the decline of English

Whether you want to accept this or not, reality is here to haunt not only teachers but also parents of kids who pay much to give their children quality education. Children today no longer care about the printed WORD. Most of them do not like to read and so therefore what do you expect when they go to a spelling bee? It's sad and likewise confusing because our educators do not seem to be exactly sleeping-on-the-job. We hear about the numerous seminars these key education players have to attend annually. Why? What are they learning in these seminar-workshops which cost the government lots of money? One teacher jokingly said that they like to go to such seminars because of the food and the "eating" that are part of those events. Of course, teachers gotta eat, too. But what do these annual gatherings accomplish except for the additional mound on our teachers' bellies?

the use of English to teach Filipino

It is a fact that most students know English better than they know their national language Filipino. Ask the students themselves. Make a study and find out what they think of Filipino subjects. THEY HATE THEM! That is why most of our very own Filipino students hit rock-bottom grades in a subject they are supposed to know. So what is happening? First off, it is how the subject is taught. Lamentably, teachers teaching the subject teach it in PURE FILIPINO. Are you kidding me? Why? Not all students are from Manila! Visayans do not speak Tagalog or Filipino and it is hard to fathom why Visayan teachers insist in teaching the subject purely in Filipino. Just imagine any Visayan student listening to a Filipino teacher lecturing,"Ang mga uri ng pandiwa ay ang pangkasalukuyan, pangnagdaan, at panghinaharap." Whaaaat? Filipino teachers should know better. They should be trained how to teach a subject that sounds like French to most students. Whose fault is it? English happens to be our medium of instruction and students are more exposed to this language more than their own. And fyi, students will be able to use the global language more when they go out into the real world to look for work. So what's the big deal about making the students adept at our own national language? Okay, so we want them to know our very own national language, but you better teach the subject the right way!

Since the students know and understand English more, Filipino teachers should use this as a tool or means to teach Filipino, a subject now hated by many students who struggle to learn it. Teachers teaching Filipino should use their COMMON SENSE. Teach Filipino alongside English. Explain difficulties in English. When you talk about SIMUNO for instance, give the equivalent of the word in English and give loads of examples in both Filipino and English.

Stop talking French in your Filipino subjects, ma'am, if you want the students to learn. Our students hate your subject already, so please, MAKE THEM LEARN the subject so that at least they will be able to speak it the simplest possible way.

enhancing English skills thru a sitcom

A workshop that trains students how to act using the English language has been offered this summer. The participants practice one script per week and by the end of the workshop they would have performed a total of nine sitcoms which were aired on local television. So far, the actors had already performed the following:

"Accelerated," "The Snack Monster," "Friday the 13th," "Pimple,"

"The Prince," "Gossip," and on Tuesday they should be ready to shoot "Love

Letter." Still to be rehearsed are "The Fight" and "Time Out Goes Glee."

high school students forced to make theses?

This is now the era of teachers not knowing what they are teaching. There's the case of some high school teachers who require their poor students to write, submit and defend a thesis! Yes, a thesis, as in complete with all the characteristics of a thesis that graduate students are expected to write---Statement of the Problem, Theoretical Background, Conceptual Framework, Research Design, Methodology, Statistical Treatment, etc.----are they crazy? Don't you do your RESEARCH before teaching the subject? Por dios! Please! Don't you even go over the contents of the book you are asking the students to buy for this particular subject? It's a book for graduate students! What other trash are you teaching the students? Will you please get a book and study how to teach term paper writing or simple research writing to your high school students before attempting to teach this subject which you obviously do not know anything about?