Factotums supporting the present Marcos-Duterte administration roughshod the passage of the budget containing the anomalous intelligence fund that is too dull in the eyes of the truly intelligent people. The justification is too tough to accept especially in the face of the economic condition the country had been dragged by the present politicians masquerading as leaders. It is so disturbing due to the huge amount that would fund counter-insurgency programs in the guise of protecting school children from supposed insurgents that intrude into school campuses purportedly to recruit students into the insurgency movement.

People are well aware that counter-insurgency and anti-insurgency programs are the functions of the country’s armed forces and the national police. These agencies and instruments of the government are already taking a huge chunk of the national budget; Why else allocate a huge budget for the education department for it to depart from its primary function of educating the school children? Such act would cause duplication and chaos among the agencies tasked to protect the citizens from the purported insurgents living and operating in the countryside.

Like the failed experiments in the inclusion of sex education in the elementary curriculum, this anti-insurgency and counter-insurgency programs seems bound to the same direction and conclusion. The program is being sugarcoated to entice the gullible parents and the innocent school children into accepting and supporting the program. Despite all negative indications, the education department is bound to implement the program by hook or by crook.

The true and real opposition in both the house of representatives and the senate are doing their all to compel the education secretary to disclose the items comprising the entire intelligence fund. But one representative Stella Luz A. Quimbo of Marikina City’s Second District is taking the cudgels to parry all efforts demanding transparency and accountability from the education secretary.

There is only one thing that is certain, the budget for intelligence fund is bound to be spent elsewhere without transparency and accountability. By all indications, it is not for education.
comments to alellema@yahoo.com

NOW that we in the month of October, let’s remind ourselves of the importance of the Holy Rosary. It’s a very helpful prayer that lets us go through the life of Christ, the pattern of our humanity, with Mary who is the best teacher and guide in knowing Christ whose life we should try to reflect in ours.

The month opens with the liturgical celebration of the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time whose gospel reading talks about that parable of the two sons who were asked by their father to work in their vineyard. (cfr. Mt 21,28-32)

The first son at first refused his father’s request but later on changed his mind. The second said, yes, but actually did not go. Obviously, the first son did the father’s will, but only after some conversion. The second was just full of intention and words but failed in the action part.

The lesson that we should draw from this gospel parable is that we are always in need of conversion for us to do God’s will. We cannot deny that we can have a lot of what is called now as political or social correctness, but still fail to do God’s will, the real good for us.
We have to realize deeply that conversion is a continuing affair for all of us in this life. We can never say, if we have to follow by what our Christian faith tells us, that we are good enough as to need conversion no more.

We are all sinners, St. John said. And even the just man, as the Bible said, falls seven times in a day. (cfr. Proverbs 24,16)

Besides, it is this sense of continuing conversion that would really ensure us that whatever we do, whatever would happen to us, including our failures and defeats, would redound to what is truly good for the parties concerned and for everybody else in general.

That’s because conversion brings us and everything that we have done in life to a reconciliation with God, from whom we come and to whom we go.

In one of the post-resurrection appearances of Christ to his apostles, that time when it was said that Christ “opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,” our Lord told them clearly:

“Thus, it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” (Lk 24,46-47)

Yes, repentance for the forgiveness of sins has to be preached far and wide and constantly. These words show how much Christ is bent in saving us, in bringing us to our true dignity of a functioning child of God. This is his will for us. We just have to learn to correspond to that will, which is actually for our own true good.

The mark of true saints is precisely this hunger and thirst for repentance and conversion. Whatever good they did humbled them instead of leaving them proud. They knew who and what was behind all the accomplishments they made, and were more keenly aware of their inadequacies, their mistakes, faults, infidelities, etc.

It’s not that they led a miserable life of having a dark outlook in life and a negative attitude toward their own selves. They were a happy lot, whose joy sprang from their living and faithful union with God, their father, but aware of their total dependence on God.
Let’s always feel the need for conversion!

Alam ko, papasa naman ako!

When the student realized that he would be promoted to the next grade even if he did not possess the competency for the current grade level, he would not make a special effort to pass and master the competencies. The teacher is forced to let the kid pass if they know that failing a student who is very slow in most of the aptitudes will require more work from them and that they may have to spend the summer tutoring the students they kept. Our students are brought down by this cycle. There is an alarming learning poverty created by mass promotion of our learners.

Mass promotion is the practice of advancing students to the next grade level regardless of their academic performance or mastery of competencies. It is an unofficial but common policy that has been culturally and administratively ingrained in the Philippine education system, according to a report by the Philippine Business for Education (PBEd) 1. The report, which surveyed over 300 stakeholders nationwide, including teachers, school leaders, government officials, parents, students, and industry experts, revealed that mass promotion has negative impacts on the quality of learning and the development of values among students.

One of the ill effects of mass promotion is that it results in a failure to master fundamentals such as reading, writing, and numeracy. These skills are essential for students to progress to higher levels of learning and to cope with the demands of the 21st century. However, due to mass promotion, many students are unable to acquire these skills adequately and end up lagging behind their peers in other countries. For instance, in the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which measures the reading, mathematics, and science literacy of 15-year-old students from 79 countries, the Philippines ranked last in reading and second to the last in mathematics and science 2. This dismal performance reflects the poor quality of education that many Filipino students receive due to mass promotion.

Another ill effect of mass promotion is that it causes unintended behavioral issues among students. Mass promotion undermines the value of hard work, resiliency, teamwork, and respect that are supposed to be instilled in students through education. Instead, it fosters a culture of complacency, mediocrity, cheating, and disrespect among students who know that they will pass anyway regardless of their efforts or conduct. According to PBEd executive director Justine Raagas, there are many anecdotes from teachers of students blatantly disregarding their work or copying answers or worse, just easily giving up and saying, ‘It’s okay. I’m going to pass anyway’ 1. These attitudes not only affect the academic performance of students but also their character formation and moral development.

In conclusion, mass promotion is a harmful practice that should be stopped in the Philippine basic education system. It lowers the quality of learning and damages the values of students. It also hinders the development of a competitive and innovative workforce that can contribute to the progress and prosperity of the country. Therefore, it is imperative that the Department of Education (DepEd) and other stakeholders implement measures to ensure that students are assessed based on their actual competencies and retained or not promoted to the next grade if it is not yet showing the attributes and the mastery of the competencies needed.

This may be what we need to address the ills of our education!

Kung hindi ako makabasa at hindi ko pa kabisado ang Math, baka hindi ako pumasa. Kaya pag bubutihin upang maipasa ko ito!

The Philippines and South Korea have partnered to modernize agriculture extension system in the rural areas. Specifically, the Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Training Institute (DA-ATI) and the South Korean-based Asian Food and Agriculture Cooperation Initiative in Rural Development Administration (AFACI-RAD) are partners in to implement an improved Rural Agricultural Technology Extension System in cooperation with Phil. Extension Service Network until 2025.

Accordingly, all “RATES projects will utilize information and communication technologies (ICT), tools and solutions to address the need for digital inclusion among the marginalized sector in Philippine agriculture. The partners believe that ICTs are essential tools in boosting the collection, processing, and transmission of quality data and information to more farmers.”

Further, the ATI stated that in order “to meet the demands of the growing agricultural markets locally and abroad, the agriculture and fishery sector must be transformed into a technology-based , advanced, and competitive industries.”

ATI stated that RATES project will help professionalize the delivery of these services and empower AEWs and LSA cooperators to use digital tools and technologies, thereby indirectly benefitting farmers, fishers, and youth in the targeted communities.

MY COMMENT:

This is one example of a partnership meant to uplift the lowly farmers and fishers sector. If, indeed, one of the aims of the Maharlika Investment Fund, the government of PBBM should venture to invite, entice foreign investors to the Philippines as an investment haven, in agriculture and energy, specifically.
ooo000ooo
NEXT TOPIC : “Halal industry promotion, a commitment – PEZA”
SHARE S & T THOUGHTS through E-Mail: drpacjr@yahoo.com.