Thou shall not block

If it were not for Mr. Felix Bolocon, the head of HCDC's Instructional Media Center who also gave us an enhancement on Educational Technology, I wouldn't have known that there is this animal called "IFLA/UNESCO Internet Manifesto Guidelines."

The manifesto has a portion that deals with "Barriers." You-who-once-blocked-Facebook-Friendster-etc., listen. The manifesto says:

Access to the Internet and all of its resources should be consistent with the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and especially Article 19:

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

The global interconnectedness of the Internet provides a medium through which this right may be enjoyed by all. Consequently, access should neither be subject to any form of
ideological, political or religious censorship, nor to economic barriers.

Barriers to the flow of information should be removed, especially those that promote inequality, poverty, and despair.

In short, you cannot just block Facebook, Friendster, etc. like you did before. Understand?

Erich Segal, 1938-2010

[caption id="attachment_1579" align="aligncenter" width="293" caption="Erich Segal"][/caption]

The one who made me buy a VCD copy  of "Love Story," read "The Class," "Doctors," and "Man, Woman, and Child"----the one who made me do all that died of heart attack.

Succisa virescit

I wondered if those people at Wowowee can have a motto of their own, but barely follow it, why can't I?

Thus I figured that I, too, should have my own motto not just for today, but for the entire year. And my motto is: "Succisa virescit," or since Latin sounds archaic, I'll stick to the English translation "Pruned, it grows again."

One of the upside of having a motto is that it saves you a lot of time when you find yourself in a dilemma. For example, I was mulling over whether I'd throw the photocopies I've accumulated over the years. Later, I decided to dump them away. As my motto says, "Pruned, it grows again."

I know that by making it as my motto, I will be guided properly. After all, this is also the motto of no less than the successor of St. Peter, Pope Benedict XVI.

So if you can't decide whether to shave your pubic hair, or to cut your hair short, or to pluck that pesky armpit hair, or to leave that friend who always badmouths you, or to give those clothes you haven't used since you bought them, my advice:

Pruned, it grows again.

The end

Today marks the end of my On-Campus Practicum at Holy Cross of Davao College-High School Department. As a final activity, I asked my students to give their feedback on me in general and on my teaching performance in particular.

I find some of the comments flattering. "Bonjour! Merci for being a good teacher. I adore the way you handle our classes." Some are banal and predictable. "Thank you, Sir, for teaching us. I learned a lot from you." Of course, what are teachers for? Some are downright honest. "Honestly, I find you irritating. Pag nag-discuss ka kulang. Masyado ka ring strikto at maiksi ang pasensya mo. Pero thank you pa rin for the effort."

Teaching is taxing. But what keeps me going is when I received a comment like this:

Sir, thank you for everything. I hope that you'll succeed. Sir, idol gud tika mag-tudlo, mag-education pud ko then sundogon nako imong style para masaya. Good luck, Sir!

To all the fourth year students of sections St. Teresa of Avila, St. Matthew, St. Cecilia, St. Clare, and St. Lorenzo, thank you. For better or for worse, you're already part of what I am today and what I will become tomorrow.

'Dahil sa pagkakacrisis natin'

Last night, while I was checking the essay part of my students' exam, I have come to the conclusion that they are not only deficient in English. They are deficient as well in Filipino. The evidence:

Ito ay mahalaga dahil ang mga tao ay nangangailangan ng mababang presyo. Dahil sa pagkacrisis natin. Kailangan kasi ito ng mga tao para mabawasan o madagdagan ang kanilang pamimili o makakasya ba sa kanilang budget. Mahalaga din ito sa mga prodyuser dahil dito sila nagbabase sa kanilang kikitain at kung malakas ba ang benta nila.

That's one of my students answering the question "Gaano kahalaga ang presyo sa mamimili at sa prodyuser?" (How important is the price to the consumer and to the producer?) Aside from that, did I mention already that my student has a terrible handwriting?