I am a Working Woman

You worked hard all year long, studying for the entrance exams of the college of your dreams. Unfortunately, you end up not passing. This experience could definitely be crushing, especially for a teenager full of hopes and dreams. But in the face of a seemingly insurmountable challenge, here’s what I always say: Don’t give up! Or better yet, never give up!
If you really want to go to a particular college, especially in one of the country’s top three universities, there are still ways for you to get there.

For example, did you know that letters of appeal are considered by the Ateneo de Manila, University of the Philippines, and De La Salle University? Some students are fortunate enough to pass in all three schools. These students can only study in one college, freeing up slots for those who may be next in line.

You may also ask for a revalidating exam at De La Salle University. This will give you another opportunity to take the DLSUCET.

Another option: Try the provincial campus of your preferred college. The University of the Philippines, for example, has a campus in Los Banos and Baguio.

If you are a gifted athlete, you can get into the University of the Philippines through its Varsity Athletic Admission System. Given by the College of Human Kinetics of UP Diliman, the slots are given to deserving athletes after a round of rigorous tryouts. It’s good to note that the courses available through VAAS courses are not only limited to Sports Sciences. VAAS students may enroll in Landscape Architecture, Geodetic Engineering, and others through the VAAS. Plus, there are many athletic scholarships available for deserving and devoted athletes.

If you tried all these and you still weren’t able to get into these top three universities, there is still hope. Enroll yourself into a good university and work very hard to get very good grades during your freshman year. On your second year, apply for a transfer to the college of your dreams.

At UP, you may apply for transfer if you have taken at least 33 academic units with a general weighted average of 2.00 or better. You would have to take at least 50 percent of the units required of your course at the UP. Because your application will be based on your general weighted average compared to other applicants, you should really wow them with your stellar grades. Keep in mind that there is still a quota set by the Dean of College.

At DLSU, you may apply for transfer if your Grade Point Average (GPA) is at least 85% or its equivalent, if you did not fail any subject, if you have no incomplete grades, and if you have no unofficial dropped subjects.

At Ateneo, you may apply for transfer if you took the full load required per semester and if you finished a full school year at your current university. You would also have to fill up an application form and take the ACET for College Transfer Applicants.

Not passing the college entrance exam need not be the end of your dreams. The key is to move forward. Explore all avenues available to you. It’s not going to be easy, but don’t give up. You’ll never win if you stop trying!

The results of the Ateneo College Entrance Test (ACET) will be released later and we in AHEAD are all so excited. I am sure our students will do well again like in the recent release of the dela salle test DLSUCET results. After today, we will just be waiting for the UPCAT.

For the sixth year in a row, I received two whole big Binagoogang Pata (deep-fried pig’s hind leg with sautéed shrimp paste) from our franchisee from Dagupan, 27-year-old Cindy Cua.  She and her Sudoku World Champion sister Sarah delivered my favorite dish of all time, along with a lot of export-quality daing na bangus (vinegar-soaked boneless milkfish).  Cindy is so thoughtful, always bringing a lot of Dagupan goods almost every time she comes to Manila.  Sometimes it’s their delicious rice cakes puto, another time it was sweet sunflower seed brittle.

When I started franchising my tutorial and review center six years ago, I never thought I’d be getting these special gifts.  I don’t know where our franchisee from Alabang (a posh city south of Manila) Cecile Cuna got the suman (rice roll) with custard flan and yam she gave me last week, but they were super as well.  One time, she gave me a blouse that fit perfectly and a really cute make-up bag.  I am sure she picked them very carefully. I feel the love.  I’m so lucky with my partners and I wish that all of them feel that they are also lucky to be partners with me.

Have I ever told you that I have a terrific, terrific staff? They are definitely ahead of the rest. They are definitely smarter, more creative, more diligent, and more caring to clients than others. Even with their modest salaries, they always give me gifts. I always feel their support for me all year long but Christmas time is special. Every year for the past 16 years, we always have presentation competition. It really is a battle not really just for the prize but for the fun of preparing for them. We always divide the staff into four and each of the four will present with song, dance, skit and all their other talents. It is the highlight of our Christmas party. I attend numerous Christmas parties but Ahead’s Christmas party is the best because of the effort of my multi- talented staff. 

I’m also blessed to have great friends.  They never ignore me, even if I seldom have time to see them. We always have a great time catching up on the few occasions we do get together. On the 29th, I will be seeing my bestfriend from highschool who is based in New York.  I remember that our past time was answering math problems. Hahahaha! No, we were not geeks,.. But Sheila was terrific at numbers and I felt like we were just playing Bejeweled then. We earlier planned to stay and chat all afternoon and evening in our house but decided to go to our high school reunion in UP Los Banos so we can see classmates and friends. We will also tour the campus and maybe visit Tagaytay Highlands.

Meanwhile, my bestfriend from college will come visit tomorrow. I wonder if six hours will be enough for us to talk. We seldom see each other but each time we are together, it feels like we never even parted.

My sons are terrific. This morning I wake up to see their friends sleeping in our living room. They fell asleep watching movies last night.  I thank God I don’t have to wonder how my sons are because they always choose to stay here. They have sleepovers at our place almost every time there are no classes the next day. My sons and their friends are good boys. Almost all of them are honor students and Kostka awardees for exemplary character at the Ateneo (one of the top schools in the Philippines).   

They don’t have girlfriends but are surely getting curious about girls. My sons are twins; they have different sets of classmates. Nicolo and his friends like to bake heavenly oatmeal raisin cookies and are into Capoeira martial arts and music. Nicolo has learned to play the drum and loves jamming with his friends.  They play computer games endlessly, with Nicolo being declared as LOL God (League of Legends). They recently vowed to stop playing because they applied to become officers in their school’s Cadet Officers Candidate Course (COCC).  This is why my twins are sporting different haircuts for the first time in their life now.

Paolo’s friends also cook together, battle with nerf, watch movies on dvd, visit malls and play computer and PS3 games and chat all night long on Facebook. In fact they are here today, currently finishing our spaghetti. His friends gave me a card saying thank you for providing a venue for good memories and our regular, Dre gave me a big cake.

My daughters are having fun together, last night they were trying each others clothes. Earlier they were running around, screaming, playing with my niece Gabby. Now, they are eating popcorn in bed. No crying, no pouting, no problem. 

My sister who lived in Singapore for the past three years is back.  She was in our house right after lunch.  We had our foot spa in the mini mall next door. It is definitely better to have a foot spa with someone you love.

My partner is here working on his laptop. I am glad he doesn’t like to go out and drink with friends. He always choose to stay with me, talk to me, watch HBO. What a perfect situation for people like me who likes staying home. 

Christmas is indeed a time to count our blessings.  It’s a time to make the people in our lives feel loved and to appreciate the love they have for us. I can’t wait for more Christmastime like this!

Sooner or later, I know that I’ll have to start talking to my children about responsible sexual behavior.

I was young once too, and I know how it is to be so caught up in the first blush of love. For some, this first brush with romance is so intense that they’re willing to do anything and everything for love. Unfortunately, this attitude sometimes leads to unplanned pregnancies among adolescent girls, a phenomenon that’s definitely far from romantic.

Here’s something that’s got me all worried. In 2004, the National Statistics Office revealed that almost eight percent of the 1.7 million Filipino babies born that year had mothers who were 15 to 19 years of age.

And here’s another. More than four million Filipinos from 15 to 19 years have already had sexual intercourse, according to a study by the Population Institute of the University of the Philippines.

I have two adolescent boys and two girls in their tweens, so you can just imagine my apprehension. It is at this stage that they are starting to see the opposite sex in a different light. And before they have their first encounter with romance, I hope to give them enough knowledge and guidance to enable them to act responsibly, not hastily.

Straight Talk

Talking to children about responsible sexual behavior is definitely going to be more difficult than talking to them about the birds and the bees. And so for the past few weeks, I’ve asked fellow parents how they approached this situation. I’ve also gone through all sorts of books and reference materials. Thus far, here’s what I know.

Talk to your children about love and relationships. When my children were younger, one of the things they liked asking me was how their father and I met, and how we eventually fell in love. They like hearing this story over and over again because it’s part of our family history.

But aside from talking about our relationship with our spouses, it might be a good idea to tell our children about our past crushes and relationships as well. This shows them that a person doesn’t necessarily marry his first love. We must also explain to them the difference between real love and mere infatuation.

It’s okay to talk about sex with your children. As a matter of fact, it is better that children get sexual information from their parents than from other sources. Filipino families are still predominantly conservative. Parents aren’t too keen on talking about sex with their children. If at all, they give very perfunctory information.

Keep in mind that our school system doesn’t have a concrete sexual education program. That’s why it falls on the parents’ shoulders to talk about sex with their children. This is our chance to demystify this highly intriguing subject to our children. It is better that our children learn about proper sexual behavior from us than from the movies or from his friends.

Let your opinions be known. Once you start talking about sex, your kids are bound to throw you all sorts of questions. Be open about your views, but respect their opinions at the same time. If you do not believe in premarital sex, then tell them why. State your reasons. If you think that teenagers are too young to have sex, then tell them why. Give them solid information. Explain, for example, that people who engage in sexual activities early in life are more likely to contract sexually transmitted diseases. If your children are already in a relationship, tell them that sex is not the only way to express their love for each other. They do not have to engage in sexual relations to prove their love.

Set house rules on dating. Before your children reach the dating age, set the rules. Don’t allow your children to make up their own rules. For example, don’t allow dating until your child is 16 years or older.  Set a curfew time. If you have a daughter, do not allow her to date someone who is so much older than she is. This will put your daughter into a precarious situation.

Discuss with them the realities of teen pregnancies. There are a number of health risks associated with teen pregnancies. For starters, teen mothers may not get adequate prenatal care. Because most of these pregnancies happened by accident, they may not exactly be met with warm greetings. And so, most teen moms delay telling their folks about the pregnancy. They also tend to delay consulting with the doctor about proper prenatal care, thinking that they are in the pink of health. Because of this lack of proper health information, teen mothers may end up not eating right for their babies. They may also continue to indulge in unhealthy habits like smoking or drinking.

Last but not least, tell your children that teen pregnancy is not okay. Motherhood is an all-consuming task that requires time, effort, patience, and knowledge. And fortunate are teen moms blessed with a solid support system. With the help of their partners, parents, relatives, and friends, they can go on with their studies while raising their children. They can still continue pursuing their dreams.

Getting pregnant at an early age is not the end of the world. I know of many teen moms who go on to lead happy, productive, and successful lives. However, adolescence is not the right time for pregnancy. Adolescence is a time for self-discovery, something that’s already a difficult task to begin with.

Have a great week ahead!

Like most young people, my children just cannot get enough of the Internet. They could spend hours on the web, playing games, chatting with friends, or just surfing their favorite sites. You’ll rarely find them hanging out at the mall with their friends because they prefer staying at home.

But even though my four children are always at home, I sometimes feel that I’m all alone. Why so? Well, simply because they’re all glued to their screens, enjoying the wonders of the Internet. They’re so enamored with the wired world that it’s hard to keep a conversation going at the dinner table. They want to finish their meals pronto, so that they can get back to whatever it is that they were doing. And so, the sneaky mommy that I am, I asked our Internet provider to cut off our service temporarily.

My children noticed immediately, and started bugging me about it. What happened to our Internet? Ma, how will I do my research for our history paper? Ma, we have to post our findings on the experiment we’re doing in class. I have to read this article in Time.

In my haste, it slipped my mind that my children use the Internet as much for learning as they do for entertainment.

Learning for the young

Indeed, one of the most exciting things to happen in the field of education is e-learning. It’s been called computer-based training, web-based training, online learning, and virtual learning. However, all these terms are practically synonymous with each other. Simply put, e-learning is a way to learn new things through the use of electronic media whether via Internet applications, networked systems, or interactive CDs.

Today’s generation has embraced this development with open arms. Because of their easy grasp of technology—I’ve seen two-year-olds playing Angry Birds—e-learning comes naturally to them.

Kids have no fear of technology, I’ve noticed. They’re not afraid to fiddle with gadgets, pressing buttons to see what they’re there for. They’re not afraid to explore a site, clicking all sorts of apps to see the one that they like. Actually, I think they’re looking for that magic button that says, “Amaze me!”

Kids are not only very curious, they are also quite fearless. This makes them very good candidates for learning. Fortunately, educational institutions and computer software companies have taken advantage of children’s thirst for knowledge—and dare I say, entertainment—to come up with systems and programs designed to amaze these children on a daily basis. Most schools now incorporate computer technologies into their curriculum, mixing in Web-based tools with classroom lectures in their students’ everyday schedules. This they’ve called blended learning.

The challenge for teachers and their blackboard methodology is how to make the classroom experience more exciting than the Internet experience. Because the Internet is so cool—where else can you learn about Geometry with Train in the background?—teachers have to get even way cooler!

While I believe that nothing beats the excitement of the face-to-face interaction that classroom discussions bring, especially when moderated by an exceptional teacher who knows how to encourage his students to get deeper in their analysis, some may say that you can get the same kind of dynamics on the Web. Indeed, teachers have their work cut out for them.

Learning for everyone

But e-learning goes beyond reading, writing, and arithmetic. E-learning is for everyone. Because learning is a life-long pursuit, e-learning’s out-of-the-classroom model makes it accessible to anyone who wants to pursue a passion or enhance an interest.

For example, a young professional who wants to pick up some accountancy skills can take an accounting course online. An inveterate traveler who wants to be able to read the menu at his favorite restaurant in Tokyo can get himself some Learn Japanese CDs and supplement it with online tutorials. A stay-at-home mom who wants to learn how to paint like Picasso can sign up for a virtual class with classmates from all over the world. E-learning is even suitable for old folks who want to keep their mental abilities mean and sharp.

As for yours truly, I see e-learning as one of the avenues by which we can keep our best teachers in the country.

Whenever I read news reports about a Filipino teacher being recognized in the United States or China, I feel very happy for all those young minds which our Filipino teachers are helping develop into fine citizens. At the same time, I feel a bit melancholy for the sad fact that those great Filipino teachers are not here in their own country, teaching their kin. It is indeed unfortunate that our best teachers have to seek employment elsewhere in order to make a good living.

E-learning is one way that we can keep our best teachers in the country. Because e-learning can happen anytime and anywhere, we can find gainful employment for our best teachers by offering online educational services. They’re doing this in India and in Korea. And I am certain that we could very well do it here in the Philippines.

What makes a Filipino teacher so great is not just because he knows his subject by heart, it’s because he is always all heart. He is caring and compassionate, and always has the best interests of his students in mind. That’s why Filipino teachers are so popular abroad—and that’s why we should keep them in the Philippines.

As for our Internet service, I’ve asked out provider to put it back on. I didn’t tell my kids about what I did, but I did talk to them about having more face time. As cool as the Internet is, nothing beats love of family!