolled in a four-year course would, more or less, encounter 32 teachers. 1+3+24+32+32 = 92. A student has 92 second parents in his lifetime and this does not include graduate school or other special courses. 92 different opinions, views, beliefs, manner of teaching, friendship, and so forth. These 92 people helped the parents shape an individual. Imagine that!

These 92 teachers build the foundation of every person’s humanity. It is in these 92 teachers where students find something to believe in. Ideals and values are shared through different methods. Although the curriculums are the same, you’d still find two students having a different perception on the lesson. Why? It is not only because they are two different individuals but also because they have two different teachers. The teachers attacked the lessons differently. But no matter how different they are, the belief, the root is still the same because these teachers also traveled that path.

The educational philosophy should be instilled during an individual’s formative years. It is in this stage where the person is still a tabula rasa. This stage is very delicate because once a value is instilled, this value will last for the entire lifetime of that individual. If you teach an individual to always fight for his beliefs, then, more or less, you would see him 20 years from now in a picket line screaming his opinions. If you teach an individual to be loyal to his country, then even if he is a nurse today, he would serve even the poorest hospitals and he wouldn’t be tempted to be a caregiver to a stranger in a strange land wherein he is a stranger himself despite the care he is giving its citizens. If the individual is taught that harming other people is bad, then he would not harm innocent people just to prove his opinion. If the person is taught the love for work, then he would enjoy even the simplest fulfillment in accomplishing a task. He would not look at the bonus he didn’t get or always whine about the salary he deserves but does not get. He would look at the joy of being able to work and serving other people in order to provide for his family. He would not long for the things he can not buy. He would be content with what he has. If a person is taught to respect other people’s beliefs even if it opposes his own, then he would respect it. If a person is instilled with values, then he would know that the end does not justify the mean. He would not rationalize his way out of bad actions just because he has a good cause. He would not settle for less nor desire more than he deserves. This is where educational philosophy comes in. It plays a vital role in shaping the people so that the world will not have to go through these evil deeds.

The education takes part in boosting an individual’s capabilities. It is able to teach that a person can be limitless if he chooses to. It is able to guide a person to his fullest potential, hence, reaching his absolute self. When a person is well-guided, then there would be room for contentment and satisfaction. When a person is satisfied, then there is no reason to fight or envy each other. There would be no reason for an individual to feel that his beliefs and rights are being stepped on because everybody would be standing in equality.

Through education, hopefully, we would be able to build individuals who would be gifted with the positive perception despite the negativities surrounding us. There is still hope that they would see the bright side of every story without neglecting that the reality that the negativities still need to be solved and not ignored. Ignorance should not be entertained in anyone’s house. Everyone must be aware of the reality and that there is a solution to everything. We should stop looking away from these harsh realities. We should stop turning them into jokes, hoping that it would go away just like that. There are problems that need to be solved and through education, every person will learn how find solutions for these problems.

If this happens, then together with Jose Rizal, we can all say “Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan.” .01.21.05.

*The title was given by my professor at gradskul. this was actually an assignment.

posted by gail @ 10:44 AM