Educational Philosophies

The Educational Philosophies and thePrevailing Issues in the Philippine Basic Education

Maria Beatriz A. Vergara

This research talks about the different educational philosophies (perennialism, progressivism, existentialism, essentialism, social reconstructionism, and analytic philosophy) used by the elementary and high schoolteachers and educational institutes in the Philippines, the effect of these theories to the students, as well as the prevailing issues in the basic education. The instruments used for this research are surveys and interviews. The respondents are mostly students who are currently taking up the Educational and Thought Practice course and students who have taken the course. Questions in the survey and interview were about teachers and their way of teaching and the content of their lessons. The respondents were to rate the statement from 1 to 5 one being strongly disagree and five being strongly agree. Results will vary specially that the respondents came from different schools (public or private schools). Also, the research could provide certain issues happening in a classroom or school. Hopefully, this research can recommend solutions to these issues.

The educational system in the Philippines during the pre-Hispanic era was informal. Teachers then were parents and/or the leaders of the tribe. Lessons were delivered orally and were focused on the practical arts, and vocational practices such as haunting, taking care of offspring, cooking etc. When the Spaniards came, the system became formal education. Missionaries then replaced parents and leaders as teachers. They centered their teachings to Christianity. It was the Spaniards objective to promulgate the religion thus conceptualizing an educational institution for an efficient way to gather the people. They also required the people to learn Spanish since they were colonizing the country. It was their way of controlling the community. According to the Department of Education, education during the Spanish era was for the elite since schools were costly. Therefore, during the American era, upon the recommendation of Schurman Commission, the Americans established a free and public education. Teachers at this era were called the Thomasites. Thomasites were the American teachers and one implication to our education was the medium of instruction was in English. This was an opportunity for the Americans to maintain power and dominance over the Filipinos.

There is no doubt that the Americans and Spaniards influenced our educational system greatly. But has the Philippines and government moved on and made significant changes to the system? Or has continuously adapted western ideas? In the first part of this paper, I will discuss the changes occurred in the system through my own experience, observations and impressions.

Private & Public Schools

I have not been exposed much to public schools because I was enrolled in an exclusive all-girl private school from elementary to high school. I can say that we are fortunate to have more resources and teachers compared to some public schools that I have encountered. In our school, there were four sections with at least 45 students per class while in public schools; I observed that there were also 40 to 50 students per class with one teacher. Situations like these would be threatening not only for the students but also for the teacher. To handle 40 to 50 students with different socio-economic status, personality, cognitive level etc., would be very difficult. It is also much more difficult to handle a class with some students who may have special needs. Also, student learning may be jeopardized because teachers may not be able to relate to all students or may not be able to use the appropriate teaching style that suits everyone.

Personally, I did experience difficulty in learning with that kind of situation because some teaching styles were not suited for me. And some students were difficult to relate to. For some students like me, I would see this as a challenge but for some, it would appear as a discouragement. In terms of materials, we had our own books, computers, and projectors in television sets, radios and the like in our own classroom, while in public schools, they did not have these equipment and even lacked books for some students. This could affect teachers approach and methodology in teaching. With resources lacking, teachers would have to find a way to deliver their lessons in a creative and effective manner. This, too, affects students, because all students have different learning styles and one cannot simply adopt another learning style with much ease.

In the aspect of teachers competencies, according to the previous and unrevised R.A. 4670 (The Magna Carta for Public School Teachers), public school teachers in the elementary and secondary education are not required to pass the Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET) while in some, if not most private schools, teachers must take the LET and pass it in order for them to teach in the school. Since it has only been implemented recently that public teachers must have taken and passed the LET, this can be a factor in the level of standards set by the school. A students learning may greatly suffer with incompetent teachers.

In my previous school, we had an average of 12 different subjects per year. In one day, we would have 8 subjects and the class duration was 40 minutes or 1 hour and 20 minutes (if double period). I believe that this may be ideal for high school setting because according to a study by Middendorf and Kalish (1996), students zone out after 15 minutes that may cause the inability for a student to absorb everything the teacher is saying. In some private schools, there are fewer subjects but longer class duration per subject. But compared to some public schools, there are fewer subjects and shorter class duration per subject (50 minutes). I think this is ideal because students would get to focus more. I do find 8 subjects a day an overload because this might cause confusion to some students.

Goals, Plans, Projects

The government has finally approved K-12. It was stated by the Department of Education in the Official Gazette that the goal of K-12 is first, to strengthen early childhood education by teaching the students the alphabet, shapes, numbers in their mother tongue. Second, to make the curriculum relevant to learners by contextualization. Third, is to build proficiency through language by mother tongue-based multilingual education. Fourth, is to ensure integrated and seamless learning through spiral progression. Fifth, is to gear up students for the future through senior high school. In line with these goals, the K-12 program has included a Track feature. During senior high school, students may choose on which track they would want to pursue. Also, it is said that after successfully passing the tenth grade, the student may receive the National Certificate Level 1 (NC 1); and may receive National Certificate Level 2 (NC 2) after passing the twelfth grade in the Technical-Vocational Track. NC 1 and NC 2 improves employability of graduates in fields like Agriculture, Electronics, and Trade.Through discussions in class, I have realized that nothing much will be implemented from the K-12 program because most schools I know, and even my school has introduced most of the features in the program before K-12 was implemented.

The core curriculum stated in the program is similar to what I have experienced in my previous school. The Technical-Vocational courses were likened to our Home Economics or Technology and Living classes. There were also entrepreneurship classes that introduced the idea of businesses. There were specific weeks intended for Science and Math, Arts, English and Literature, Filipino, Intramurals etc. and this could lead to students to know which track they would want to pursue in the future; and a means to know and value MLE, nationalism, as well as diversity. Although, I agree that receiving a certificate that after the 10th or 12th grade students may be employed is an opportunity for students who need to work for a living to get to college and finance other life essentials that their parents alone could not provide for them and for the whole family.

Stated in the program was that students in the private school who start schooling at age 4 would end at age 17. I do not see any difference between K-12 and the old educational system because based on my experience, majority in our batch were aged 17. So if they say that K-12 is to decongest the curriculum, then I believe that that statement is unsound since firstly, they are adding more courses such as vocational courses and secondly, there will be no additional years in high school thus still having a congested curriculum.

Through K-12, students may have an easier time in deciding on what course or field to take in college since they have more idea through the track feature. I believe this system can quite boost our nationalism because through contextualization and MLE, we become aware of our own, and we learn to appreciate our culture, country and selves.

There have been changes in our system since the colonizers came to the Philippines but nothing drastic has been changed. We also continued to adapt ideas from the west. We still have not created a system that could boost the quality of education in the Philippines.

If the government would invest more on the teachers through training for effective teaching, valuing their welfare (higher salary) etc., then teachers would become better. Having effective and competent teachers may greatly affect students. This can result in higher quality of education and a better society.

I believe that there is enough money to fund teachers more so that the role of a teacher is crucial to the development of a student. For our country to continue improving, we Filipinos must choose to stay here and work for our nation because we are the only ones who can make our country a better country.

Educational Philosophies

There are many educational philosophies and as future teachers, it is very important to know the features of these philosophies and theories. This can helpful in knowing the best teaching strategy and style for future students. Also, this can be a way of knowing whether the commonly used educational philosophies are effective in the learning of the child and how these affect the current state of the Philippine basic education.

Essentialism

Essentialism is a theory that asserts that education properly involves the learning of the basic skills, arts, and sciences that have been useful in the past and are likely to remain useful in the future. (Gutek, 1997) The three Rs, reading, writing and arithmetic are considered the essentials in education. Some essentialists say that the 3Rs and research skills are to be mastered in elementary while Science, Mathematics, History, English, and foreign languages are learned and mastered in secondary education. Essentialists believe that these subjects must be given most focus on. These subjects are said to be most necessary in the development of a learner. Also, these subjects will prepare them for the necessary skills needed in the future. Students are expected to master these skills in order to become an effective citizen.

For essentialists, the ultimate purpose of formal education is to preserve and transmit the basic elements, or essentials of human culture. (Gutek, 1997) Through education, the culture of the community is being passed on to the students for the preservation of heritage.

In essentialism, teachers are expected to be experts in the subject matter especially that the theory is teacher-centered. Teachers are the only source of information in the classroom. The teachers role is then very crucial in student learning. Meanwhile, students are expected to absorb everything the teacher has to say.

I believe that essentialism suggests rote learning in the classroom. With teachers entirely prompting ideas and feeding lessons to the students, analytic and critical thinking are not developed. Students are not challenged to analyze and critique situations because the source of information is the teacher solely. It depicts the purpose of education- to learn and be educated. I, personally, do not consider rote learning to be real learning because rote learning is purely memorization. Memorizing facts and formulas does not make a child educated. He or she must understand fully and think critically. He or she must learn to think on his or her own.

I believe that with only the 3Rs do not help the child develop holistically. For me, to be developed holistically is when one is taught the other fields such as art, home economics, physical education etc. because these subjects teach the child discipline and creativity. Strength and endurance too may be developed. To be holistic is to not only be cognitively smart. One must be physically, emotionally, behaviorally and spiritually smart.

Learning may suffer especially for students who have different interests. Yes, it is important to learn the 3Rs and science, history etc. but there are students who are more interested in other fields. I think that there should be subjects other than the subjects stated above to address the needs of those who excel more in those fields. Also, teachers might not be able to adjust teaching style for the reason that students are like sponges that they accept all information given. Without critical and analytical thinking and reasoning, the society may suffer greatly. Voters may not be knowledgeable enough to vote for the good politicians. Others may not be able to resolve certain conflicts in life. Some may fully depend on others. It is very important for everyone to develop analytical and critical thinking and reasoning and become holistic members of the society.

Perennialism

Perennialism comes form the assertion that the important principles of education are changeless and recurrent. Perennialists see the school as a social institution specifically designed to develop human intellectual potentiality. (Gutek, 1997) For Perennialists, truth is the ultimate aim of education, and truth is constant, universal and unchanging thus having a constant, universal and unchanging curriculum. Included in the curriculum are ethical and political philosophy, natural science and fine arts, mathematics and poetry.

Perennialists also believe that the curriculum must be permanent regardless of culture of the people. Unlike essentialists, they extract ideas or experiences from the students and work their way in. They also give importance to values such as love of truth, love of goodness and justice, simplicity and openness, a sense of a job well done, and a sense of cooperation.

School is seen as an intellectual agency with a purpose of the development of reasoning or rationality. Like essentialist teachers, perennialist teachers are expected to be the master of subjects and guided discussion in the classroom although they may not be the only source of information. Students in the other hand are expected to learn from reading and analyzing classic works or also known as the great books. I do like the idea that compared to essentialists, perennialists included moral and religious training and the liberal arts in the curriculum. This, I believe, promotes holistic development the student. Although, I believe that having a universal curriculum proposes imbalance or bias because all countries and communities have their own culture. One may not be able to cope to the expectations of the curriculum. I think that an educational system should be contextualized. Students may have an easier time if they could relate to lessons. Having a standard or universal curriculum may be a barrier to learning because students have different interests, learning styles, socio-economic status and of course, culture.

Having a permanent and universal curriculum may affect learning because lessons might not be timely. There are certain issues and situations that already changed history. If curriculum is perennial, then the society may not move on to the current situation and may not resolve certain issues. Curriculum must change depending on the situation of a community so that learning is appropriate and timely.

It is also confusing that some perennialists (religious) would suggest that teachers must be dynamic in the classroom because they extract ideas from students but some would say that perennialists do not focus on the interests of the child. I think that for learning to occur, an exchange of ideas and thoughts through relevant discussions should be present. Exercises as such would help develop the learners critical and analytical thinking and reasoning.

Progressivism

Progressivism is the orientation that believes that improvement and reform in the human condition and society are both possible and desirable. (Gutek, 1997) Progressivism, as an educational theory, focuses on the individual rather than the norm- it is criterion-referenced. Progressive education focuses on the abilities of the child rather than the subject matter. Progressivists focus on the interests, abilities and experiences of the child. The aim of education, for progressivists, is to meet the needs of the growing child. (Gutek, 2011) According to Betrand Russell, education is the key to a new world. Students are not in school to learn to become adults but continue growing and become good members of the society. Progressivism aims to prepare learners to face a changing democratic society.

Generally, teachers are very crucial in learning. In a progressivist classroom, the teacher is expected to be the resource person and a guide to learning activities. Unlike essentialists and perennialists, progressivist teachers only guide the child. They are not the main source of information. They guide students to form ideas and concepts. They are considered as a facilitator in the classroom. They are also expected to motivate their students to initiate discussions. The teaching style depends on the learning style, interest and needs of the student.

Progressivism is a student-centered theory. Students are free from restraints and repression. They go at their own pace in learning and interests and needs of the students are given much importance in this theory. Students are encouraged to engage in collaborative activities that would develop problem solving, may be relevant to the situation of the society, but discourage them from a competitive environment. They are also encouraged to be aware of social issues because eventually, they are expected to participate in social reform.

I think that focusing entirely on the interests and needs of the child and neglecting the subject matter does not help a child develop holistically. Yes, it is important to consider the needs and interests but learning is not complete without the content. Progressivists may be against rote learning but with lack of content, there may be not much to learn. It also proposes an anti-intellectual system because students may not become interested in learning the 3Rs, liberal arts, science etc. Being a student-centered theory, the student may not progress or may become stagnant in a particular level. Another possibility is that he or she may be very slow in learning that he or she has wasted a lot of time. Too much focus is given to the interests and needs of the child that reality is forgotten. Students are supposed to learn in school. I believe that there are other outlets for the interests and needs of the child.

Other issues such as lowering of standards and abuse are also raised. There may be tendencies that standards are lowered just so students may attain instructional goals. And because they focus on they student, he or she may prefer low cognitive level. Abuse may also be an issue because students may take advantage of having a student-centered system by complaining and throwing tantrums when needs and expectations are not met.

Social Reconstructionism

Social Reconstructionism focuses on the changes in the society. Education is used as an instrument to bring about social change. Reconstructionists believe that all philosophies, ideologies, and theories, including educational ones are culturally based. Also, they believe that culture is growing and changing thus humans are capable of refashioning culture so that it promotes human growth and development. (Gutek, 1997) Reconstructionists see education as a means to shape students so that these students are to bring solutions to social crisis and reformation and change to the society.

According to George S. Counts, crisis is the unpreparedness of people to cope with change. Overpopulation, pollution, violence and terrorism are examples of changes in the society; and the social reconstruction theory sees education as means to prepare the people for these kinds of changes.The curriculum is composed of subject matters that introduce awareness to social issues. It is to train students to think analytically and critically about recommendations for these issues. It is also to train students to research about underlying issues of the society. The curriculum must also focus on critical literacy and democratic ideals. Eventually, the aim is for students to be responsible for the planning and changing of the society.

With a curriculum based on the social issues, the process of making and writing it is continuous. It must be timely to the current issues and crisis of the society. Social reconstructionists observed that the curriculum created was for the past. It is not appropriate and suitable for the needs of the society.

A teacher in a social reconstructionist oriented institution must be aware of social issues. The teacher must be seen as a good model and friend in the classroom so that students follow him or her for social change. The teacher must also be prepared not only to produce oppositional form of knowledge and social practice, but also to struggle and take risks in fighting injustices. He or she should be open to diversity and should view education from a global perspective. The teacher is expected to have a high tolerance for ambiguity and comfortable with change especially that change is what they are proposing. He or she should have excellent interpersonal skills and command of languages to easily express reformation.

Like progressivism, social reconstructionism is a student-centered theory. Students are not controlled in learning. They can express their ideas freely, and they are to define major issues in the society. Students are encouraged to share experiences and knowledge thus proposing collaborative learning. Students must also be aware of forces that manipulate them so that through education, they can improve their lives and become better citizens. Schools must be a neutral place but teachers who have a firm stand or take part on social and political affairs may lose objectivity in teaching. I think that it is contradicting to the student-centered feature of the theory because students might follow whatever the teacher says. Yes, they may be encouraged to express their thoughts but it may be useless if they just follow their teachers.

I think that a continuously changing curriculum is not practical. Since social issues are also continuously changing, curriculum must also be changed. Creating a curriculum is a very tedious job and changing it every so often gives a difficult time for the teachers. This could also cause confusion to the student.

Academics may be neglected because of much focus on the social issues. Their purpose of finding solutions and changes to the society could affect the learner. There are also values learned from academics and it must not be neglected.

I also think that social reconstructionism is idealistic. I do believe that change starts from oneself but their expectation is too high to be met. It can be difficult to find solutions for social issues that can be implemented and these solutions can be costly and time consuming.

Analytic Philosophy

Analytic philosophy is a method of analyzing language to clarify and establish its meaning. Analytic philosophy conceives its function to be the examination and classification of the language of both common discourse and scientific expression. The purpose of education is to analyze and examine concepts, language and strategies that deal with the formulation of policies and the elaboration of teaching-learning strategies. (Gutek, 1997)Philosophical analysts are concerned about the process of educational plans so that they can critically analyze and reconstruct ambiguous or vague meanings and purposes. Paradigms, which are models of logic that help clarify concepts, are important in this theory so that meanings are clear and well defined. Assumptions and conceptions are discouraged. Policies, methods, materials, and procedures are important in this theory because these are the basis for examining the curriculum.

In the classroom, teachers give emphasis on language and do not teach the traditional grammar and syntax. They develop this because students learn to analyze and think critically so that they can define and create meaning clearly. Teachers also use language in expressing ideas and this can unintentionally influence the students thus teachers are expected be masters in the field. They should be aware of the limitations and possibilities of language. Language can be very powerful and when not used properly may cause trouble.

According to Ludwig Wittgenstein, words do not have one meaning but a lot. It depends on the person using it because he or she gives the meaning of it. Students then are expected to produce meaning rather than purely accepting ideas from the teacher and with proper usage in language, students learn to reason out clearly.

I think that the theory is encouraging that philosophical analysts develop critical and analytical thinking but focusing too much on this does not develop other aspects such as emotional and spiritual aspects. I do believe though that analytical thinking is very important in a person because a lot can be contributed to the welfare of the society and oneself. Analytical philosophy does clarify educational terms but the theory may be too philosophical that it neglects education purposes and changes in the world.

The theory is critiqued because philosophers find the next step after defining and clearing educational terms. Relating it to assessment, once a child with special needs are assessed or diagnosed, he or she must be given an individual educational plan and placement so that the information that they have gathered from assessment may not be put to waste. It goes with this theory as well that after definition, there should be an application.

Existentialism

Existentialism is a student-centered theory. It is merely the students choice on what he or she wants to learn. The student decides on what to include in the curriculum. Everything is individualized. You are what you are by choice. (Muega, 2013) In existentialism, the students decide for everything on their selves.

Teachers are only guides in the classroom. They may also be called facilitators. They try to get ideas from the child but they are not solely the source of information. They are expected to help students organize their thoughts.

The subjects are divided into three: the givens (sciences), open areas (arts) and history. In the classroom, students are free to choose the medium of instruction and the content from the subjects above to be learned. Students thoughts and opinion are given much importance in this theory because this is how they learn. Also, there is no right and wrong in an existentialist classroom. There is no censorship. Every student is free to talk about anything. Students are very open-minded because existentialists think that being open helps development in the behavior of the child. Also, students, after presenting ideas and issues, are expected to provide a solution to their problems. One must know him or her self fully so that he or she could generate ideas and to know oneself is to not restrain with the laws of nature. Existentialists encourage thinking and creating new ideas thus one must know oneself. It then follows that people develop completely with subjectivity thus becoming a self-actualized person.

I believe that this theory also promotes becoming anti-intellectual because the learner chooses whatever he or she wants to learn. But in order for a person to be fully developed he or she must know the basics. To be a well-rounded person, he or she must be developed physically, emotionally, spiritually and of course, cognitively. If the person chooses to not learn at all, then the objective of education is not meant.

The theory also encourages learners to be lazy because they were given the freedom to choose whatever they wanted. They may also abuse this power that they no longer value learning and just slack off. Values are not developed in this theory because of this reason.

Teachers then will be having difficulties in handling an existentialist classroom because not all the demands and needs of the student may not be met; especially if there is only one teacher for a whole bunch of students. It is not practical for everyone in an existentialist classroom to have such system. It is a lose-lose situation because learning and development of the child may suffer and as well as the welfare of the teacher. It is also impractical because of the resources needed and to have a student-centered or existentialist setting requires a lot of resources so that the student may learn fully.

Results

A. RespondentsMaleFemale

1751

* One did not specify his/her gender

Social Science MajorEmpirical, Formal, Applied Science MajorArts & Humanities Major

362013

Private Elementary and Secondary SchoolPrivate elementary and Public Science High SchoolPublic Elementary and Secondary schoolOthers

3013615

B. Survey Outcomes

Essentialism & PerennialismProgressivism & Social ReconstructionismAnalytic PhilosophyExistentialism

335031

There are a total of 69 people who responded to the survey on the different educational philosophies. These people are of students who are currently taking Educational and Thought Practice course and students who have taken the course. 30 respondents came from a private elementary and secondary school, 13 were from a private elementary and public science high school, four from a public elementary school and public science high school, six from a public elementary and secondary school, and 15 others. Out of 69 respondents, 33 said that their schoolteachers were mostly essentialists and perennialists, 31 said that their schoolteachers were existentialists, 5 said that theirs were progressivists and social reconstructionists while no one answered that their teachers were models of analytical philosophy.Implications

Most answered that their schoolteachers were essentialists and perennialists. Ideally, schoolteachers have equipped them with the necessary skills to meet the standards at the tertiary level. Skills in communication, math and science, moral and practical reasoning, imaginative thinking, and critical thinking are considered necessary. Although, it is interesting that most mentioned that it was not solely the teachers who developed these skills rather parents or professors in the University of the Philippines Diliman have helped develop these skills.

One implication of the fact that these students claim to have developed the skills through the guidance of their parents and/or professors in UP Diliman is that basic education teachers are not competent. A lack of teacher training is possibly the cause of this, as well as the lack of funding for the teacher training.

The next most common philosophy is the existentialism. This can be alarming because the quality of education may be affected. Although it is good that teachers are lenient on letting students express their ideas, teachers are supposed to guide the students toward the appropriate and correct lessons.

This can mean that students may become selfish in terms of time because they are used to having their own pacing which is not a good trait. This could also mean that the quality of education lies in their hands since there are no right or wrong teachings in an existentialist class, which could be alarming.

It is not shocking that only five answered that their teachers are progressivist and social reconstructionist oriented because progressivism and social reconstructionism requires a lot of resources and effort. It is not very ideal in the Philippines because of the lack of budget and resources especially in the public schools. A ratio of 50 students to only one teacher may cause the teacher difficulty. Also, progressive and social reconstructionist education is very costly. It is not ideal for Filipinos since mostly are in the lower socio-economic status.

It is alarming the no one answered that their teachers are analytic philosophy models. Teachers should have clear and precise language as a way for students to understand them fully. Unclear language may be a barrier to student learning. Though some students are lucky to have parents who can be models for this, teachers must have the skill in having clear and understandable language because students spend more time in school than at home.

As I have mentioned in the second part, I believe that essentialism may be a solution to the issues and problems encountered in the current educational system. Taking in to consideration that there is a possibility that because all respondents are from the University of the Philippines, essentialism indeed is effective in developing the skills necessary at the tertiary level. I believe that most people lack critical thinking and reasoning. These skills are very important because with these skills people could create solutions for arising problems. People could vote wisely. People could be leaders and great followers of the nation.

It is interesting that a difference of two respondents set essentialists and perennialists teachers as the first and existentialists as the second. The respondents are from UP and UP is open to become whoever the students he or she wants to be. Having existentialist models trained them to express themselves and just be who they wanted to be. It just follows that the respondents are not restricted to question views of people or express their personal views. This may be good but sometimes, their thinking might be flawed and guidance is very much needed.

Conclusion

There is not much difference in public and private schools because majority answered similarly. The number one factor that I think is the reason for this is because respondents were all from UP. It is better maybe if the study is taken outside of UP to fully understand the problems and issues that are needed to be attended to.

The problem that I saw is that most schoolteachers do not have clear and precise language and this skill is very important so that students become good communicators. I believe that the government should consider this and create seminars, workshops and trainings so that teachers can learn and enhance this skill.

Proposed Solutions

After learning the different educational theories and knowing the results of the survey, a combination of essentialism and progressivism is necessary to have a better basic education. I believe that both could solve the issues and problems in the educational system in the Philippines. These theories are two opposite theories but if ideas from both theories are integrated, it may produce a good theory and educational system. I think that interests and needs of a child are really important but academics and essential subjects should be given focus as well. I believe that a child must develop holistically to be a productive citizen and both theories promote that.

A balance of student-centered and teaching-centered view can help the child in developing critical thinking and reasoning. A person who is aware of social issues can suggest solutions for social issues. A person who developed discipline from the essential subjects may analyze and reason out effectively.

Progressivism suggests that students are taught not just to be adults but students continue to change and grow over time. It encourages people to take experiences as teachers thus they become unafraid to live. On the other hand, essentialism suggests knowing the relevance in everything we do. I think that these two go side by side and can develop a productive citizen.

The government should take in consideration the needs of the students in the Philippines, especially the lack of high quality and good written books. Lastly, the government must prioritize teacher training because their role is the most crucial in education. Investing on this would surely provide a better educational system.

Education is the best investment because education leads the people into greater opportunities, lives, thus having a greater country.

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