There has been considerable reaction to Rodrigo Duterte’s latest speech about removing subjects like calculus and trigonometry in schools which is covered by Vincent over here and later on by Fallen Angel in her latest article. According to Mr. Duterte, this is because the said subjects don’t seem all that useful to start with and that they have no “real” application to a student’s everyday life. Look, I’ll be perfectly honest with everyone here and say that I never really appreciated said subjects either. Much like Mike Portes, another of our contributors, I also think that MATH stands for “Mental Abuse To Humans” and merely thinking about the word “math” makes my head hurt.
However, despite my raw hatred for mathematics, I fully understand its necessity and I concede that they should be retained in schools. If Mr. Duterte is really serious about helping students with their education, he should first start with the local media which is now infested with shows that are actually more detrimental than beneficial to the minds of our young ones. This topic was brought about by one of our commenters Matt De Leon who had more than his fair share of things to say about Mr. Duterte’s decision to remove certain subjects from school curriculums.
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Okay, before you guys call me out again for attacking the media, please read the following first…
Truth is, whether we accept it or not, programming for local TV hasn’t just failed to improve. It has in fact only gotten worse. Back during my childhood, when I got home from school or during weekends, I often got my fill of anime and cartoons which was finished off by a good educational program like Sineskwela or Bayani and, even if they weren’t, I could at least pick up a good bit of creativity from shows like Hirayamanawari or similar shows. Unfortunately, majority of children of today who have no choice but to watch only the two big local channels get bombarded with nothing but teleseryes and similar programming.
I know it may seem innocuous and yes, people have a right to watch teleseryes if they want to. But again, as I’ve said for perhaps the hundredth time, watching or seeing the same thing repeating over and over again can have a subliminal effect on one’s mind. As an example of what I’m talking about, I am willing to admit that my over-consumption of Warhammer 40,000 contributed to my depression just over two years ago and had to momentarily take a break from it as advised by my counselor at the time.
What I’m saying is that if Mr. Duterte really wants to improve the education of our children, he should start with cleaning up the local media first because they are most certainly not helping with the way our youths are becoming more and more warped today. If a grown man can be easily influenced by repetitive media consumption, what more with very young audiences who have very malleable minds and suggestible psyches?
I and a good number of other contributors have probably said this already, but it still bears mentioning that the following be removed or at least reduced if we want to improve the minds of our youths today:
Themes Of Dysfunction And Infidelity
They say that the basic unit of the community is the family. If that’s the case, then it bears mentioning that a lot of our local programming is doing nothing but destroying the community with its subliminal effects. When all you see are shows filled with cheating husbands and wives and slapfests, what kind of values do you expect our youths to pick up.
Indeed, as a lot of contributors here point out, a lot shows today seem to imply that dysfunction and infidelity in the family is “normal” even when they clearly aren’t.
The “Emo” Nature Of Teens
Well, let’s face it, teens are emotional to start with. I’m sure all of us can relate somewhat as majority of us can remember the rigors of puberty. However, what our media does is only make it worse by playing up the emotional and dramatic nature of being a teen.
Teens will be teens, that’s true also but what I think most teens today need is guidance and not misguidance which they often get from local TV programs that not just fail to understand them but also deceive them on how the reality of life actually works.
The Overemphasis On Love And Romance
Again, you guys are welcome to call me a bitter old coot. However, as mentioned in some articles before this one, everything in the media is about love, love, love. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with romantic love, mind you but when you factor in the country’s ever-growing population problem and our reluctance to use contraceptives, then you can see how utterly self-defeating we are as a people.
Love may be important, but let’s not forget that there are other more practical pursuits that are necessary for one’s life. For instance, love can’t put food on the table or pay for your children’s education. Now love can inspire you to do wonderful and amazing things but it can only go so far.
***
Look, I’m not saying that you should totally ban the stuff I just mentioned. However, I still think that reducing them or switching up the time slot may be a good idea. I don’t know about Mr. Duterte. Probably, during his time at least, parents and teachers were the only people he interacted with as a child. As for the youth of today however, one of the most defining influences is the TV which acts almost like a second parent to children. So if Mr. Duterte really wants to improve the education and literacy of Filipino children, he should start by at least minimizing the negative messages they can get from television.
Now, I’m willing to understand if they don’t return anime during weekday afternoons as there are shows like Berserk that aren’t appropriate for very young audiences however they should at least bring back educational programs like Sineskwela or Math-Tinik…
I HAVE RETURNED TO LAY WASTE TO OUR ENEMIES!
Simply put, while Mr. Duterte wants to improve the country’s education system, he should also look at, most importantly. on how he can reduce the distractions that keeps our students from being focused in school. It is like no matter how you improve a show, it won’t matter as long as there is no audience.
Actually, I think it would have been good for Duterte if he instead said “Yang mga tele-serye o online games na ‘yan, tatanggalin ko ‘yang mga yan!”
—
To Duterte’s supporters: I remember Ilda’s article about Duterte’s need for a PR makeover. His statement about removing certain math subjects in the curriculum I think is one of those times where you need to tell him, ‘Sir, shh!” To save him from being misinterpreted. We already have a problem with our education system and now he seem to want to make a move that, because to him Calculus and Trigonometry and perhaps certain topics of Algebra are useless and therefore should be removed, may worsen it even more.
If you truly have faith in Duterte to be president, then remind him of his boundaries. He is not running as mayor of Davao City anymore. He is running as president of the Philippines. The path that he is taking now requires him to expand his perspectives.
I’ve seen a lot of comments defending Duterte on this issue. I suggest you stop defending him. Urge him to clarify himself and show what he truly means. But of course advise him on what to say.
Ow! Huwag naman Online Games! Oh well, if it’s for the good of the community, okay, I’ll go along with that…
Besides, he can always ban kids and not adults from playing online games… 😛
nothing lasts forever we are continually evolving eventually change is inevitable sta strong mc hammer
WARNING: Overconsumption of Philippine politics is bad for your mental health. Which is why I admire Miriam for still being somewhat sane…
More than one hour of TV a day is NOT good for children that is proven… and too much Internet is probably not good as well neither for adults… this kind of stuff should be part of what parents are taught so they know this.
Kung magcritic ka sa Pinoy teleseryes, may mga fans na “eh kesa naman sa iba, violent, daw, may drugs, sexual pa.
But please bakit kung manunuod ako sa Hollywood/other films mayron ganyan, bakit mas magaan pa ang pakiramdam ko, feel good pa kesa sa mga teleseryes na yan. Eh, mas nakakabasag ang TV nga eh ang palabas dito. Di nila naiintindihan na content lang yang mga violence etc, pero ang message ang ganda “save the mankind from danger” “be true to yourself, accept who you are” “fight what is right even the world may wrong.”
ang sa atin, wholesome daw, pero ano ang mensahe, “to be foolish on someone coz that’s true love,” makikipagpatayan pa dahil inagaw ang minamahal, bawal daw gumanti, kahit dumudugo ka sa kabugbug and much more stupidities. Teens here luck of pop culture icons that inspire them to explore. Nothing, compare to foreign pop teen icons like Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, Naruto. They embody critical thinking and fruitful youth to their respective fandoms, sa atin who? Ina Macaspah? Angelo? Aldub? Mara and Clara?
*lack*
TRUTH!!!!!
U may have that heard that one speech of him that he is going to use media to be a medium to educate people.. I dont habe thw link but I remember I thought of PBS kids.org when he said that..
Removing Algebra, Calculus and Trigonometry means removing Engineering and Architecture courses in college. What type of weed Duterte is smoking ???
Programa ni Duterte – an analysis of Duterte’s programs… and a general analysis of where the Philippines could be at now and what could be missing as food for thought. Have fun reading.
It is one way of Aquino and Roxas, making dumb the voters: stupid TV shows. I do not watch those stupid Filipino shows. I don’t even watch any Filipino show. They are mostly nonsense. Mostly copied from American shows.
I rather read a good book than watch a Filipino TV show. I watch :History Channel; Arm Forces Channel; National Geographic Channel; Science and Technology Channel;Travel Channel, etc…I watch also news, political commentaries, world news from foreign countries, etc…
I believe that education is a life time work. To make your brain working everyday. The Brain is a muscle…it needs to be exercised everyday; like any part of your body.
Education does not stop, when you graduated from the University.
We have shows from TV5 like History with Lourd and Word of the Lourd. I liked their topic about how the Oppressors like the Cojuangco Clan stole the Country fund and used it to become landowners of Tarlac and rose to power.
YouTube had good shows as well like Movie reviews, Epic Rap Battle of History, Anime reviews, Game and Film Theories, and Vevo. Because of this website, Ive seen a video about why PH keeps getting poor and worse.
Cable here in US is not good anymore. Internet streaming like YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, and Crunchyroll are now the next cable.
Napoleon famously said, “In politics ignorance is not a handicap”. He had no idea how prophetic that observation was, because Mr. Duterte, last week, so amply proved it. As a lawyer.. from the ‘San Beda College of Law no less.. Atty. Duterte probably knows that in his profession, argumentation, always proceeds from logic, and, that logic borrows from, and leans heavily on Mathematics, of which Algebra is an essential part. There is no other discipline more logical and more precise than ‘Math’. Could ‘two and two, when put together, be anything but four’? Could ‘five, repeated three times be anything but fifteen’? Argumentation and rebuttals.. even just the ‘thinking process’.. to be precise and inarguable must, therefore, mirror the discipline of Mathematics. For Atty. Duterte to now excise Algebra from schools’ curricula is bizarre.
In banishing Calculus and Trigonometry, (as well), from schools’ curricula.. two areas integral to Mathematics and all Engineering courses.. Atty. Duterte is perhaps ‘okay’ with the idea of relegating our ‘Engineering’ graduates to the tail-end of Engineers worldwide. Well, the fact is.. they wouldn’t be engineers at all.
I am not too sure what the good Attorney’s game plan is; but right now he is just exhibiting infectious ‘crass ignorance’, which seems to have already afflicted his rabid followers. As we pointed out in an earlier comment, “Ignorance begets more confidence than does intelligence”.
We are, indeed, living in dangerous times.
Stopped watching Philippine drama for more than a year and have never felt better. The characters in cartoons and anime like Adventure Time, Regular Show, Hyouka and Toradora are more human than the Mary/Marty Sues that are shown in Philippine drama. Seriously why have these dramas everyday, it does not even teach love, what it teaches is selfishness, since the characters can’t let go. Don’t even get me started on the lack of character development and the one dimensional characters. Toradora for example tells a better love story than most of the Philippine drama.
As for the subjects like Calculus and Trigonometry, I think that despite these being hard for students, it is necessary, since a wrong calculation can negatively affect other people (i.e. Buildings that are unstable, Wrong Conclusions in Statistical Data)
Because today we live in a society in which spurious realities are manufactured by the media, by governments, by big corporations, by religious groups, political groups… So I ask, in my writing, What is real? Because unceasingly we are bombarded with pseudo-realities manufactured by very sophisticated people using very sophisticated electronic mechanisms. I do not distrust their motives; I distrust their power. They have a lot of it. And it is an astonishing power: that of creating whole universes, universes of the mind.