Who has not heard of the "Tiger Mom?" The mother who hovers over her children and beats them real good if they step out of line. She makes sure they practice piano 3 hours a day, homework for 4 hours, and woe betide any child who would make a fuss. And heaven forbid their child receive anything less than straight A's or the number one position in any competition.
Apparently, and despite its proximity to China, this trend has not caught on in the Philippines. There are no "Tiger Moms" here. But there are parents who will bribe officials so their children get ahead. And their are teachers who accept bribes in order to give passing grades. Anecdotally anyway. I have heard many such stories though I have never experienced the education system in the Philippines.
What is the result of the absence of "Tiger Moms" to push their children to scholastic heights? It is a celebration of failure.
In what rational society would anyone celebrate 9th place!! To God be the Glory I got 9th place! What a way to blame shift. This guy is 100% responsible for coming in 9th place. And there is nothing glorious about it. Don't blame it on God.
Nor is there anything wonderful or glorious about 6th or 7th place. Nobody even cares about who made 2nd or 3rd. We all know who Michael Phelps is but who is the 2nd greatest swimmer of all time? See? No one cares.
And no one cares about this student making 9th place in a photo competition. Will employers consider this guy as a win? Who wants to hire Mr. 9th Place? His photos probably suck. They certainly weren't good enough to get past 9th place.
Now take a closer look at the categories in the first picture and the third picture. The first category is Filipino Photojournalism and the second is English Photojournalism. What is the difference? Photojournalism is just that, photos! There is no such thing as English, Filipino, Chinese, or Slovenian Photojournalism because pictures do not speak with words. These categories are meaningless. Go ahead and Google "Filipino Photojournalism" and "English Photojournalism." There is nothing. (I'm not even going to delve into discovering what "Filipino Science-Technology Writing" is though I would guess it's just writing about science and technology in Tagalog.)
So not only is this a celebration of failure it is a celebration of meaninglessness. And such is the educational system of the Philippines which as I understand works this way:
1. Finish primary and secondary school
2. Get worthless college degree in tourism
3. Become OFW and support your whole extended family
This horrible system in the Philippines where failure is celebrated and where education is most decidedly not is one of the many problems facing the Philippines and it is another fundamental issue that the Duterte administration has failed to address. Duterte has boasted that he wants to bring the Philippines up to a midlevel economy by 2022. It won't happen with uneducated people who do not strive for excellence but instead celebrate failure.
Nor is there anything wonderful or glorious about 6th or 7th place. Nobody even cares about who made 2nd or 3rd. We all know who Michael Phelps is but who is the 2nd greatest swimmer of all time? See? No one cares.
And no one cares about this student making 9th place in a photo competition. Will employers consider this guy as a win? Who wants to hire Mr. 9th Place? His photos probably suck. They certainly weren't good enough to get past 9th place.
Now take a closer look at the categories in the first picture and the third picture. The first category is Filipino Photojournalism and the second is English Photojournalism. What is the difference? Photojournalism is just that, photos! There is no such thing as English, Filipino, Chinese, or Slovenian Photojournalism because pictures do not speak with words. These categories are meaningless. Go ahead and Google "Filipino Photojournalism" and "English Photojournalism." There is nothing. (I'm not even going to delve into discovering what "Filipino Science-Technology Writing" is though I would guess it's just writing about science and technology in Tagalog.)
So not only is this a celebration of failure it is a celebration of meaninglessness. And such is the educational system of the Philippines which as I understand works this way:
1. Finish primary and secondary school
2. Get worthless college degree in tourism
3. Become OFW and support your whole extended family
This horrible system in the Philippines where failure is celebrated and where education is most decidedly not is one of the many problems facing the Philippines and it is another fundamental issue that the Duterte administration has failed to address. Duterte has boasted that he wants to bring the Philippines up to a midlevel economy by 2022. It won't happen with uneducated people who do not strive for excellence but instead celebrate failure.
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