MAED-ENGLISH Eloisa Mae Mitante MODERN EDUCATIONAL TRENDS, CHALLENGES, AND ISSUES PG. 2 VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY: WHERE HIGHER EDUCATIONGOES TO CYBER SPACE PG. 3 THE PROFESSIONAL REGULATION COMMISSION @36: ADVOCATING STRONGER POLICIES TO ENSURE INTEGRITY PG. 4 INSTITUTIONAL ACCREDITATION PG. 5 TEACHERS AND PARENTS: A DYNAMIC PARTNERSHIP PG. 6 CHANGING MISSION AND VISION OF RESEARCH AMIDST GLOBALIZATION PG. 7 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN GRADUATE TEACHER REFLECTIONS VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY: WHERE HIGHER EDUCATION GOES TO CYBER SPACE MY REPORT I remember a person who told me that back in the old days, having a personal laptop is just a luxury. Nowadays, having a laptop has become a necessity. I may say as well that even having cars now has also become a necessity. The world is indeed fast-changing. It feels like every day, new technologies are being discovered. All these do not stay as mere discoveries, they are being actualized and utilized. One of the sectors who are most concerned to these radical changes is the sector of education. It is the Education Sector who produce graduates who will soon be performing in the modern stage. Failure to cope up with these changes also means failure to produce globally competitive individuals. The world now requires workers who can work in the modern age. It needs individuals who are capable, not just of typing words in a computer but are also able to use these computers in disseminating information, leading other people, creating new technologies and more. DON’T BE LEFT BEHIND. For an institution to be successful in its aim, it should have manpower and facilities who will work together. An institution needs not only high-end facilities, it also need teachers who can put these facilities in their best use. That is why, it is really a great challenge for the teachers to cope up with the modern trends of education. Not only are the challenges great in the part of the teachers, leaders of education must also remember that for the teachers to provide quality education, they must provide the necessary resources to be used by these teachers. A few years back, I would like to say that traditional way of teaching will never go out of style, but now, I am convinced that as education goes to cyberspace, old practices have to be left behind and new practices are to be embraced. The Professional Regulation Commission @36: Advocating Stronger Policies to Ensure Integrity Let me state my reflection by stating good and bad points of PRC the way I perceive it. Good Points 1. The commission can be accessed online. It is a good thing for it lessens the burden of traveling from a far place to the main/regional office only to find out that you’re missing out a single document. It also reflects how the commission tries to cope up with the modern trends in technology which is really a must. 2. It has a good reputation in terms of the quality of the test being administered and the results of them as well. Though it is really sad to think that there are repeaters who has taken up the exam for like a hundred times already, I may say that the test results from the commission are always satisfying. I am assured that the test results are always reliable. 3. They have few outlets which are a lot easier to access for other concerned individuals. Though some functions are not fully performed by the regional offices and mall outlets, it is still somehow a big help that there are other offices that are nearer and are easier to be accessed. SUCCESS IS NOT A DESTINATION; IT IS A PROCESS Bad Points 1. The online system is sometimes inaccessible. Though it is truly convenient that they have accessible online site, these sites aren’t entirely convenient as the site is not always loading well. 2. The main office has poor accommodation due to its size and probably due to the age of the building. This is the part that is really stressful for me. It’s like you’ve come a long way to the office only to fit yourself in a non-air-conditioned room and all. It also gets worst when the people start to pile up. I’m expecting more from an office that is for the regulation of the PROFESSIONALS. 3. The attending personnel and office clerks are sometimes rude and treats teachers and professionals indignantly. This is really something they must realize. They are dealing with teachers and other professionals. A teacher, for example, was given respect when she’s in school. But this same teacher goes to PRC and gets yelled at for some papers he or she couldn’t fully figure out. Is this how they treat their professionals? Indeed, the PRC has really been trying to make stronger policies to ensure integrity but still, they have a long way to go. I wish they’ll start with how they treat their professionals. INSTITUTIONAL ACCREDITATION Truly, Success is not an end, it is a process. A beautiful wall was made to be built in front of the big campus. Flowers lined the beautiful wall that stood between two gothic pillars. It was even made attractive by the beige tiles that covered the wall. It looks majestic, but the most important thing is missing. Where is the new name of the institution that’s waiting to be posted there? I still remember that year. I remember how our professors are busy most of time. I remember the big renovations being made. I remember how some facilities are somehow being upgraded. I also remember how one night, I and my classmates had to stay overnight to help with the few paper works. All these and more for the pursuit of our institution’s universityhood, made me fully understand what accreditation is all about. I graduated but my diploma still stated STATE COLLEGE. As I’ve heard, we almost passed but there are facilities which really needed major upgrading. It was sad. What I saw there is that without accreditation, upgrade would be slow. I believe that because of accreditation, the institution is being motivated to give it best to provide the best education to the students. As I pass by that institution now, I still see that the wall was still blank. The flowers have overgrown on the flower boxes, too. But if you will adjust your focus, you’ll see through the metal fence beside them the two new three-storey buildings being built. If you move your eye to the left, you will notice as well the big, new grandstand that was not there before. It was amazing. I believe that the next time they try to undergo accreditation, they will surely finally receive the gift of being a university! TEACHERS AND PARENTS: A DYNAMIC PARTNERSHIP Nothing is better than a good parentteacher partnership. As a teacher, I have seen grateful parents who will thank you just for the simplest reasons while there are also parents who will come to school mad and yelling. There a teachers who are really doing a great job trying to reach out to parents but there are instances where the parent really would not cooperate and will just try to reason out and justify his/her child’s acts. There are also parents who will cover up for their chid. I believe that it is really also hard to be a parent. Parents aren’t perfect and so are teachers, but if they agree and cooperate well with each other, it will be great! The teacher’s aim is to discipline a child and lead him into the right path for his betterment. A parent has to understand this. There are parents who really react harshly with the slight discipline being imposed to his/her child! How will the child learn if all the rules will be all about pleasing the child and the parent in an unreasonable way? Good education begins at home. You cannot blame a school for not nurturing values in your child that you have not instilled. In the same manner, it is a teacher’s responsibility to inform and reach out to the parent to build a strong rapport of trust and support. Informing the parent about how the child is doing will make a big difference already. At the end of the day, the parents are the people who are to look after and nurture the child at home. When a child goes to school, his/her parents become his/her second parents. For this reason, the parents and the teachers should work hand in hand for the utmost well-being of the child. TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN GRADUATE TEACHER EDUCATION I’ve heard someone say, one good leader knows not just how to lead, but also how to manage. Every organization needs managing. Good management means that the end goals are met. For an organization to achieve good management, it must set first for itself its end goal to which all the efforts will be directed. Management is not just ensuring that one problem which arises at the moment is solved. When we talk about total quality management, it sees the bigger picture. Before it confirms that the management is good, it sees to it that every effort, every project, every move is still parallel to the objectives. Moreover, total quality management also means that for the whole organization to be successful, each functioning unit should be well-managed as well. It also requires that each smaller unit is in full support of the management. I believe it does not necessarily mean that no problem would arise, total quality management would mean that every situation that posts challenges are met accordingly with the right action. Indeed, educational leaders should deal not just with the big challenges in their offices. They must also take a look at eh real scenarios and lives of the smaller people under them. They must, sometimes, wear the shoes of their subordinates to be able to fully grasp the unmet, and aged problems of the education sector. CHANGING MISSION AND VISION OF RESEARCH AMIDST GLOBALIZATION An organization without a mission and a vision is like a ship without a sail. Where will it go? The mission and the vision are undoubtedly one of the most important things not just in an organization but even in a person’s life. It is like a driver that tells one where to go. A clear vision and mission also mean having a clear understanding of where an organization wants to go. They serve as guides in choosing where to best invest the efforts because the organization will only focus on work that will lead them to their destination. It also serves as motivation on why a people are exerting this and that effort. It is like a captain that stands at the front of the ship with arms stretched forward and fingers pointing while saying, “There is where we will go!”
