Not Unteachable
Real talk: I spent 16 years studying in private academic institutions, but I only graduated with much cluelessness on what to do next. Diligence in schoolwork was only recognized with certificates and medals that blatantly lack meaning and purpose; these alone cannot make me stay alive.
In all those laborious years, I was rarely given an option to stay still. Even if I was taught to be inquisitive, grades in report cards are not okay with not knowing. I was not awarded with a lot of space to deepen my understanding of life.
Do not get me wrong: I have the greatest respect for all my teachers and professors; their profession is a paragon of patience and perseverance. I know how hard it is, because I also made a brief foray into teaching English. My argument has nothing to do with the academicians that I adore. I am questioning the system.
I am not also vilifying the institutions where I studied. In fact, my Catholic education is privileged. I am just challenging the public perception on education and well-being. As I attended Christ-centered schools since I was a toddler, I was blessed with moments of introspective prayers and silent retreats. However, pausing in times of uncertainty is not encouraged in a fast-paced world. Constant movement is a requisite for success.
Lastly, I do not mean to be an ingrate who discredits the blessing of being a university graduate. Not everyone is given this opportunity; this is a boon when it comes to finding decent jobs in a developing country. I am just unleashing my inner Spiderman as I recognize the great responsibility and great power from a great blessing. With all that I have learned and experienced, it is apt to be among those who open the discussion for upgrading our education models.
In short, I am not writing in a condescending way. I am upholding the belief that all students in the 21st century deserve more.
The problem with the education system is twofold: It cannot keep pace with our technologies, and it cannot rescue our repressed intuitive emotions.
We constantly innovate our tools, but the system of instructing the youth stays the same. If Sir Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, and Alan Turing will be resurrected to travel in time to our current era, they will be astounded with our innovations. They will not recognize our smartphones and laptops, but they will surely grin at the sight of our school chairs and desks. It has not changed.
It is only during the current global pandemic that we have finally seen the value in blended learning. There are so many technologies at our disposal, but we have wasted a lot of time not immediately realizing its potential. If COVID-19 did not attack humanity, the idea of formal education would remain in the confines of a traditional classroom; the butts of students would stay planted in timeless chairs and desks; and teachers would always have to speak as loud as they can until they vomit their larynxes. It is time to redefine the geography of learning according to the geography of cyberspace.
Nonetheless, using high-tech tools in the educational sphere does not mean that we have already harvested the full power of technology to mold ourselves as actual human beings. There is still an issue on the way we facilitate learning.
As we integrate education with our inventions, the demand to recognize our inner compass also becomes higher.
We are already successful in developing our intellectual capabilities, but there are still many real-life matters that schools miss. This brings us to the vital role of education in our humanness.
The academia does not teach us who we truly are, how to manage our emotions, and how to be mindful with our thoughts. We know arithmetic better than we know ourselves. We manage businesses well more than we can handle our emotions. We tend to be more mindful on how to obtain our dream material possessions more than we pay attention with our thoughts. If this will continue, our educational institutions will just continuously produce callous geniuses, rich psychopaths, and greedy communities. No matter what we do, we will always be hunted by our repressed emotions that constantly long for happiness and contentment in the mundane.
Education shall not just be about having a diploma to successfully land a job. It must always be about becoming a better human being for the world.
Education shall not limit expertise with getting high grades. It must also recognize our unique individualities and celebrate our diverse strengths.
Education shall not make the status of teachers higher than the students. It must foster collaboration and open-mindedness where everyone is equal in learning.
These all sound so idealistic, but it is not quixotic. We have invested a lot of our creative efforts to build technologies that could only be viewed as science-fiction ideas before; upgrading our education models to accommodate humanness must also be immediately done with all the hard work we could muster. In fact, we can even use our inventions in making this possible.
What if toddlers will view practicing meditation as equally important as learning how to count, write, and read? In the early stages of child development, empathy and mindfulness may already develop.
What if teenagers have many curriculum options where they can virtually enroll themselves in courses offered by different schools around the world? Cases of teenage defiance and rebellion may dwindle as they forge their own path. Students would not be forced to stay in a box, or to go outside the box; they can even go beyond it, or totally reshape it.
What if learning how to sleep, attaining peace of mind, taking care of the environment, and achieving optimal health are also required subjects? Every student may graduate with a profound sense of direction and with a deep realization that the purpose of a good life is the purpose.
What if young adults shall successfully implement or participate in actual community/ local/ international humanitarian projects as final outputs for finishing a degree? The endpoint would not be in academic debates and publications. Scholars would not assume power in knowledge and would instead value the pragmatic application of all learnings through collaborative endeavors.
If we want to change the world, we shall start with rethinking the system of our education. We have already suffered for decades working as money-making zombies who lack meaning and purpose. Waking up is not unteachable.
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