Learning should never stop.
If we all stopped learning, we would be screwed!
Although we enjoy the days without school because there’s no longer any homework, we now have to face another enemy: our poor educational system. Over the years, schools have been churning out students like a toy manufacturing company. Because of this, it’s become they either make proper puppets or they crush those who deviate from social norms.
And because of this, what do we get?
We get people with poor comprehension. They can read but without understanding. We have people that can do math but if you ask them to do a word problem, they can’t figure it out. We get people who make poor choices especially when voting because they don’t understand the implications of a politician’s platform. We get people who quote the Scriptures without knowing what the verses really mean.
There’s a clear disconnect on how concepts should be applied. And because of that, we’re left with people who can do things mechanically but cannot advance and simplify what people call complex methods.
Which is why learning should never stop. The world is changing daily. We call that process globalization. And that process can cross the world in a matter of sixty seconds. The world is more connected than ever. We have Facebook and Google. For businesses, they have Zoom to hold their meetings.
As long as technology advances, we, humanity, must advance. Like all other humans, Filipinos are constantly developing. But they cannot keep up because of diminishing learning opportunities.
AHEAD President Rossana Llenado adds that for Filipinos to succeed, they have to be given constant opportunities to make sure their learning continues:
“We are in the process of making all our classes accessible to our students. In this day and age, we live in a time where learning should never stop. Each and every moment is an opportunity for learning.” She says. “Even our teachers and our staff, we make sure we train them with workshops to make sure they’re capable of handling any form of crisis especially with the virus now.”
Especially in this day and age where we now have the Coronavirus, there are three battles to be won: the physical battle against the Coronavirus, the mental battle wherein we deal with mental illnesses and are cut off from our usual coping mechanisms and support systems, and finally, the battle for info: the infodemic against the critical thinkers.
But the battle against Corona cannot be won if we are divided. If we are to call out then, call out. But never fail to teach and inform. Although we still fight against confirmation bias, it’s better we try.
But how do we win a battle against an infodemic?
While there are memes that speak of the Philippines being a terminal case of stupidity, there are some who still believe in the latent talents of the Filipinos. When speaking to Rossana Llenado about the state of the Philippines, she still saw that the Philippines is more than being number 79 out of the 79 countries tested for reading comprehension:
“Filipinos can be brilliant in their own way. We Filipinos are resourceful, resilient, and kind,” she said. “But we cannot reach our full potential if we are constantly left with subpar quality learning and sporadic schedules as to when a person should learn. Because of this, Filipinos simply stop learning because of the lack of structure and direction they need.”
We cannot stop learning just because it looks hard. Everything that is uncertain is difficult. Math was once difficult. English is difficult for a native speaker of a different language. And because there is a perception of difficulty, there is fear and people become close-minded.
But now is not the time to fear the unknown.
It’s time to make the unknown known.