The modern Philippine educational system is filled with an assortment of problems. Many students are not learning much at all. Most students are graduating with less knowledge and capability than similar students in other industrialized countries. Classroom disruptions are surprisingly common. School violence is rampant, including the many violent incidents we all hear about in the news. Even violence on school buses is a tremendous problem. To me, the above educational problems are attributed to the following factors:
1. Culture of respect to elders. Before, respect to elders was equated to fear. Whatever the elders said, it was a rule to follow. Nowadays, it is no longer applicable. 2. Rights of the child. In the existence of this law, the discipline cannot be imposed in a form of corporal punishment that was very effective , before misbehavior was not a problem then. 3. Family background. Most of the problem children belong to the families where parents spend most of their time earning decent living.
When parents don’t have enough time in giving quality time for their children’s needs and problems, this causes the children to be misguided and juvenile delinquent. 4. Environment factor. The convergence of the different cultures sometimes bring about the violent behavior of the students because of culture shocks especially in the poor community. 5. Top-down approaches of the educational system. Most remedies given by the higher authorities are not applicable in the grassroots and not fitted to the certain areas and situations in the field.
6. Teacher factor. Since teachers are the front-liners in the field of education, their presence somehow influenced the outcome of the students’ behavior and learning. 7. Mass media and internet. Wrong way on accessing to media and internet without guidance of the adult, ruins the mind of the young. My thinking about these issues on the problems of public education is that, there is a need to revisit or review the present educational set-up and find remedies that could be implemented and fitted to the existing and real scenario of the educational setting.
