Monday 2 October 2017

What Filipino Teachers Need - Part 1

by  Marily Sasota Gayeta







At about sunset, they start coming out of their enclaves. They walk with heavy steps, sometimes dragging their feet. Their faces look blank or disoriented. They are pale and trembling. They look at you with blood shot eyes. No, they are not zombies from “The Walking Dead”. They are teachers. Exhausted, sleep-deprived teachers.

Pardon the hyperbolic comparison. But what I’m about to discuss is not exaggerated. 

Filipino teachers are just exhausted on all fronts: physically ,emotionally  and  mentally. A day on the job is a test of endurance, self-control  and mental toughness. 

A typical teacher, whether in the government or private sector,renders six hours of actual teaching, and two hours of paper work.

What happens during those six teaching  hours ? In those six hours ,teachers   have to rein in   35 to 50 students ( or more ) who are bursting  with juvenile and impish energy. If a boy pokes another boy in the eye with a pencil, the poor teacher may  get sued by parents.Thus, teachers have to be on the lookout all the time.  Then, they teach. They teach pupils how to read . They help students interpret Shakespeare’s sonnets. They teach them  mathematical operations and scientific theories . They demonstrate how to create an art project, how to sing and how to kick a soccer ball.

In those six hours, teachers  do grueling, back-breaking work.  They  always move around: from the blackboard, to the students’ seats, to all sides of their  rooms. They wipe snotty noses of Grade 1 pupils.  They monitor   what students  are doing. Are the kids copying the right thing ? Are they solving the math problem correctly? Are they mixing the right chemicals, or are they inadvertently creating a bomb? Because of this constant shuffling, pacing and sprinting, teachers’ backs, legs and feet hurt all the time. And of course, they  use their voice a lot. They explain something. Then, they explain it  again. And again .  Until the students get it.  Then, they call out  kids who are playing hide and seek in the classroom.Or  they warn sneaky, rebellious  teens who are flirting on  their phones . Yes, teachers talk all the time. Thus, their  poor throats take a beating.

In those six hours, it’s heaven and hell. They are ecstatic  when students finally get the answer. They are calm  and happy when pupils pay attention and behave like angels. But then, there’s the other end  of the pendulum. There’s anger, hopelessness and frustration. They have to exercise utmost self- control in dealing with unruly kids. Teachers have to have endless patience in teaching and re-teaching lessons  to academically-challenged students. They have to try hard to motivate students who show too little interest in school. 


In those six hours, a teacher is an expert, a parent , a preacher , a police officer , an entertainer, a handyman , a nurse ,a referee ,  a baby sitter. All of those people, in one body.

Aside from those  six hours of actual teaching, Filipino teachers are  expected  to render another two hours  for paper work, class preparation  and school-related activities. Reading up the chapters to be discussed the next day , writing  lesson plans and  making instructional  materials, checking exams and projects, making props  for a school program , practicing students   for a song or a dance number , training students  for competitions ,  decorating classrooms and  entering data on the Learner Information System ( LIS )or other systems being used in the private sector. 

 Wait, there’s more :  planting tomatoes and okra under that “ Gulayan sa Paaralan” thing ( with the help of a few parents ) , doing action research , preparing students’ lists for  government-sponsored  vaccination, sending letters to parents ,  running errands for the principal, answering complaints from annoying,grade-conscious parents .The list is endless. 

Where in God’s hand will teachers get the time and energy to do  all of these things in the school?  Thus, in those two hours , teachers only  do the tasks that inevitably  need to be done in school or those  that require the presence of other people—-like classroom beautification and  training students for a press conference.  The other tasks —— they do at  home, at night or weekends . Thus, their job does not end in school. It never does. 

That eight-hour  day  as a teacher is  exhausting, stressful and nerve-wracking. 

At about 5:00 PM,  teachers leave  school. They take on another persona. Mother or father to a bunch of kids,   a caregiver to an aging parent, a community leader or a part-time entrepreneur trying to make both ends meet.   The other part of their life begins. Let’s take a look at the  mother persona, which is the most common. She   takes a quick trip   to the grocery or talipapa , and then  cooks dinner. This is followed by a string of other house chores like tidying up the house a bit, and doing some laundry. Housework, just to remind everyone, is tiring and time-consuming . In between housework,  the kids have to be helped with their assignments  and school projects.

A teacher’s  night does not end  when the kids are tucked in bed.  Remember— there’s the  school work that she had to take home. She  has to prepare  for her lessons for the next day. If she is lucky , she prepares for just one or two  subjects . If she is not , three or more ( especially if she has MAPE ).She has to make additional practice activities and put them on Power point slides. And because her school most likely does not have  internet connection, she does the LIS transactions at home. And if her home internet  is slow ( and it is slow in the whole Philippines ) , she has to wait for the unholy hours for it to speed up. Only then can she  do her transactions on the system. 

At midnight or 1:00 AM, she goes to bed. Worn out.Drained to the last drop. 

After five hours of sleep, her alarm clock rouses her again from her inadequate slumber . Groggy , she cooks breakfast , bathes the kids , gets them dressed  for school  and  packs their “ baons”. Then off she hurries to work again. 

On Friday nights , she frantically prepares her report  for her MA or Ph.D. class. Her sleep is reduced to  a wink or two. On Saturdays, she attends her graduate or post-graduate classes, and that’s after a coastal clean-up or a required  marathon.  And finally, on Sundays ,yes—- she is free …to  clean the house. 


Filipino teachers need rest and sleep.It’s basic but often over-looked. It sounds so simplistic, but it’s actually complicated. Most  medical doctors would agree . 
Physical exhaustion  and  sleep deprivation are a dangerous combination. They  wreak  havoc on  the body and mind , as medical research have proven. People who are constantly deprived of rest and sleep have a  weaker  immune system and are susceptible to different illnesses like cardiovascular and gastrointestinal diseases.

 The American Sleep Association or ASA  ( Yes, sleep is so important that there is even a medical  association  for it . ) says  that sleep deprivation disrupts the body’s ability to regulate glucose.This makes the person likely to develop Type 2 diabetes .  Lack of sleep also takes its toll on mental health. Sleep has been identified as a key factor  in  happiness and those who are constantly deprived of it are more likely to commit suicide, even if they don't have any previous psychiatric issues. 
As the European newspaper The Mirror  aptly put it : Lack of sleep leads to a wake.

Studies  also  reveal  that exhaustion  leads to a low level of serotonin , and this causes depression , anxiety and insomnia. Teaching  is a combination of physical and mental exertion.  Prolonged exertion without much-needed respite leads to frequent bouts of sickness, decreased  cognitive functioning , emotional outbursts and reduced motivation —-all of which are detrimental to their students. 

DEP-ED and CHED officials , and school administrators ( in  both the public and private sectors)  are constantly finding ways to improve classroom teaching through training  and facilities upgrade.  But the harsh truth is this.  No amount of seminar and training, and  modern  teaching equipment  can improve the performance of over-worked  and sleep -deprived teachers. Rest and sleep  are fundamental biological needs, and teachers  need them to deliver the goods. They may listen or pretend to listen during a seminar on “ 21st century teaching “, but that will not translate to improved classroom performance if they are  too burned out , too tired , too sleepy or too sick. It won’t sink in. On the other hand , the benefits  of computers and smart boards are offset by a lack of initiative to find ways to maximize their use.


                                    


Teachers  need rest. They  need eight to ten hours of sleep per day on those ten months that they are teaching. You can not just postpone rest and sleep for summer—-because the mental and physical energy is needed the very next day.  Teachers  need time to  breathe, heal  and recover from the daily challenges of their work. They need peace and quiet . 

Teachers need time to reconnect with their families. They need more time to play with their own  children who feel neglected. They need more  romantic moments with their partners. They need more time  to care for senile parents or young grandchildren. Being able to spend time with loved ones is essential for well-being and happiness.

The benefits of personal happiness go beyond the home. That happiness  translates into more positive attitude in the workplace. Happy  and well-rested teachers will find the motivation and energy  to improve themselves. Healthy teachers   are more likely to pursue  and benefit from professional development activities.


DEP-ED and CHED officials, school administrators —-all these decision makers—- should find a way to streamline work-related requirements. They should list down all the things they ask teachers to do. They should go over each item and ask themselves a few questions.  Which of these are indispensable , and which are not ? Which of these forms are redundant? Which reports can be consolidated ? Which school programs can be fused to lessen hours spent on theatrical  rehearsals ? If something is not absolutely necessary, that should be crossed out of the list.That would save both teachers and students a lot of time and energy, and money too.



Teachers who say “ no” to extra work should not be penalized, nor should they be  ostracized and made to feel guilty. 

And is it possible to reduce maximum teaching hours to four , instead of six ? That way, teachers will have sufficient time to prepare for their lessons. Teachers in Finland render only four teaching hours a day , and their students study less hours compared to their counterparts in other wealthy countries. Yet, Finland consistently clinches  top spots in national education rankings.Finland has proven that “ less is more ”. 


Meanwhile, in the Philippines, more and more work is being shoved  into the teachers’ throats. Most  teachers don’t complain. They are told — and they believe — that everything is a part of the job they swore to do to the best of their abilities. What are they called “ heroes” for anyway? 

Yes, teachers are heroes. But unlike your Marvel heroes, teachers are not unbreakable  and invincible. They need to be saved too. 





P.S. To the teachers whose pictures appear here, I found them on Google. Sorry , I could not  find a way to  contact you for your permission. 


References 





https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/effects-of-mental-fatigue-on-brain-activity-and-cognitive-performance-am


chttp://www.oecd.org/edu/Finland-EAG2014-Country-Note.pdf

http://taughtbyfinland.com/first-grade-in-finland-every-day-is-a-half-day/




Thursday 9 February 2017

To The Girl Who Never Got A Love Letter

by Marily S. Gayeta 





You look at yourself in the mirror and start searching for answers. And you see them staring back at you . You’re not pretty enough. Your face has no symmetry .Your eyes don’t sparkle .Your smile is dull .  You look so  plain and  boring . Or maybe , just maybe , you're downright ugly.

Other girls in school get chocolates and  cute teddy bears from blushing  boys.  But not you .Other girls open their bags , and giggle at the  scented love notes , secretly slipped in  by a young lad . But not you . All you  have in your bag is a faded copy of an old fairy tale , where a damsel in distress is rescued by a knight in shining armor.

A delivery boy  sometimes comes to the  office with a bouquet  of flowers , but it’s never for you. It’s for the girl in the other cubicle. You join the others in the teasing and light-hearted fun  for that lucky  girl .You  cheerfully compliment the roses , but deep inside , you’ve got a question : “ When will I  ever get mine ?

You pass by guys on the streets , in the halls , or  between tables at Starbucks. They never notice you. Their eyes flit  away  from you instantly .  They turn to their  phones right away,or get smitten by that sexy girl at the next table. They never see you.   You are invisible to them. You don’t have what it takes to be “ that ” girl .    The looks ,  the charm , the appeal. You have none of those.
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It hurts sometimes , doesn’t it ? To be a  girl, to be a woman , and to be  invisible to the opposite sex . You don’t  really thirst for attention , but for sure , an occasional  admiring  look from a guy would somehow bolster your feminine  ego. Who wouldn’t feel good  with  that ?

Other girls were given the beauty that society admires. Others , like you , are lacking in it . Other girls  have the appeal that captures guys’ attention right away . But not you . They never bother to  give you a second  look.

 Life is not  fair. It  never was . It never will  be.  Accept this fact  with a bold ,open heart . Then ,  get on with your life.

 Stop crying at night because nobody has written a love letter for you . Stop sulking in a corner because every girl in the gang has a boyfriend  ,while  you’re sitting alone on the bench. Stop pitying yourself because you don’t have a date on Valentine’s day .   For God’s sake , girl , stop it .

But don’t give up just yet. Try to doll up , but don’t overdo it . Find out which fashion style suits you. Develop your inner beauty. Be kind. Do good things --- not for a show ---but because you mean it.  Cultivate your talents. Learn how to  play a musical instrument . The guitar or keyboard perhaps ? That talent would be handy in a company party .  Enrich your mind. Read  good books. Be aware of the world. This will prepare you for great conversations. Socialize, but don’t act like a slut. Act confidently despite your physical flaws.

And maybe , he will notice you among the vast crowd.

There are a lot of men who fall in love with character , talents and brains. And these are the men who keep lasting   and profound relationships. He will fall in love with you --- not instantly --- but gradually . Your knight  will  find you. Maybe not in  chance encounters  in exotic places  ,  but in little familiar corners  where time is essential  for  building intimacy .

When that time comes , he will fall in love with you in a special way. No . Not like the New Year’s Eve fireworks that explode and dazzle the senses , and then vanish  in thin air. His love will begin from a small  spark . A very small spark that grows very slowly , until it becomes a fire that  engulfs his whole heart and his whole being . His love  will be like  a  steady flame that burns  for all eternity .

Wow . That sounds so romantic .

But what if your knight does not come ?

So what , girl , so what. Nothing of what you did was in vain. The new clothes  and perfume that you bought. The song that you learned how to play. The office mate that you helped. The news that you read . All of these things made  you a happier and a better person. Never regret them just because you failed to catch a man. 

Your happiness  should not depend on whether or not there’s a guy  who  loves you . Don’t give a shit about  what society says you must feel if you don’t have a man in your life. You  can be happy  even if no one holds your hand in the park.  You can be  whole even if no one kisses  you at  night and says  “ Good night , babe .I love you .” .A human being  doesn’t always need a romantic partner to feel fulfilled .  Focus on the blessings of being single . The time . The chances . The independence. Family and friends . The full range of choices you have in your life . Freedom can be as satisfying as romantic love.

If your knight comes, well and good.

If he doesn’t, it’s okay .

You will be fine, girl . You are complete just as you  are .