Filipino Teachers Abroad. a Mishap or a Purpose?

“If teaching is a public service, recently it has become a business”

                                                                -Shannon Lederer of the AFT

At about 598,812 Filipinos are licensed teachers as of September 22, 2009. 405,588 deal with elementary level and 193,224 are appointed to secondary level .Almost 10% are currently working overseas like in China, USA, Thailand, Korea and others. Some engage in teaching special children and those who can’t go to ordinary schools which prefer home schooling instead. Teaching is highly influential in shaping a good society. Through teaching, students are encouraged to develop their thinking skills, learn new information and be aware of their environment, establish their own way of improving their knowledge and be successful someday. These defined objectives should be substantially prioritized by the teachers with the help of the government since education became their civil responsibility.

By looking the status quo right now, Filipino members of this profession are very eager to work overseas than teaching in their own country. They studied in the Philippines to impart the knowledge of a credible teacher and be able to share what they had learned to students who hope to have good careers at the near future. The status quo of their physical contribution to different countries does not agree with the objectives of education in the Philippines. The question is why. Why do they choose to work in other countries than in their home land? The main reason for this is poverty. Salaries of the teachers here are not quite enough for them to provide all their needs and give their family a satisfying life. Filipinos abroad are paid up 10 times their salaries in the Philippines.

One of the teachers in the University of the Philippines took a one-year leave and worked in a university in Fujian, China. “I’m proud of what I’m doing in China,” “I can still recall that on my first day at the university, my students asked me where I come from. When I answered, ‘Philippines,’ they asked, ‘Where is the Philippines?’ Not one in my six classes (total of 270 students) knew anything about the Philippines. Now, it’s a different story. Little by little the Filipino English teacher is gaining respect,” she declared. In the US, Filipino teachers with at least 3 years of experience have salaries between $4000-$8000 a month or 20 times their salary in Philippines. Maryland’s second largest school district has hired almost 200 teachers from the Philippines to fill up vacancies in the next 12 months.

The government has something to do with this too. The Republic of the Philippines is the 4th most corrupt country in South East Asia. The intended fund for education was not wholly given to the public at the right time, place, and person. Instead, the officials who are responsible in supplying enough budgets for education have maybe put the money into their pockets. In some countries, the essence of pedagogics is very important to them that they provide teacher training to help he aspiring students to become a commendable teacher. In 1826, Germany set a tear of trial teaching as a requirement of all candidates for teaching positions. The United States wholeheartedly accepted teacher education between 1820-1865. Nepal established Mobile Normal School teams to direct 9-month training for this profession.

In Philippines, the government officials did not fully support this method. If they did, only in few places and it was not considered a nationwide action. They must encourage Filipino citizens to participate and provide outreach programs for them to prepare their teaching career especially in rural areas. By following the techniques of other countries such as increasing the salaries, giving them immediate jobs after they graduate, and recognizing them as one of the most respectful individuals. Many Filipino teachers will stay and make an improvement to their country, be able to decrease illiteracy among children and at the same time elevate their social status together with their families then one problem between civilian and his nation will be settled.