What would make students study harder?

[romyg]

some say Filipino students are tamad, na kailangan pukpukin sa ulo...others say di lang nila feel and professors nila kaya tamad sila...but students are in class to learn, why are they failing? what would make them study harder?

[demonaidz]

Filipino students are not lazy its just that the teachers from the founding level lacks the energy to attract the attention of students... We should improve the skills of our teachers in the primary level...

[richcarson]

Its easy to arouse the interest of male students. Female students however are a totally different story.

[ravv]

Filipino students are not lazy its just that the teachers from the founding level lacks the energy to attract the attention of students... We should improve the skills of our teachers in the primary level...

 

I would have to agree on this. Sa panahon natin ngayon, ang pagtuturo is source of income na at hindi vocation. Kaya wala din initiative to improve in teaching.

 

Mas nakakahinayang yun meron matatalino pero nawawalan ng interest mag aral kasi hindi na intellectually stimulating ang teaching method.

[Macdknife]

I teach a Gen Ed course in a small and fairly new co-ed college, and I noticed that the girls get into the discussion when I'm able to relate the subject matter to love and relationships.

 

I also make use of popular literature (i.e. rock music, graphic novels, cartoons) as discussion material in my class, since they can relate to it better and (hopefully) drive them to study harder.

[Mango Man]

Agree with Macdknife....its not really the students' fault at times, the prof has the responsibility to make the subjects interesting.

[erika123]

I hope not to offend anyone. But in my honest opinion, I think Filipino students are labeled as "tamad" coz i think most Filipino families accept mediocrity. I noticed this when i mingled with my husband's relatives. They would give praise to children having grades of 80++ or 90++ , or even getting a third honor. I was at first baffled. So when did grades of 80++ deemed high??? And they were so proud of their children showing me the test scores. Again, i couldn't say anything.

 

Media is also not helping in uplifting the values of our students. Movies and TV shows always feature love stories, young romance, barkada, etc.

 

I had a chance to have Indian classmates and Chinese classmates (chinese from mainland china). On the first day of class, they finished reading the whole book. and It was not a soft subject, it was a Fixed income Investment class. Hard core yun. So the entire first day was spent on their asking questions to clarify what they read. Amazing, isn't it.? Kelan pa nangyari ito sa school natin, kung saan binasa na ng students lahat ng nasa libro even before the start of the class.

[Miss Zelda]

I think what we should fix is the educational system, because in one way they still use the traditional way of teaching, like doing research, discussing robotically about things and done with homework, its been like that for a long long time since the time when the americans introduce A for apple sort of thing. If only Dep Ed can reeducate these teachers the proper methods of reaching out to children and making things more interesting, then the children will most likely interested in going to school.

 

In our time ( my generations consists of people aging from late 20s to mid 30s) there are students who still read books, making book reports, do themewriting, now the kids are doofus! sorry for my language..if you ask them a history question ,they don't know a thing.

[johnlove]

I hope not to offend anyone. But in my honest opinion, I think Filipino students are labeled as "tamad" coz i think most Filipino families accept mediocrity. I noticed this when i mingled with my husband's relatives. They would give praise to children having grades of 80++ or 90++ , or even getting a third honor. I was at first baffled. So when did grades of 80++ deemed high??? And they were so proud of their children showing me the test scores. Again, i couldn't say anything.

 

Media is also not helping in uplifting the values of our students. Movies and TV shows always feature love stories, young romance, barkada, etc.

 

I had a chance to have Indian classmates and Chinese classmates (chinese from mainland china). On the first day of class, they finished reading the whole book. and It was not a soft subject, it was a Fixed income Investment class. Hard core yun. So the entire first day was spent on their asking questions to clarify what they read. Amazing, isn't it.? Kelan pa nangyari ito sa school natin, kung saan binasa na ng students lahat ng nasa libro even before the start of the class.

 

I know some 2nd gen Chinese parents try to anticipate on the topics that would be taught on the following week and insist on their kids to study them on weekends.

 

In my case, my English subjects improve after I was expose to porno. I drive myself to study hard because all the porno materials were in English.

Edited May 13, 2011 by johnlove

[Bernonix]

Why are students failing?

 

Oh my. I mean no offense with what I'm about to say, I'm simply expressing my honest opinion. I hope no one gets offended by this, and I apologize in advance to anyone who would be.

 

It would be virtually impossible to grasp one concrete reason. It is really, the culmination of various factors, such as the Filipino's culture of mediocrity, the ineffectiveness of the educational system our government is implementing, and the incompetence of SOME (not all!) teachers who shouldn't be teachers in the first place. Baka nga pati yung malnutrition ng mga estudyante ay nakaka-interfere sa brain development nila, which would of course translate into difficulty in the classroom.

 

IMHO, I think you should focus more on how you could help your students, instead of focusing on why they're failing. Syempre mahalagang malaman ang puno't dulo ng problema ng mga estudyante para magawan ng solusyon, but since it would be difficult to pinpoint a single concrete reason, you should focus more on what you could do to prevent the failure of your students.

 

What would make students study harder?

 

This is a question of motivation. And considering everything that's been said, like Filipino students being lazy, mediocre, and media-crazed (and I totally agree with all these), you should really think about what motivates students nowadays. Responsible students who could motivate themselves to study are becoming a rare sight. Therefore, motivating your students to study for the mere sake of being educated is, in my opinion, futile; it is a fact that the importance of a good education is terribly underrated nowadays. So, try to motivate your students with fun, or anything that sparks their interest, e.g. pop culture, music, telenovelas, food, etc. It is, after all, the teachers' responsibility to motivate their students. But then again, it all depends on what you're trying to teach, so make it your personal challenge to integrate your students' interests to what you're trying to teach. It's a tall order, and is definitely difficult, but hey, at least your students are learning, and that's the important thing, right?

 

I wish you and your students luck

Edited May 13, 2011 by Bernonix

[cocoy0]

As one (ex)teacher to another, when a person realizes that the future depends on the passing grade, it provides a good boost to the will to study. Are you teaching college students?

 

Many students come to class not to learn, but because it is expected of them. Malaking motivation din ang hiya. Post your students' standings in a public bulletin board (make sure the dean or principal approves). The teacher necessarily provides extra effort sa mga slow students, pero as a teacher you can delegate students who you think can teach. Baka magrespond. Ang magtuturo, not necessarily the one with the highest grades, but those who have the ability and patience to explain concepts. Lalo na sa college, lulutang sila.

 

Good luck.

[koraptor]

well, what else can i say. halos nasabi nyo na lahat. ang totoo nyan napakahirap ng trabaho ng titser kung hindi nya talaga bokasyon. sa lahat naman ng trabaho, kung hindi ka ng-eenjoy nakakatamad, kaya nga ginagawa lahat ng mga tao sa HR department na panatilihin ang gana ng mga empleyado. teaching is no different. the challenge is how to keep that "first day high." if we teachers love what we are doing, and can keep the enthusiasm throughout, half of the problem is solved. if we can do that, everything else will follow. on the part of the students, mahirap naman talaga mag-aral kung pinipilit lang, kelangan din naman maforeplay ang minds nila. kaya nga merong tinatawag tayong mga teachers na "anticipatory setting' para maset ang atmosphere sa klase. then kung enthusiastic tayo, madaling makarelate sa mga studyante...sa experience ko, walang bobong studyante, walang pasaway - hindi lang na prime mindset nila. dami nating mga mapagpiliang gamit sa teaching. siguro naman hindi nagkulang mga schools natin in this regard, lalong lalo na sa mga reputable universities. ikaw nga lang magsasawa.

 

opening na naman ng klase. am sure excited na pareho mga teachers at students pumasok. sana we can keep that excitement para di masayang ang buong semester.

[abnkkbsnlak]

It's the teachers' (everyone who isn't a student; media, leaders, the tambay next door, the ale at the tindahan, school admin, anyone older than the student that a student learns from) attitude toward education. Notice how media does not value children's education, neither does it value smart programming. Just look how dubt all the local free shows are. Heck, there aren't even any educational shows produced by the local channels anymore. What used to be the time for Sineskwela, Mathtinik, Batibot, Epol Apple and the other educational shows are now dubbed versions of Spongebob Squarepants and other stupid cartoons. The stations don't want what's best for the people, they want people to watch them so they give people things that are like sugar, easy to eat, lovely to eat but baaaad to your health in big doses. This in turn influences the masses who move throughout society, thus influencing the students since it is what they observe to be the rewarded. Bottom line, Philippine society does not reward the industry of students therefore they do not see the point of not being "tamad".

[abnkkbsnlak]

It's the teachers' (everyone who isn't a student; media, leaders, the tambay next door, the ale at the tindahan, school admin, anyone older than the student that a student learns from) attitude toward education. Notice how media does not value children's education, neither does it value smart programming. Just look how dubt all the local free shows are. Heck, there aren't even any educational shows produced by the local channels anymore. What used to be the time for Sineskwela, Mathtinik, Batibot, Epol Apple and the other educational shows are now dubbed versions of Spongebob Squarepants and other stupid cartoons. The stations don't want what's best for the people, they want people to watch them so they give people things that are like sugar, easy to eat, lovely to eat but baaaad to your health in big doses. This in turn influences the masses who move throughout society, thus influencing the students since it is what they observe to be the rewarded. Bottom line, Philippine society does not reward the industry of students therefore they do not see the point of not being "tamad".

[deepdiverboy]

It's very hard to motivate students nowadays. I won't repeat the stuff said above, like dumb TV programs, distractions like video games, gimik culture, as well as early experimentation w/ sex, drugs, etc.

 

But one thing I've noticed is that there is an environmental factor as well. Life in China, Japan and Korea is harder than what it looks like. Getting a career is very competitive to the point that students who fail to get into topnotch schools like Tokyo University or Peking University would get into a bout of depression, not to mention suicide in extreme cases. It's because early in life, kids are made to realize that there are only so many chances available for them, and that if they don't work hard to catch it, they have lost out on the race called life. If you've heard about Amy Chua, the Tiger Mom who stirred a firestorm of controversy over her extreme parenting methods, well, that's called normal parenting for many mothers in China and Korea.

 

Yes, life is hard in the Philippines, but remember, this is also a land of bounty. For as far back as anyone can recall, the Philippines has not experienced any single historical incidence of mass starvation. I'm not referring to the ordinary kind of hunger caused by poverty that we see today, but hunger that eventually caused the deaths of millions within a very short period of time. That was the case in China, Korea and Japan at several points in their histories. During the Great Leap Forward in China for example, people were so desperate they began tearing off the bark of trees to boil and eat just so they would have something in their stomachs. Final death toll was estimated at 25 million. In Germany, which was totally bombed out after WWII, around 9 million people starved to death either through abject conditions or deliberate delay of food aid by the Americans in revenge for the destruction wrought by Hitler. Here in the Philippines, even during WWII when large swathes of cropland were destroyed, there was still enough meat and fish to eat. If you had hidden in the mountains, as many did, you would not have starved, even if food was rationed.

 

We have been spoiled by the circumstances of history and our own tropical location. Here in RP, the sun is shining all year round. We do not have to deal with vicious winters like countries in the northern hemisphere; rice, crops, meat and fish can be harvested all throughout the rainy and summer seasons. Nor have we had a tyrant vicious enough to have deliberately starved us to death like what Kim Jong-iL of North Korea is doing to his people now. And just like a spoiled child, we lose our edge, slowly and steadily. The same is happening in the United States now--sociologists warn of a "dumbing down" of the American populace because of shows like Jersey Shore and American Idol. Pop stars and athletes are gods, while smart kids are uncool. This was brought about by the several decades of prosperity and peace.

 

This is the point of mentioning all the above factors: We have not encountered the kind of gut-wrenching hardship that would revitalize our consciousness as a nation. The struggles Filipinos face are only on a personal level. Kulang ng pang tuition? Tigil muna si ate para magtrabaho, para may pangtustos sa mga nakababatang kapatid. Kung halos graduate na si kuya, utang muna nang makapag-abroad. Then the rest of the family will soon enjoy the dollar remittances. It is this fairly mediocre existence that has blunted whatever edge the Filipino has in terms of talent. Look at what Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan-Yew said: "I do not understand why Filipinos are underperforming in their own country. In Singapore, they are just as creative or even more creative than our natives." We are wallowing in a big pool of "puwede na" and "bahala na" mentality because whatever happens, we seem to be assured that everything will turn out alright. And sadly, history has proven that to be all too true.

Edited May 14, 2011 by deepdiverboy