Most people talk about it; few understand it. Most people want it; few achieve it. What is this intriguing subject we call “education”?

Let’s talk on education, shall we? In general context, education is an instrument through which civilization is transmitted and developed. It becomes a facilitator for a new and wider selection of social roles, which may be useful for the development of the society. The potentials of every individual are in all ways determined by education, without it, our innate skills and talents can never be realized. Having been considered education as an integrative force of the society, we must therefore give it undeniably to those who defined and composed society for without education there may not be enough competitive people to work, companies would go out of business without people working for them and would end to the degradation of the whole economy.

Let’s talk on quality education, shall we? In the irregularities of parameters, people say that education is the key to liberate ourselves from the downtrodden humdrum of poverty, but an opposing force of status quo shrinks the hope that lingers in us. To consider education is to consider its quality; to consider quality is to consider the teachers; to consider the teachers is to consider the budget for Philippine education that above all defines the whole. The Philippine Constitution has mandated the government to allocate the highest proportion of its budget to education, but quite undeniably it only becomes an option in the priority list. Sad to say that our national budget since then has always been allotted to foreign debt and ours is to maximize what little there is left after allocating debt payments. To gain quality education, amendment of the current system of budgeting to narrow the disparity across regions is vital; to stop mismatch problems (unavailability of jobs to the courses taken), we summon leaders in businesses and industries to have a selective admission policy determining an equal subscription of courses that will define quality.

Let’s talk on commercialized education, shall we? In order to maintain equity and to compromise with the little budget of government, RA 8292 or the “Higher Education Modernization Act of 1997 has been implemented that turns the previously non-profit institution into profit-generating public agency. But since its implementation, had it sufficed public institutions? (Nothing has changed. Students feel familiar burden!) Education is now perceived as mere commodity where only privilege few could possibly avail schooling in prestigious schools whereas the majority poor are forced to drop themselves out from formal education. The fact that many Filipinos have no access to adequate educational resources is no longer just offensive to social morality which further violates Constitutional provision stating that the government shall “protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make education accessible to all.”, but simply offensive to the ultimate maximization of domestic resources for greater competitiveness.

As Philippines has not yet liberated from the aged-old problems plagued in the economic and political spheres so as the crisis surfaced. Where government was has its stand on it? We still have hours to go, the Chief Executive if he chooses to break the chain, still can.