Many rural high schools in the Philippines lag behind when it comes to the instructional standards, as compared to their urban counterparts.
In fact, the affected rural students themselves have echoed their complaints beyond the walls of their alma maters. According to them, they have a hard time coping up the to rigors of college assignments and instructions either for reason that they haven’t studied the subjects while in high school or that the instructors were not good in the subjects they teach.
But in reality, these are just the tip of the iceberg. And the real reason is that the national government has not fully addressed the needs of these high schools because they lack the budget necessary to acquire the latest equipment and reference materials these schools needed for their students. Those that experience this kind of problem are the secondary institutions located in far-flung areas, where accessibility can only be made by foot. This is not to mention the dangers that lurk behind, particularly in areas infested by insurgents, who sometimes prey on innocent civilians as their hostages. In this kind of situation, can we expect these remote schools to fare well in terms of instructions. Adding to the miseries are the low pay of teachers, who have to walk miles to serve the students’ hunger for quality education.
When I was in high school, the algebra subject taught to us was too elementary in context. By the time I graduated and eventually took the entrance examination, I was struck point blank when one of the subjects included had something to do with advanced college algebra. At any rate, I still succeeded and enrolled in a city college. However, my misery didn’t end there because I was surprised to find that I still lack the necessary requirements to enroll in the course I had picked. Reason? The secondary curricula that lasted four years of gruelling studies and sacrifices, didn’t meet the requirements to enter college as these included vocational school subjects not recognized by most universities, in accordance with the established regulations of the Commission on Higher Education. The ordeal didn’t end up there. After complying with the course’s requirements in that university, I was finally allowed to enroll on condition that I had to take some of the subjects I failed to study in high school. Accordingly, this would allow me to catch up with the advanced subjects in the course I took up. Instead of taking 21 units to make me as professional student, I had no choice but to carry at least two minor subjects in order to make up for my lapses in high school. Isn’t it absurd, even if you had passed the entrance test given by the university to qualify as a bonafide freshman student?
The above scenario does not only speak well about this reporter, but to all poor others who have experienced the same fate for the simple reason that they were products of rural public high schools. For example, in my mother’s hometown, students can have two choices, depending on their ability-to-pay for the cost of tuition: one is privately-owned, while the other one is a public vocational technical high school, which is subsidized by the national government. I picked the latter owing to its proximity to our location. Besides, it has churned out thousands of graduates and had been tested for having been staffed with highly qualified mentors whose academic skills were beyond reproach. If I had hitches, blame them on the concerned decision-makers who might overlooked these educational lapses in some rural public high schools. After all,, that was a sad experience that needs to be learned. And I never felt guilty.
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