I read this article which is questioning whether kids should be encouraged to go to college by the time they’re 16. Here in the Philippines, almost all the kids are in college by the time they’re 16. Some people are in college at 14. There are pros and cons to this system. The pro of course is that you finish school much earlier. You can learn more faster- i.e., you could finish your masters by age 21 or 22, and take a doctorate degree if you’re really into it. Or go for a double degree. But for the most part, I find that there are more cons to this system.

First of all, here in the Philippines, once you get to college, you’ve still got a year or year and a half of math, chemistry, english, science, etcetera. How many times over do you have to study that stuff anyway? The Comm 3 course I took – I basically learned as a 12 year old when I had one of my aunt’s friends (a professor from La Salle) come and teach us. And for people like me who are hopeless at math, it’s just depressing to be faced with “Math 11″ in college.

Anyhow, it can also be difficult for a person to decide what course to take. It’s fine if you’ve got parents around or active guidance counselors who can guide you well on what course to take according to your personal strengths or weaknesses, otherwise you’ll see a lot of course switching- and in short, time wasted. And in situations where the 16 year old students move to a totally different place, situation etc to do their schooling, especially if the student comes from a far away, simple province, a lot of people just get ruined that way. They’re unable to take or deal with the peer pressure, etc etc. It can be quite a headache. Nobody said anything in this world would be easy tho.

Should Kids Be Able to Graduate After 10th Grade?

By KATHLEEN KINGSBURY Kathleen Kingsbury – Fri Nov 7, 4:50 am ET

High school sophomores should be ready for college by age 16. That’s the message from New Hampshire education officials, who announced plans Oct. 30 for a new rigorous state board of exams to be given to 10th graders. Students who pass will be prepared to move on to the state’s community or technical colleges, skipping the last two years of high school. (See pictures of teens and how they would vote.)

Once implemented, the new battery of tests is expected to guarantee higher competency in core school subjects, lower dropout rates and free up millions of education dollars. Students may take the exams – which are modeled on existing AP or International Baccalaureate tests – as many times as they need to pass. Or those who want to go to a prestigious university may stay and finish the final two years, taking a second, more difficult set of exams senior year. “We want students who are ready to be able to move on to their higher education,” says Lyonel Tracy, New Hampshire’s Commissioner for Education. “And then we can focus even more attention on those kids who need more help to get there.”

But can less schooling really lead to better-prepared students at an earlier age? Outside of the U.S., it’s actually a far less radical notion than it sounds. Dozens of industrialized countries expect students to be college-ready by age 16, and those teenagers consistently outperform their American peers on international standardized tests. (See pictures of the college dorm room’s evolution.)

With its new assessment system, New Hampshire is adopting a key recommendation of a blue-ribbon panel called the New Commission on Skills of the American Workforce. In 2006, the group issued a report called Tough Choices or Tough Times , a blueprint for how it believes the U.S. must dramatically overhaul education policies in order to maintain a globally competitive economy. “Forty years ago, the United States had the best… read full article

This was taken in La Union, Philippines, soon after one of the big typhoons hit the area.

First of all, congratulations, President-elect Obama! I usually follow the US elections quite closely, but this year I only just started following the election news a few days before the election itself. I was not really eagerly wishing and praying either one would win. I do not exactly fancy Palin, although I am a republican, or maybe I should just start saying I’m an independent. Anyhow, Obama has made history, and I hope the best for him during his term(s).

Now for my day- I just finished enrolling this morning. The second semester starts next week. Yay. I love learning, but sometimes it is hard to keep up with all the different responsibilities, and some teachers are just down right terrors.

During the semester break I took advantage of the extra time I had to work on the projects I am working on. I come from a middle class family with an upper class background. My dad has done community service for the past 30+ years or so, and I think it’s rubbed off on me. I love working with people and know community service is definitely very fulfilling. As the old saying goes, “Good is the man who strives to do his best. Honorable is the man who lives not just for himself, but for others. Glorious is he who lives for the Lord, dedicated to His cause.” Not that I am saying I’m honorable or anything.

Yesterday, it was in our headlines that the Philippines is top 5 in the world for hunger. Knowing that, it is not surprising to know that there is a very high amount of malnourished people in the country. Just in the little elementary school that I volunteered my community service hours for school last semester, over 90% of the children are malnourished. The irony of it all is that these people live in farms and are farmers! Unfortunately the consumerism attitude has greatly influenced these people, and our politicians are no help either. Instead of growing food and eating it, they grow food and sell everything they grow then buy some “goods” wrapped in plastic from the store. What was common knowledge in the past has now been forgotten. People no longer know the herbs to take as medicine, nor do they know the basic foods to eat to keep their bodies strong and healthy. It is this that I want to change. I would like to make it so that my fellow people can have the basic needs and rights that all living beings deserve – at least a full belly, good health, and of course, real education. I have started out outlining my plans and am working with the mayor and other government officials and a big group of my friends and fellow volunteers to get this project to lessen hunger (and hopefully eliminate it) going. After all, how painful and difficult is it actually to reach out and help a fellow human being? A single smile of thanks from someone else can erase all personal sacrifices in such work.

With that, I leave you with some pictures. The first one is one is a picture of rice terraces, as you can see, that my friends took during our hike up to a beautiful waterfall I’ll post about tomorrow. The second one is a nice little river that is just about 200 meters away from the elementary school I teach in. The kids brought me there during their school break the other day, when I was walking around their school taking pictures. The following picture is a picture of the great garbage control system they’ve got going. I especially like how all the plastics and non-degradable wastes are thrown as near the water as possible. (In all the schools I’ve been to the situation is the same) And finally, pictures of my 1st grade students. Just look at those smiles! One thing I really like about working in the rural if not- provincial areas, and with children like these guys is that despite the fact that they’ve hardly got anything, their eyes seem to retain a clarity and the bright freshness like that of cool winds blowing through shady bamboo, and they are definitely much quicker to smile than city folk. As you can see tho, they need some major dental help. That’s another project I’d like to do to help the people around here.

I’ve been sitting here trying to think of something beautiful to post, but I just had too much lunch and can’t think properly, so I’m just going to put a simple introductory message here.

I’ve loved writing and had several journals before but I never kept an online one.. I’m quite excited about this blog.

I’m “Jocks” from the Philippines and I’ll be writing on health, pets/animals, nature, community work, posting about cooking, recipes, health related issues, and probably a few other things.  The other author, Sam, who is from New Zealand, will be posting about sports, pictures, and travel in and around New Zealand and probably other places too.

I hope you will enjoy reading our blog, which is one of our first joint ventures.