The very culture is not what they would call “conducive” to higher education.
Give a Filipino a phone with TikTok and watch their eyes light up with glee. Give them a novel to read and watch their faces sour.
Take a place that is rocked by incessant noise, heat and chaos, when does anyone have a chance to sit down for a long study?
Initiate a conversation about economics, science, history or geopolitics and it will be over in two sentences.
Bring a bottle of alcohol and karaoke machine and watch them go for 12 hours straight.
Intellect shaming. People who excel at their studies are often bullied by others out of sheer petty jealousy. Once in awhile maybe they’ll get a ribbon and a piece of paper but nothing that truly supports and encourages their talent.
Problem solving. In most other parts of the world problems become one of our greatest teachers. It motivates us to seek out different perspectives, points of views, knowledge and come up with a solution to the problem. Most importantly how to avoid that problem again in the future.
But admitting a mistake, even to one’s self is losing face. So they just try to forget about it and pretend it never happened and the average Filipino will encounter the same problem over and over and over again without learning much from it.
Try to discuss a problem with someone in the Philippines and they’ll likely just start talking about God and launch in to a Bible sermon then tell you to pray more. Or perhaps they’ll offer you some cooking spices (herbal medicine) Really? This solves nothing.
Nutrition is badly neglected in the Philippines for a large number of people. Even though this is vital for brain and bodily development.
Finally, education. Education is only accessible to the privileged and/or highly determined. So many are encouraged by their families to go to work doing carpentry, “farming”, fishing or some menial work to acquire fast money- it never actually improves their overall economic conditions in life.
Most of the best talent has already left the country in search of greener pastures; only occasionally returning out of nostalgia and to enjoy a warm vacation.
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