Why a Teacher must Visit his Barber
I visited my friend barber today. Obviously, I got my hair cut and my facial hair trimmed. As I mentioned before, I always look forward to every visit I make to Louie, my barber. It took me quite longer to pay him a visit. It is vacation time-no class-so I need not have to sport a slacker hair style the way I did when there are classes. My hair has grown quite funny. The hair on both temporal sides grows faster than the parietal portion. This gives an impression that I have pattern baldness. Bald or what, I don’t care. I have shaved my head shiny before. I even like it skinhead, but in school it does not work very well. I just don’t know why my senior administrators don’t want me to have my head shaved. Since I will be back in school on May 18, I must have my hair cut. I should sport a cleaner look because our students’ parents and my colleagues expected me to, and I hate this very much.
When I arrived at the barbershop there were still two blokes ahead of me. I still had to wait, though the first one was almost through. After quite a while, Louie worked on the second guy. As I was waiting, a girl classmate in high school saw me. She was one of my close friends when we were still in high school. She was unassuming before and still is today. What I remembered about her was mathematics. She was good in math. She is a teacher now, a language teacher more specifically Filipino. This is unexpected because most people who are good in mathematics hate languages. As we were talking (she was waiting for somebody), she asked me how their high school students were doing in college. She wanted to know how their English was, I think. I taught remedial English and writing across discipline in college. She expected my answer. I told her not only their students but most students fare badly in college English in all four macro-skills.
As it was already my turn on the barber’s chair, our conversation continued now together with my barber friend. She told me students fare badly in both languages-English and Filipino-because they don’t care about the subjects and learning them. I affirmed what she told us. I also added that students today do not study their lessons. They do not read their books anymore and do their assignments only in school just few moments before checking or submission. Louie added that there is indeed so much to be desired of the students today. However, deep within myself I thought it should not only be the students who are at fault here. Teachers should be blamed of the deteriorating quality of high school education in the country. There are so many teachers who are incompetent. Parents too must be blamed. Academic success is highly correlated with how much parents spend time with their children on their school work.
As I left the barbershop I have these realizations in my mind. I have indeed grown older and more mature with life. Whenever somebody talks of more sensible things, I always like the idea. I am very fascinated when the talk becomes more socially relevant. I always experience this in the barbershop, and only older people love to talk about social problems. Another thing that I realize is that there are still teachers who are more than willing to change the current education system in the country. One is my former classmate and another older teacher who is with her. They are also frustrated with so much bureaucracy in the system that the more pressing needs and concerns were set aside for more personal gains among government officials. These officials are supposed to be working for improved and better quality education in the country. As good as my new cut looks, this still cannot resurrect the dying education system of the country. So sad!
I visited my friend barber today. Obviously, I got my hair cut and my facial hair trimmed. As I mentioned before, I always look forward to every visit I make to Louie, my barber. It took me quite longer to pay him a visit. It is vacation time-no class-so I need not have to sport a slacker hair style the way I did when there are classes. My hair has grown quite funny. The hair on both temporal sides grows faster than the parietal portion. This gives an impression that I have pattern baldness. Bald or what, I don’t care. I have shaved my head shiny before. I even like it skinhead, but in school it does not work very well. I just don’t know why my senior administrators don’t want me to have my head shaved. Since I will be back in school on May 18, I must have my hair cut. I should sport a cleaner look because our students’ parents and my colleagues expected me to, and I hate this very much.
When I arrived at the barbershop there were still two blokes ahead of me. I still had to wait, though the first one was almost through. After quite a while, Louie worked on the second guy. As I was waiting, a girl classmate in high school saw me. She was one of my close friends when we were still in high school. She was unassuming before and still is today. What I remembered about her was mathematics. She was good in math. She is a teacher now, a language teacher more specifically Filipino. This is unexpected because most people who are good in mathematics hate languages. As we were talking (she was waiting for somebody), she asked me how their high school students were doing in college. She wanted to know how their English was, I think. I taught remedial English and writing across discipline in college. She expected my answer. I told her not only their students but most students fare badly in college English in all four macro-skills.
As it was already my turn on the barber’s chair, our conversation continued now together with my barber friend. She told me students fare badly in both languages-English and Filipino-because they don’t care about the subjects and learning them. I affirmed what she told us. I also added that students today do not study their lessons. They do not read their books anymore and do their assignments only in school just few moments before checking or submission. Louie added that there is indeed so much to be desired of the students today. However, deep within myself I thought it should not only be the students who are at fault here. Teachers should be blamed of the deteriorating quality of high school education in the country. There are so many teachers who are incompetent. Parents too must be blamed. Academic success is highly correlated with how much parents spend time with their children on their school work.
As I left the barbershop I have these realizations in my mind. I have indeed grown older and more mature with life. Whenever somebody talks of more sensible things, I always like the idea. I am very fascinated when the talk becomes more socially relevant. I always experience this in the barbershop, and only older people love to talk about social problems. Another thing that I realize is that there are still teachers who are more than willing to change the current education system in the country. One is my former classmate and another older teacher who is with her. They are also frustrated with so much bureaucracy in the system that the more pressing needs and concerns were set aside for more personal gains among government officials. These officials are supposed to be working for improved and better quality education in the country. As good as my new cut looks, this still cannot resurrect the dying education system of the country. So sad!
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