Author Archives: M.A.D. LIGAYA
Can Anyone Teach? (The Extra Mile Teachers Walk)
Search any site on the internet for the highest-paid professions in the world and you will not find “teachers” in the top 30. Expand your search and look for the list of professions in different countries where the practitioners receive the best compensation packages and you will find out that teaching is not among them. You will not find a country where teachers are ranked among the highest money earners.
Teaching not classified among the highest paying jobs, of course, is not surprising. That has been the case since time immemorial and it is most likely not to change anytime soon. One possible reason teaching as a profession is not getting the recognition it should get is because of the pervading notion that “anyone can teach.” You cannot say the same for law and medicine… not just anyone can practice those professions. But how true is it that just anyone can be a teacher?
But even if teachers do not get the recognition and sufficient remuneration they deserve, they wholeheartedly perform the role they have embraced. Indifference and poor salary are included among the thorny steps in the extra mile that teachers need to walk when they have accepted that teaching is not merely a profession but a vocation. It is not merely a job to perform but an obligation to carry out.
Acknowledging that teaching is not merely a job but a duty to fulfill is what makes teachers go the extra mile, to do what is more than required in the performance of their tasks, including sacrificing personal resources and sometimes even happiness. Teachers understand and fully grasp the nature of the responsibility that they agreed to fulfill when they signed up for the job. They know it’s not easy. How in the world would one consider it easy to be responsible for the education of other people, especially the young ones? When did it become easy to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge and values and the development of skills of your fellow human beings?
Teachers would be one of the highest-paid professionals if only pay would be commensurate to how significant is one’s job in the enlightenment of the soul, the preservation and enhancement of the fabric of society, and the socio-economic development of a nation. Teaching would certainly be at top of the list of the highest-paid professions in the world.
But it is what it is. Teaching is not a profitable profession. If it is material wealth one would like to accumulate, teaching is not the profession to have. The realities confronting the teachers in the academe could really make them say a lot of things in the “present unreal conditional” form. There are times that they couldn’t also help but make a “wish statement” like “I wish that I were a health care professional.”
And why?
Healthcare professionals like physicians, surgeons, and dentists, consistently round out the top 10 in the lists of highest-paid professionals.
What they (the medical practitioners and their fellow health workers) do, maintenance and restoration of good health are very important. For that, they deserve the pay they get, most especially during the time that the coronavirus pandemic was raging. But nurturing the human spirit…helping a person achieve holistic development is as equally important, if not more important. What professional endeavor could be more meaningful than helping your fellow men achieve their full potential for them to become responsible human beings and productive members of society?
And not only are the teachers not getting the pay commensurate to the importance of the work they do and the effort they need to exert when doing their job, but they also don’t get the recognition they deserve.
A study concluded that American society does not generally view teachers in the same way, as they view other professionals; the belief that “anyone can teach” is not found in other professions. For example, not just anyone can play professional baseball, be an accountant or engineer, or practice law or medicine.
Such is the indifference teachers, as professionals are getting.
But how true is the contention that “anyone can teach?” Those who know what it takes to become a teacher would say that it is a fallacy. That “anyone can teach” is an erroneous assumption.
Education is not just a matter of whether you can teach or not but also whether or not you can make the students learn. Even if a person is an expert in a particular field, it is not a guarantee that they can teach what they know. Knowing something is different from knowing how to teach it.
Hiring just anyone to become a teacher is doing a disservice to the teaching profession. Hiring somebody to teach a language just because they could speak that language is a mistake. Not because somebody is good at math that they should be allowed to teach math. It takes a lot to become a teacher. Teachers undergo rigid training for them to hone their pedagogical skills. They read a lot knowing that teaching and learning are both grounded in Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, and other related fields. They understand that they need to be familiar not only with their field of expertise or chosen subject area but with different principles and strategies to effectively deliver learning and teaching. They know that when they are done teaching in the classroom, their work is not done yet. There are other things to be done – checking graded activities and preparing a new lesson plan. The preparation of a lesson plan, in itself, is a tedious process.
The list of the things that teachers need to know and do is long. At the end of that long list are two characteristics that teachers need to develop if they wish to succeed in the profession. Those are PASSION for their work and COMPASSION for their students.
With all the aforementioned, what would anybody assume that just “anyone can teach?”
Be that as it may, teaching will forever be a NOBLE PROFESSION! Nothing can diminish its intrinsic value.
One thing is for sure, all successful professionals in the world – business executives, lawyers, architects, engineers, surgeons, physicians, dentists, nurses, brokers, and what-have-you – know that their teachers, who did not mind walking the extra mile contributed a thing or two or more into whatever they have become.
What Makes You Happy?
A lot has already been written about happiness. Much has been said about how to achieve it and where to find it. It is my hope that the things I shared in this video would give you additional insights on the topic.
The Self-improvement Paradigm
According to Jim Rohn, “Success is not to be pursued, it is to be attracted by the person you become.” Imagine success as the fruit of a tree. A tree has to grow and mature. It will reach a certain stage of maturity that allows it to bear fruits. Imagine yourself as that tree. You have to grow and mature. The person you see at the end of the process of growing and maturing is what Jim Rohn refers to as the person you become. The fruits you bear or the success you achieve depends on the kind of tree you would turn into. And you have to become the best version of yourself. That’s the kind of tree you should be. You need to reach your full potential so you would bear the best fruits.
Self-improvement is the key to becoming the best version of yourself. If you succeed in getting to the end of the road to self-improvement, you reach your full potential.
But self-improvement is a complicated process. It is easier said than done. It requires the possession of certain beliefs, attitudes, and characteristics that will make up your value system. It requires also the acquisition of certain skills and abilities and the development of certain practices and habits.
The right beliefs, attitudes, characteristics, skills, abilities, practices, and habits, together, are the catalysts of self-improvement. However, having them is not enough. Something else is needed in order to make them work. Without it any attempt to reach one’s full potential is bound to fail. What is it? It’s self-discipline.
Self-improvement is not as simple as just being able to think positively. Positive thinking is but a tip of a huge iceberg called personal growth and development.
Self-improvement is a tedious process. Its ultimate goal is becoming the “best self” or achieving one’s full potential. As previously mentioned, certain beliefs, attitudes, characteristics, skills, abilities, practices, and habits are required. But possessing the said requirements is not enough. Consistency is needed in their pursuit. Thus, self-discipline is also needed.
The foregoing are the elements that comprise the self-improvement paradigm that I developed to guide my advocacy for personal growth and development.
The contents of my YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2zzJ6T94fNnvPPwrA0OxAA) and the personal growth and development book I am currently writing are based on this paradigm.
Tuwing Bubuhos Ang Ulan (Audiobook)
I tried to see if I could create an audiobook. I just did. I created an audiobook out of one of my short novels written in Filipino. It’s a tragic love story. It’s not perfect but I gave it my best shot. One thing that I realized when I finished it is that I should have asked a lady friend or two to read the lines delivered by the female characters in my story. I undertook this project just to make good use of my free time here in South Korea. Doing creative work is the best way to overcome boredom.
HOLIER-THAN-THOU
The accounts of a friend about her encounters with certain individuals in her former church remind me of one word – HYPOCRISY.
I once worked in an institution run by a religious congregation and the stories she told me made me recall my own encounters with people wearing the “habit.” Those many years that I spent with them made me realize one thing – church leaders and personalities (in any religion) and those they assign or employ to assist them in running church affairs are as human as churchgoers. It is my humble opinion that none of them is infallible. They commit mistakes. There are times that their judgment is clouded by their biases and prejudices… and God forbid, by their personal interests, whims, and fancies. I just don’t know if they are also as sinful as I am.
It is unfortunate that I don’t have any way of determining the veracity of my friend’s stories. But I know her to be very intelligent and level-headed and would never resort to concocting lies. She was just trying to vent her grievances because she was then on the verge of leaving the church. Eventually, she did. She had enough of their leaders acting and talking in a manner unbecoming of a Christian. She bewailed the failure of their leaders to observe decorum and protocol.
The personalities involved in the things my friend told me conjured up the image of somebody who is holier-than-thou. How convenient it is for some church leaders and workers to hide under the skirts of God’s words to justify what they say and do. Some of them would advance their selfish motives and interests using the gospel as their façade. What I know is that “even the devil can cite the Scripture for his purpose.” The devil, for example, quoted Psalm 91:11-12 when he tried to tempt Jesus.
My friend refuted the idea that leaving that church was a case of her putting faith in people instead of in God. Her getting offended by what she perceived as inappropriate and indecorous behavior of their leaders could (and should) not be construed as losing faith in God. Finding such behavior as unacceptable doesn’t diminish her Christianity. It was, in my opinion, actually applying the Christian norms and standards that she thought those in the church leadership positions ought to adhere to. Apparently, they didn’t.
Leaving that church means turning her back, not to her Creator, but to HYPOCRISY… of church leaders rendering lip service… of not walking their talk. Not that she did not do anything about it. She did. She tried to make her grievances known. But she was a voice crying in the wilderness.
We need to bestow reverence on those anointed by God to serve as the mediator between Him and us. But that doesn’t mean turning a blind eye when those leading us in the churches where we are attending are abusing their authority. While not each of us may have received the gift of discernment described in 1 Corinthians 12:10, all we need is common sense to determine whether or not our church leaders and workers deserve the reverence we give them and whether or not they are worthy of our obedience.
Do not forget St. Paul’s warning, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1).”
Face-to-Face and Online English Lounges: A Comparative Analysis
doi: 10.18178/ijiet.2022.12.9.1698
ABSTRACT
Research was conducted to examine how an English lounge program at a university affected students’ speaking ability and their attitude toward their foreign teachers and to determine if there were significant differences in the effects between the program delivered face-to-face and online as perceived by the two groups of respondents – students and teachers. This study is a descriptive-comparative survey research. Frequency analysis, mean comparison analysis, t-test, correlation analysis, and regression analysis were the statistical tools used. The computed mean values show that as perceived by the participants, the program, implemented face-to-face and online; improved the students’ speaking ability and their attitude toward their foreign teachers to a great extent. Results have shown that as perceived by the participants both versions of the program improve the students’ speaking ability and their attitude toward their foreign teachers and that students’ attitude toward foreign teachers is strongly correlated to (and significantly influences) the development of their speaking ability. The findings convey the importance of establishing rapport between students and teachers in the development of the speaking ability of students. It also reveals that online English lounges are as effective as when they’re implemented face-to-face.
Sino Ang Dapat Sisihin?
Kapag nale-late ka pagpasok sa trabaho o sa isa mong appointment, alin ang kadalasang itinuturo mong dahilan – traffic o masamang panahon? Alin man sa dalawa, tama ba? Maaari din naman na ang sinisi mo ay ang alarm clock na wika mo’y hindi tumunog o kaya’y naubusan ng battery ang cell phone mo. Noong ang isa mong relasyon ay humantong sa hiwalayan o nakagalit mo ang isa sa mga kaybigan o mahal mo sa buhay, sino ang sa palagay mo ang may problema – ikaw o ang kabilang partido?
Kapag nagkaroon ka ng problema o nahaharap ka sa isang aberya, kapag ang mga bagay-bagay sa buhay mo eh hindi sumangayon sa iyong kagustuhan, kapag ang mga pangarap mo ay hindi natutupad, sino o ano ang itinuturo mong dahilan? Sino sa palagay mo ang dapat sisihin?
Si Jim Rohn, isa sa mga paborito kong motivational speaker, minsan ay nagkuwento. Isang araw ay tinanong daw siya ng mentor niyang si Earl Shoaff kung bakit noong panahong iyon ay walang nangyayaring maganda sa kanyang buhay. Pakiramdam daw ni Jim Rohn na parang nasukol siya sa tanong na iyon. Sinabi niya kung sino-sino at ano-ano ang mga dahilan kung bakit tila ay, hindi siya umaangat sa buhay – government, weather, traffic, company policies, negative relatives, cynical neighbors, economy, and community.
Ikaw ba? May listahan ka din ba ng kung sino-sino at ano-ano ang dahilang kung bakit hindi natutupad ang mga pangarap mo sa buhay at kung bakit hindi ka umaasenso?
Kanino ba ibinabaling ng karamihan ang sisi kung bakit wala silang mahanap na trabaho? Siyempre ang numero uno sa listahan ay ang gobyero. Itinuturing nilang obligasyon ng mga nahalal na pinuno ang lumikha ng trabaho para sa kanila. Pero imposibleng mabigyan ang bawat mamamayan ng trabaho. Hindi ka rin kusang lalapitan ng trabaho. Hindi regalo ang trabaho. Paghirapan mo dapat ito. Ito ay dapat mong hanapin at kaylangan handa ka kapag dumating ang oportunidad na iyon. Ang kahandaan ay nangangahulugang taglay mo ang karampatang edukasyon at training. Kung hindi ka man pormal na nakapag-aral ay may ibang paraan upang taglayin mo ang kaalaman at kakayahan na hinihingi ng trabahong gusto mo. Sabi nga nila, “Kung gusto ay may paraan, kung ayaw ay maraming dahilan.”
Pero papaano kung hindi ka nakapag-aral o nakapag-training? Sino ang dapat mong sisihin? Sige, i-check mo ang listahan mo ng kung sino-sino at ano-ano ang dahilan kung bakit hindi ka nakapagtapos ng iyong pag-aaral. Malamang kasama sa listahan ang iyong mga magulang. Siyempre pa, kasama nanaman ang gobyerno. Obligasyon din daw ng mga nasa poder ng kapagangyarihan na magbigay ng libreng edukasyon. Tama naman. pero ang tanong – Kaya bang tustusan ng pamahalaan ang libreng edukasyon mula sa elemetarya hanggang kolehiyo para sa lahat? Alam mo ang sagot. Hindi kaya ng gobyerno na pagaralin ng libre lahat ng mamamayan.
At hindi rin kaya ng gobyerno na bigyan lahat ng mga mamamayan ng trabaho. Imposible iyon. Kahit ang pribadong sektor ay hindi rin kayang gawin ang naturan. May limitasyon ang trabahong kayang ibigay ng gobyerno at ng pribadong sector. Iyan ang isa pang katotohan na sa ayaw at sa gusto mo eh dapat mong tanggapin.
Kung ganoon, ano ang dapat mong gawin? Tiyakin mo na ikaw ang makakuha ng trabaho na iaalok ninoman. Dapat ay taglay mo ang kaalaman at mga skills na kaylangan sa larangang napili mo. Dapat maging competitive ka. Dapat ay isa ka sa mga the best sa propesyong iyong napili. At kung sa bansa natin ay walang job opportunities, o hindi ka satisfied sa compensation package, puwede mong subukin ang pangingibang bansa. Lakasan lang ng loob iyan.
Sa mga taong hindi papalaring makahanap ng trabaho o ayaw mamasukan sa dahilang ayaw nilang manilbihan sa isang amo o boss, ay maaaring magtatag sila ng sarili nilang negosyo. Hindi lahat ng tao ay nagsanay o nag-aral upang pumasok sa isang kumpanya. Meron sa ating magaling magnegosyo at sa ganoong paraan sila umaasenso. Meron sa atin ang magiging magsasaka, mangingisda, tubero, tindera sa palengke, barbero, cashier, driver, singer, bartender, at kung ano-ano pa. Meron at merong mahahanap na trabaho o pagkakakitaan ang isang tao sangayon sa kanyang kakayanan at edukasyon. Ano man ang nakayanan mong mahanap na trabaho o maging hanapbuhay ay dapat mong ikarangal at ipagpasalamat. Marami rin kasi sa atin na ang gusto sa buhay ay maging malusog sila at masaya at hindi nila prioridad ang magkaroon ng limpak-limpak na salapi. Nagkakasya sila sa kung ano ang kanilang nakayanan.
Dapat tanggapin ang katotohanan na may mga taong mayaman at mahirap. At huwag nating sisihin ang mga mayaman kung hindi nila tutulungan ang mga mahirap. Huwag nating sisihin ang mga mayaman nating kapatid, kamag-anak, kaybigan o kapitbahay kung hindi ka nila bahaginan ng kung ano mang meron sila. Ang dapat mong gawin ay magsikhay at magsikap upang magkaroon ka ng kung anong meron sila. O dili kaya ay makuntento ka sa kung anong meron ka.
Tayo ang magdedesisyon kung saan tayo mabibilang sa mga susunod. Una – maging mayaman. Pangalawa – magkaroon ng sapat na pera para matutustusan ang mga pangangaylangan sa buhay at kaunting ekstra para sa ilang simpleng luho. Pangatlo – kumain ng 3 beses isang araw. Ikaw, saan mo gustong mabilang – una, pangalawa, o pangatlo? Iyan ay nakasalalay sa uri ng pagsisikap na gagawin mo. Kung tamad ka ay sa pang-apat na kategorya ka masasadlak – GUTOM.
May mga tao na namumuhay ng simple pero masaya. Meron naman na matayog ang pangarap, nagsisikap at nakakarating sila sa gusto nilang marating. Lahat tayo ay may posibilidad na mabilang sa una. Walang makakapigil sa atin kung gusto nating maging mayaman. Pero mahirap itong gawin. Hindi ito madali.
May dalawang daan patungo sa pangarap na maging mayaman (at hindi dito kabilang ang pagnanakaw). Una, tumaya ka sa lotto at ipanalangin mong mapanalunan mo ang jackpot. Pangalawa, tularan mo ang pagsisikap at pagsisikhay na ginawa ng mga taong naging milyonaryo at bilyonaryo.
At kung hindi matupad ang mga pangarap mo, meron ka bang dapat sisihin? Ito kasi ang isang problema sa mga taong nabibigo at humaharap sa mga matinding pagsubok sa buhay – lagi silang naghahanap ng sisisihin. Sisisihin nila ang kanilang mga kamag-anak, magulang, kapatid, asawa, o kaybigan. Sasabihin nilang walang sumusuporta sa kanila. Tandaan nating ang suporta ay kusang ibinibigay. Hindi ito isang karapatan o pribilehiyo. Hindi obligasyon ng kahit pa ng mga mahal mo sa buhay na ikaw ay tulungan. Maliban na lang kung ikaw ay lumpo. Ang tanong – Lumpo ka ba?
Napakadaling sabihin na tungkulin ng mga mahal natin sa buhay na tayo ay tulungan. Pero papaano kung sila man ay nangangaylangan din pala ng tulong. Paano kung sila man ay problema rin ang kung nila itaguyod ang kanilang buhay? At halimbawa man na alam nating may kakayanan sila na tayo ay tulungan ngunit ayaw nilang gawin? Puwede ba natin silang pilitin? Ang sagot ay hindi. Kaya may dalawang bagay tayong dapat isaisip. Una – huwag manisi. Pangalawa – huwag umaasa. At kung umaasa ka na ikaw ay tulungang ng mga mahal mo sa buhay ay may katanungan kang dapat sagutin – Karapat-dapat ka bang tulungan? Hindi kaya may dahilan kung bakit ayaw ka nilang tulungan? At bakit kasi kaylangan mong mamalimos ng tulong? Hindi mo ba kayang tumayo sa sarili mong paa?
At huwag na huwag nating sisisihin ang ating mga magulang kung bakit hindi tayo umaasenso sa buhay. Hindi nating puwedeng sabihin na hindi nila ginawa ang mga bagay na dapat gawin upang tayo ay magtagumpay. Ano mang uri ng magulang tayo meron – responsable o hindi – ay darating ang panahon na hahawakan natin ang timon ng ating sariling buhay. Ang tanging tungkulin ng magulang ay arugain at alagaan ka mula nang isilang ka ng iyong ina hanggang kaya mo ng magsarili at tumayo sa sarili mong mga paa. Ikaw ang magtatakda kung kaylan ka magsasarili at sisimulang itaguyod ang sarili mong buhay.
Hindi habang buhay na nasa poder tayo ng ating mga magulang. At hindi nila kasalanan kung wala silang ipapamana sa ating yaman. Pagdamutan natin kung ano ang kanilang nakayanan na gawin para sa atin. Magpasalamat kung tayo ay kanilang mapapag-aral hanggang kolehiyo. Kung hindi, aba eh gumawa tayo ng paraan. Dumiskarte tayo, siyempre sa marangal na paraan.
Kung 25 anyos ka na ngayon o mas matanda pa, heto ang aking katangungan – Ano ang ginawa mo noong hawak mo na ang timon ng iyong buhay? Noong nasa driver’s seat ka na at kontrolado mo na ang kahihinatnan ng iyong tadhana, ano ang ginawa mo? Nagplano ka ba para sa iyong kinabukasan? Nag-ipon ka ba? Ginawa mo ba ang dapat mong gawin upang tiyakin na matutupad lahat nga pangarap mo? Nagsikhay at nagsikap ka ba?
Ngayon, balikan natin iyon kuwento ni Jim Rohn. Hindi iyon natapos nang binanggit niya kung sino-sino at ano-ano ang mga dahilan kung bakit hindi siya umaangat sa buhay at bakit wala siya kahit singkong duling na naimpok sa bangko. Matapos ang kanyang litanya ay may sinabi si Mr. Shoaff na ang punto ay bakit daw hindi isinama ni Jim Rohn sa listahan ng kung sino-sino at ano-ano ang mga dahilan kung bakit hindi siya umaasenso ang kanyang SARILI.
Ang ibig sabihin ni Mr. Shoaff ay ibang tao at bagay ang itinuturong dahilan ni Jim Rohn kung bakit hindi siya nagtatagumpay. Hindi kaya na ang tunay na dahilan ay SIYA mismo?
Bago daw nagdesisyon si Jim Rohn na magtrabaho sa kumpaya ni Mr. Shoaff, ay binago niya ang listahan ng kung sino-sino at ano-ano ang dapat sisihin kung bakit hindi siya umaasenso. Isa na lamang daw ang isinulat niya – AKO.
Ikaw ba? Meron ka bang kahalintulad na listahan. Sino-sino at ano-ano ang dahilan kung bakit hindi mo nakamit ang mga minimithi mo sa buhay? Kasama ka ba sa listahan mo? At huwag sanang dumating sa punto na pati ang Panginoong Diyos natin ay sinisisi mo sa hindi magandang takbo ng iyong buhay.
Ano man ang kahihinatnan ng buhay natin… aasenso ba tayo o hindi… matutupad ba ang mga pangarap natin o hindi… ay resulta ng mga desisyong ginagawa natin araw-araw. Iyan ay is pang katotohang dapat nating tanggapin.
Ang tadhana mo ay ang kabuuan ng lahat ng desisyong ginawa mo mula noong ikaw na ang kumokontrol sa sarili mong buhay hanggang sa kasalukuyan. Kaya kung nasadlak ka sa kabiguan, wala kang ipon, hindi mo narating ang gusto mong marating, hindi malusog ang iyong pangangatawan at pag-iisip, hindi ka masaya ay sino ang dapat mong sisihin? Manalamin ka at doon mo makikita ang kasagutan.
Pero, wika nga ni George Eliot, “It is never too late to be who you might have been.”
M.A.D. LIGAYA
M.A.D. L I G A Y A 