Facing Some of the Challenges as an Educator in Fostering the Filipino Youth

 Education is a very important part of the Philippine culture. A Filipino child has one time or more heard some close relative talk to them about how important education is. Quotes like, "mag-aral ka para kapag nakatapos ka uunlad ang buhay mo" or "edukasyon lang ang maipapamana namin sa'yo", have been reiterated by most Filipino parents to their kids as to motivate them to pursue education. Medals, trophies, certificates and diplomas is still being used as wall decorations on most Filipino households. The average Filipino's attitude towards those who have reached high educational attainment is of utmost respect as to reach semi-divinity is a picture of how Filipinos view on education. But the Filipinos' love of education comes not without challenges and the most impacted by these challenges are the students themselves.

​

The economic and class divide of the Philippine society has long been a fundamental issue in Philippine education (1). The socio-economic divide in the country has impacted education especially to those young Filipinos who are living in the very rural parts of the country. The country is also dominated by private higher education institutions (HEI) compared to public tertiary schools (2). Not to mention the fact that leading private HEIs have better facilities compared to their public counterparts and majority of Filipinos cannot afford these HEIs. This is also the case in most of the primary and secondary schools. Hence, though not always the case, better learning opportunities have been the privilege of the richer Filipino youth.

Another challenge of giving quality education to the youth is not enough national education budget. The most recent data from UN Development Programme shows that in 2012 the country was spending the equivalent of 2.7% of its GDP on education, below the 6% recommended by UNESCO and the 4.9% global average (3). Despite the fact that the biggest share of the annual budget goes to education mandated by the 1987 Constitution (4), we still fall short on international standard.

​

One of the major challenges that we sometimes fail to recognize is the migration of competent aspiring educators to countries with better economy and also the reality that a percentage of education major graduates chose to pursue another career because of a better compensation in other endeavors. Teachers are among the lowest-paid among government employees despite their qualifications and many responsibilities.(1)

​

This doesn't exhaust the problems that educators face in fostering the Filipino youth. Philippine modern education as being spearheaded by the Philippine government had prioritized in the preparation of the youth to become an asset of the country. Despite the programs, passed and ongoing, there are still challenges that teachers and students face. As educators, we need to follow and perform our duties with utmost capabilities because failure to do so will aggravate the problems we are facing. 

To end this, I will share my opinion on the best way to combat these problems. I think the most important thing to do is to be affectionate on the youth believing that they are the hope of the country. As an educator, invest on the future by giving away oneself by educating the youth. Having a deeper purpose than material things while we are in the process of reforming the educational system in the Philippines will get us further than focusing on ourselves alone.

(1) https://www.bworldonline.com/philippine-education-in-crisis/

(2) http://rsso05.psa.gov.ph/content/education

(3) https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/bright-prospects-substantial-reforms-have-focused-improving-student-performance

(4) https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Philippines_1987.pdf?lang=en