Impulses
End in itself
He is worn-out, drained, and dead beat.
He is tracking a meandering road, rammed with toll fees, rocky pavement and polluted air space. This without mention the condition of the vehicle he steers: pistons warped, crankshafts disfigured, fuel in red light.
Nothing is clear to Juan dela Cruz but the constitutionally-instituted destination: quality, accessible, and relevant education.
It is common knowledge that getting a diploma is more of a privilege than a right nowadays. The road to get there is so narrow and tortuous that even the great Schummacher can barely handle. And getting into the finish line does not mean a flashy trophy or landing a fitting, money-spinning job. It might even mean working underpaid or none at all.
In a survey conducted by think-tank IBON Facts and Figures, it is sad to note that only about 60 out of 100 who enrolled in elementary manage to go into high school; 20 will try their luck in college, and only six will end up professionals. To stress, having a degree does not always mean cash in the employment bag.
The greatest road block to Juan dela Cruz's voyage is arguably the inaccessibility to education. One cannot easily enroll in school unless he has the right gas to satisfy school demands. School supplies, food sustenance and transportation expenses are just black smokes in the carburetor; the most abrasive of all is the skyrocketing tuition fees that have been crashing young people's ambition to finish school.
But none can equal the sweeping enigma of quality education. In a TIMSS survey this year, it shows that our budget-strained, corruption-prone country placed 43rd and 42nd in the areas of science and math, respectively, in the whole of Asia, next to Third World Countries Bangladesh, East Timor and Afghanistan. Equally alarming is the result of Raul Roco-inspired DepEd's assessment, with only one out of five English teachers passing the English Proficiency Test. Add to it the distressing hemorrhage of good teachers going abroad and the lack of sustainable skills training to resident instructions, the picture becomes more crystal: the poor Juan is journeying a path that is rock-strewn, winding and under par.
Sadly, most schools, even some private institutions included, are miserably limping due to lack of facilities. No beaker to fill. No microscope to peep. No computers to process. No courts and fields to work out. No blackboards to scribble on. No room to dwell. No book to skim. No library to study on. The list can go on for miles. The often-erratic resource materials in most public schools is an added insult; a time-immemorial misery. The situation is just like having a flat tire in short supply of fuel, with no spares and parts to fix the hitch.
They say that education must be relevant. This means it should gear towards the inculcation among students the value of nation building and human empowerment. That remains more of an idea, rather than a reality. The road to education, at present, is often painted more with linings inspired by profit, money, and power. Instead of fueling the learners with love of country and public service, the theme in the corners of the classroom is instead boosted with dollars, yens, dinars, francs, and sterlings.
Without doubt, these educational toll rates and polluted educational architectures are surely thrashing Juan dela Cruz's educational hopes big time and rock bottom.
To what value is moving on fast, if one is not equipped with the right engine (e.g. school equipment) to propel, or the correct navigation skills (e.g. skilled teachers) to triangulate the accurate way to the finish line?
To what value is the struggle to hoard diplomas and big bucks, if it means the degeneration of the country's "glocal" roadmap to sustainable progress and to Filipinos way of life?
There is no way to breast the tape in this Juan dela Cruz's race to accessible, quality and relevant education, but to struggle for a long-lasting, restructured, and values-oriented Philippines. And we must fight back--even if it means a complete U-turn--at once.
We must. We will. For education is an end in itself.