Tapping the Filipino creativity for the common good

(Part 1 of 2)

The recent Global Competitiveness Report (GCR) of the World Economic Forum gave a mixed bag of reviews for the Philippines. On the one hand, the country moved from 85th to 75th place in overall competitiveness index ranking between 2010-2011 and 2011-2012. This is one of the largest improvements in one year, which was due to improved macroeconomic conditions, improved public debt, improving country credit rating, and inflation under control. But the good news belies a weakness in the country’s prospects for future advances. In the same report, the Philippines ranked 115th out of 142 in the quality of math and science education. (www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GCR_Report_2011-12.pdf). Of course, one can argue that the rankings are based on the opinions of a select few and full of biases. After all, the report ranks Barbados, Tunisia and the tiny country of Trinidad and Tobago higher than the United States. But those countries that supposedly have better quality math and science programs have yet to invent anything resembling the Internet. And by the same token, countries that supposedly outrank the Philippines have yet to produce anything resembling the strains of rice that feed the peoples of the world. Nevertheless, accurate or not, the rankings are influential and are used by policy makers, corporate leaders and hirers. It is worrisome since it puts us at the bottom among the ASEAN nations and well behind other developing countries like Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia. These nations are our competitors in foreign investments as well as overseas labor. If we do not take actions, we stand to lose the well-paid jobs of the future that require workers to be well educated in math and sciences. The book “Rising Above the Gathering Storm,” published by the well-respected National Academies in the US, reports that “85 percent of measured growth in the US can be attributed to technological change.” It further asserts that to sustain the US standard of living, it must continue producing high-quality, knowledge intensive jobs and innovative enterprises that lead to discovery and new technology (www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=114). The Philippines should aspire to do the same, and she should develop strategies to prepare her citizens for the future.

Math and science are the foundations for innovation and science is learned most effectively through experimentation. “I hear, I forget; I see, I remember; I do, I learn” is as relevant today as it was when Confucius said it some 2,500 years ago. In Biblical context, St. Thomas reminded us that physical verification is key to acceptance of faith. But it is an uphill battle to make Filipino students learn and have faith in scientific theories. Laboratories are so rare in this country that there are 1,325 students sharing a lab, according to a Philippine Inquirer report in 2010 quoting the director of the Science Education Institute of DOST. The full article can be found in http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/learning/view/20101017-298240/Science-laboratory-on-wheels). Shortage of classrooms and science laboratories is clear and present yokes that will continue to drag us deeper into the abyss of world competitive ranking or worse, real economic downfall.

Faced with the fiscal reality, it may seem that the Philippines is doomed to scientific mediocrity. It may appear that she has no option but to concede that the citizens of a country like Singapore, which is No. 1 in the GCR ranking and enjoy massive education support, are destined to inherit the future. Based on the data compiled by the World Bank in 2008, Singapore spent nearly $7,200 per student on education in 2008 compared with less the $300 per student in the Philippines in 2008 (http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.SECO.PC.ZS/countries

andhttp://data.worldbank.org/country/). Thus, being poorly educated in math and science and being outspent by 24 to one in education, it seems that the Filipinos should be contented with serving others who are privileged enough to thrive in the modern, technologically driven society.

But before accepting the fate a second-rate existence, we should not lose sight of an intrinsically Filipino trait that offer a glimmer of hope — the Filipino resourcefulness and creativity.

The Filipino’s penchant for resourcefulness and creativity is legendary. For a Filipino, there is always a way to solve a problem, if not a few. This is one reason why OFWs and graduate students are sought after all over the world. These traits are honed at home because necessity is the mother of invention; and necessity is abundant in the Philippines. The good news is that if we can harness the Filipino’s knack to think outside the box, it will surely change the otherwise dreadful outlook of the future. Here’s how…

(To be continued)

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RD Mel Gomez received his BS Physics degree from the University of the Philippines and Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Maryland, College Park where he is currently a professor at the Clark School of Engineering. He has taught electrical engineering courses in the past 16 years and is currently the associate chair for undergraduate education. He is an internationally respected researcher and has published more than 80 scientific publications in peer-reviewed scientific journals, along with several books and book chapters. He is also an inventor, with three US patents in the general area of nanotechnology. He is a recipient of the US NSF Career Award, the PhilDev Award for outstanding contributions to engineering education, a senior member of the IEEE and was a past president and board member of PAASE. He was a two-time Balik Scientist awardee of the Department of Science and Technology, which allowed him to offer his services to his beloved Philippines.