Skip to main content

Chinese Singing Contest Report Mishap

As I continue to seek to improve Chinese education in the Philippines, I remember a mishap that happened 22 years ago. A Chinese singing contest was held in a Chinese school. Since the teachers were part-time from another school, somebody submitted a class journalism report on the Chinese singing contest last 2001. It might be a long time already. However, I do get amused just thinking about it even if I've already reconciled with the offender.

The person had a certain proficiency in Chinese. Pinyin wasn't taught at that time. The Chinese classes were where the teachers from the other schools would introduce themselves by their Chinese names without telling us their real names. The Chinese classes were so focused on memorization instead of understanding. Since Chinese classes were treated rather casually (and I've been guilty of that)--Chinese teachers were the victims of students name-calling them. 

In the Philippines, Chinese teachers are referred to as siansi in Hokkien. In Mandarin, that would be the lǎoshī (老师). The Chinese way of referring to a person was name first over title. For example, if a teacher's surname was Chen in Mandarin (Tan in Amoy), she would be called Chén lǎoshī. Students just got too lazy to memorize even their surnames. The results can be rather stupid. 

That certain someone decided to submit a journalism report on the Chinese singing contest. Rather than write down the real names of the Chinese teachers from the other school--he wrote down the nicknames. Since he didn't know the real names of most of them (and if he knew the English name, no surname was provided), he wrote down the assigned nicknames. I could imagine the report contained names like Teacher Fierce, Teacher Minus (because she frequently threatened with deductions), Teacher Fat, Teacher Duck, and Teacher Thin. It's because of their certain mannerisms or distinct appearances. 

The journalism teacher naturally raised her eyebrows. She told the person, "Please see me at the principal's office." The person wasn't getting extra points for his "efforts". Obviously, the English principal wasn't a bit pleased with the report. Neither was the Chinese principal who was pretty much like the late Miriam Defensor-Santiago. I can't exactly remember what was requested of him. What was important was that he got some appropriate punishment and apologized for his actions. 

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Filipinos Calling Indians as "Bumbay"

The song "Dayang Dayang" was given a parody cover called "Dayang Daya". Oftentimes, the song "Dayang Dayang" is thought to be Indian. Instead, it's arguably said to be from Muslim Mindanao or was brought in either from Malaysia or Indonesia. Historically, some of the settlers in the Philippines were Malaysians and Indonesians. So, it's probably safe to say that most Filipinos of brown skin descent are mixed Malay and Indonesian. I was even reminded how I mistook a Malaysian woman for a Filipino woman. Back on topic, the parody song has an introduction that says, "Kami Bumbay galing sa India..." (We're Bombay coming from India). I even tend to refer to Indians as Bombay--something I ended up tactlessly saying during my first trip to Singapore. Many times, Filipinos tend to use Bumbay not as a racial slur but to simply refer to an Indian. Some Filipino-Indians don't even mind being called Bumbay for a reason. I guess they got accust...
Read more

Mao Zedong's Birth Was Indeed, a Christmas Season Disaster

Yes, disasters can happen during the Christmas Season. Google " Christmas Day disasters " and you will find that Christmas isn't immune to disasters. One of the worst Christmas season disasters aside from the December 26, 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami would be the birth of Mao Zedong on December 26 , 1893. Yes, he was born during the Christmas Season. He wasn't there to spread Christmas cheer. Instead, he was born to cause disaster even beyond the Christmas Season! The Christmas season disaster that heralded a series of disasters It's amazing how some people still idolize this monster. Some victims of Christmas Season disasters may have gotten over and celebrated Christmas a few years later. However, Mao's rule caused one disaster after the other. A review of history would reveal the disastrous results of his dictatorship.  How Stuff Works reveals this detail on Mao's rule: His Controversial Rule   After solidifying his grasp on power, and winning over the ...
Read more

What? The Aquinos Aren't Part of a Political Dynasty?!

  I was looking at the Mahal Ko Ang Pilipinas  (I Love the Philippines)  Facebook page, which made me laugh. This is what they wrote on their post saying that the Aquino Family isn't a political dynasty: THE AQUINO FAMILY IS NOT A POLITICAL DYNASTY 🇵🇭🎗 Pro-Duterte blogger Tio Moreno says that Bam Aquino is part of a political dynasty because the Aquino family is a political dynasty. But to me, this is not true. Why is it not true that the Aquino family is a political dynasty? 🤔 1. When Ninoy Aquino entered politics, none of his children joined him in his endeavors, and even his wife Cory did not join him in politics. 2. When Ninoy was assassinated in 1983, none of his children succeeded him in politics, not even his wife. But when the opposition and his supporters were looking to be the opposition's candidate for the presidency in the snap election called by Ferdie Marcos for 1986, his housewife Cory Cojuangco-Aquino was approached, encouraged or convinced by people t...
Read more

Learning About Chinese Dialects

As I look back on my college days, I recall learning more about Chinese history in a Chinese Language Class elective. Yes, it was going back to Grade 1 Chinese, but doing Grade 1 Chinese right. I looked at this video and thought of China's many dialects. A dialect is defined by the Oxford dictionary as, "a particular form of a language which is peculiar to a specific region or social group." The subject was taught in English, not requiring students to learn Hokkien first, and it was how the Chinese school system should've been. Most Chinese Filipinos (like myself) are Hokkien speakers. Amoy is known as Xiamen today, a coastal city of the Fujian Province. I was shocked to learn there are many different types of Chinese, such as Cantonese (used in Hong Kong), and I wasn't shocked to learn that Hainan and Hakka are other dialects in China. Similar to Filipino, China has several languages too! In the Philippines, we have Tagalog, Cebuano, Kapampangan, Waray, and Hilig...
Read more

The Sad Truth About School History Classes (and Why I Enjoy History as a Hobby Better)

I'm no historian and this blog is just written as a hobby . Yes, you got that right and I don't record or write history for a living. It's a shame that history is an interesting subject but people can lose interest . A person would be excited to learn mathematics but can be momentarily hating mathematics . It's because teachers, regardless of what subject, are made to teach any subject with too much memorization, too little emphasis on understanding, and too much focus on grades over learning. People tend to say that grades matter more because they want monuments of stone over monuments of learning. They value the praises of medals more than a lifetime of learning. That's why some honor students fail in real life.  I saw this meme and I can relate to it. I remember elementary Civics and Culture subjects. From the second year to the third year under K+10--there's Asian History and World History . There was the whole bland textbook. Teachers occasionally do film s...
Read more