Filipinos, why are your children smart? Is it with the white rice?
By Thelma Macas, Contributing Writer - Texas, USA
“CONGRATULATIONS TO KENNIE SUNGA AND GLOELI CALDERON RATTLER — VALEDICTORIAN AND SALUTATORIAN FROM CLASS OF 2007″
This ran for almost a month now in our “high tech” information billboard of the High School where I am teaching here in Texas. This made us all so very proud (”all” means Filipinos in Rio Grande Valley composing the cities if Rio Grande, McAllen, Brownsville, Harlingen, etc.) Yes, believe it or not both, Valedictorian and Salutatorian are Filipinos. One co-teacher of mine asked me what could have been our secret, “Is it with the white rice?” I just humbly replied with a huge smile hiding my owl-like eyes.
A month ago CNN featured some Asian college students who made it to the Ivy League. It also tried to probe more deeply in answering the question on what could have been their secret in excelling in these most sought after schools of America (namely Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Harvard University, Dartmouth College, Yale University and University of Pennsylvania). Most of these students answered that they were constantly inspired by their parents to excel. There is indeed a secret formula; and for sure it is not solely because of the white rice we are eating!
Now this one should make my daughter’s Alma Mater proud — The City Central School of Cagayan de Oro City. Of the four state tests that Estherinaquel has to take as a sophomore in Texas, she got ‘Commended Performance’ in all four core areas: English, Mathematics, Social Studies and Science — she got a perfect score in the latter! To top it all, she took the Texas Higher Education Assessment Test (THEA Test in Reading) and got 293 out of the 300! This is an all time high for a sophomore like her.
She ranks number five right now and her goal is to be next to Kevin Sunga (yes, another Filipino) who ranks first in batch 2009.
For this, I am forever grateful to my daughter’s foundation: the CITY CENTRAL SCHOOL OF CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY!
My fellow Kagay-anons, let us persevere in instilling in our children this “love for education,” which is precisely the reason why we raise smart children. May we never lose sight of one true secret we have, Faith Hope and Love for God — He who is being defined as Pure Life, Pure Truth and Pure Love!
For all we know the metaphor behind the white rice we eat is to constantly remind us of God’s perfection!
P.S.
How are you all? …I am so proud of City Central School. Can you find out who the Principal is right now?
Long live CDOKAY!
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July 25th, 2007 at 1:12 am
It could be the rice indeed! But aside from that, the main ingredients of Filipino children’s intelligence is the viand of love and learning that they get from their parents. Even if the academic system here in the Philippines is not expensively budgeted by the government, we still have students who excel. Something that we should be proud of.