UNDER CONSTRUCTION ANG BLOG NA ITO.

PATI AKO

wala akong kuwenta. iresponsable. walang loyalty. quantity lang ang gawa. mistaken identity. hindi ako kumakain ng teorya. dahil kung totoo yun, e di sana hindi ko naramdamang ang tanga ko lang nung nakipagdebate ako kay gerry. Si gerry na nasuportahan ang kanyang panig sa paglalatag ng mga ideolohiyang pinaniniwalaan niya. Ako, ano ba ang pinaniniwalaan ko? Anak ng tokwa, baka ako na ang taong walang diskurso. Pero hindi, imposible. Duwag lang siguro ako. O playing safe. Ayoko kong maging ganun pero bakit ganun ako.

Sulat sa mga Eskwelahang Maka-kolonyal

Inenrol namin ang kapatid kong three years old sa FASTPrep Reading Center.

Hindi naman namin inaasahang matuto siya talagang magbasa after thirty days pero inexpect namin na kahit syllables man lang ang mabasa, ayos na. Wala namang kaso kung hindi pa talaga siya handa or what pero yung hinayupak niyang tutor e english nang english. Hindi na maintindihan ni elise go lang siya tapos comment siya diyan ng hindi pa talaga makapokus si elise. E kahit gurang ka nang estudyante kung alien language sa yo ang ginagamit ng teacher mo, matibay ka na kung matapos mo ang isang oras na di ka makatulog, pano pa kaya yung batang tatlong taong gulang pa lang? Kapag ba nasa japanese o french class ka, nihonggo o pranses ang instruction sa yo? Siyempre may mabangis na prof pero para magkaintindihan sa klase, gagamit pa rin siya ng common language sa pagitan niya at ng tinuturuan. Dahil maka kolonyal nga ang edukasyon sa Pilipinas, english ang gagamitin ng prof. Pano naman yung kapatid ko na ang common language lang nila ng teacher niya e Filipino, tapos straight english ang instruction? Ke henyo pa o retarded ang kapatid ko, hindi niya kasalanan kung hindi niya lang talaga maintindihan ang tinuturo. Pano malalaman kung matututo talaga siya e hindi man lang nakarating sa utak niya yung instructions.

Patapos na ang program at nagbigay ng evaluation form. Ako ang pinasagot ni inay ng comments and suggestions. Syempre pinigil kong isulat na: mga leche kayo, nagbayad kami ng ilang libo para turuan siyang magbasa at hindi maging mahusay na colonial subject o maging subject to scrutiny n'yong mga hudas kayo dahil lang hindi siya nag eenglish. Kahit saang bansa tayo makarating walang kinalaman yun sa kapasidad ng utak niya!

Dahil diyan eto ang attached letter (hindi na nagkasya sa evaluation form. siyempre nanay ko nakapirma sa sulat):


I am particularly satisfied on how my child learned the letter sounds and their proper pronounciation.

However, I am very much concerned with the approach. I wonder why there seemed to be no option in the language to be used in instruction other than english. After all, it was stated in the contract that the program will "provide for very clear and unambigous communications with the child."

We speak in Filipino at home and therefore, I think that my child was not able to exert the attention that she is capable of giving during the sessions because the tutor was speaking to her in english most of the time. I have nothing against the study materials being in english but if only it was communicated and explained well through the language the she understands, perhaps there had been better results.

I accept the fact that my child is still very young and her attention span is still not that good. Those are factors to be considered regarding her not being able to finish the program. But it seemed to me that language had been a main hindrance when it shouldn't have been in the first place.

Correct me if I am wrong but aren't the recognition of letter sounds and the ability to put them together the basic steps in reading? And on that level, languages that use the Roman alphabet, like Filipino and English for example, are almost the same. Comprehension of course is another level. If a child is already capable of those basic skills then he/she can somehow 'read' texts regardless of their language. Therefore the ability or inability to acquire the basic skills in reading has nothing to do with the language the child knows/uses but rather with language used as medium of instruction.

I am aware of my child's age and the level of understanding that comes with it as possible disadvantages. But not her incapability of communicating in english. It seemed to have prevented her from getting the most out of the program. I do think that is has something to do with the way the tutor communicated with her during the sessions.

And if it is in the reading program's SOP to use nothing but the English language in communicating and teaching , then I apologize for the irrelevance of my evaluation. But if so, then it is sad to think that the program might only be catering to children who are already able to communicate in the said language.

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Kapag talaga inaway nila nanay ko at nag arrange ng meeting sasama ko. Magreresearch pa ko para lang matameme sila. Kahit ano pang diskurso ang ibato nila sa kin babalik at babalik pa rin yan sa makakolonyal nilang pag-iisip na itatago nila sa sa likod ng globalization, etc. Anak ng tokwa, sabihin na nga nating pinag aaral na lang tayo para makapagtrabaho at hindi na para sa kaalaman, gagastos ka ba ng libo-libo para sa tuition fee kung ang sistema ng edukasyon e call center lang ang option na ibibigay sa yo? Medyo ibang usapan na yun pero konektado pa rin.

Halata bang badtrip ako?