Dear Porky,

Kamusta ka na? San ka nga ba nakatira? Alin ba dun sa 30 addresses mo ang tinitigilan mo talaga? Di kasi kita maabutan kapag bumibisita ako sa bahay mo sa Forbes, Ayala, at BGC eh.

Kung ako naman ang iyong tatanungin eh maayos naman kami, sa awa at gabay ng Diyos. May bintana at kisame na ngayon ang bahay namin. Dati kasi sobrang lamig kapag tag-ulan at sobrang init naman kapag tag-init tapos sako naman ang bintana namin.

Kamusta yung mga businesses mo? Mukang malakas ang benta ng mga kaluluwa ngayon ah. Ako naman e ok lang, nagtuturo pa rin ako sa kolehiyo at masaya naman. Medyo nakakapagod lang. Tsaka sa totoo lang e di ko na tinitignan yung payslip ko. Danlake kasi nung kaltas ng buwis eh. Pero ayos lang, para naman yon sa ikauunlad at ikagaganda ng bayan, gaya ng sabi mo, diba?

Uy sya nga pala, two years ago, napa-tiles na rin namin ang sahig namin at napapinturahan na rin ang dingding ng loob ng bahay, after almost 30 years ng pagtira namin dito. Tyaga tyaga at ambagan lang. Pero sa ngayon, wala pa ring palitada yung harapan ng bahay namin at wala paring pintura. Ok lang naman dahil at least e hindi na umuulan sa loob ng bahay di gaya dati. Masaya ang pamilya dahil unti-unti ay nakakaalpas na kami sa kahirapan.

Parang nakita ko yung BMW mo na nakapark sa Casino sa Tagaytay. Alin ba sa 30 na luxury cars mo ang madalas na ginagamit mo? Ay sabagay, kung may 30 cars ka, once a month mo  lang gamitin dahil iba bawat araw. Pero i-start mo rin paminsan minsan ha? Sabi nung tyuhin kong mekaniko, masisira daw kotse pag natulog ng matagal.

Yung dyip ni papa, bulok na pero maayos pa naman. Tumatakbo pa at nakakapagbyahe pa sya ng mga studyante. Salamat sa Diyos at yung dyip na yun ang bumuhay sa pamilya namin. Nakabili din ako ng motor pero hinuhulugan ko pa. Naka-isang taon na ako! Dalawa nalang at akin na talaga yun! Gusto ko na nga sana makabili ng kotse e, pero wala pa kasi akong pang-hulog sa ngayon.

Pasensya ka na nga pala at di ako nakadalo sa pa-party mo nung nakaraang buwan sa Sofitel. E pano kasi nahihiya ako, butas na pala ung swelas ng sapatos ko e baka lamigin ang paa ko. Inaantay ko pa yung sunod na sweldo para makabili ng bagong sapatos. Tsaka diba malakas ang aircon sa mga 5-star na hotel?

Kamusta na pala yung kalusugan mo? Di ka ba naaalta-presyon? Kami ay ok naman. Buti at may napipitas na gulay sa likod-bahay, pang-sahog sa isda. Healthy living kuno, pero ang totoo e nagtitipid lang. Ang mahal naman kasi ng kilo ng baka at baboy ngayon. Pero ok rin, sexy kami. Hahaha!!!

O pano? Hanggang sa muli nating pagkikita. Dadalawin kita…

Nagmamahal,

Boy Tiklis

TEaCH REVIEW: ACER ICONIA W3

I’m not a techblogger, so I may not be able to point out important technical aspects of the Acer Iconia W3, but if you’re a teacher like me, perhaps you’ll find this post helpful.

I first saw Acer Iconia W3 in a technology news (can't remember if it's in Flipboard or other news apps in my phone) that I was reading. It was launched in Computex and it caught my attention particularly because it claims to be a cost efficient hybrid machine (i.e. laptop+tablet). When I read its specifications, I immediately concluded that it will be useful for teaching.

Acer Iconia W3 vis-a-vis Cherry Mobile Titan

Acer Iconia W3 with his big brother Acer Aspire 4715Z. At home, I use the Aspire to make powerpoints and write documents.

Acer Iconia W3 with his big brother Acer Aspire 4715Z

Acer Iconia sports a Windows 8 OS

Aside from sporting a Windows 8 Operating System, what really caught my attention is the bundled Microsoft Office 2013, i.e. it has a Word, Excel, and Powerpoint—three of the most important productivity applications in the teaching profession.

Whenever I tinker with tablets in malls, e.g. iPad Mini and Android tablets, I always find them not so functional because they lack productivity applications. While it is true that you may install free office applications to Android devices, such as Kingsoft, it still doesn’t function the way I expect it to be. Apple, of course, has very good office applications, but they are just so pricey.

To continue, another strong feature of the Iconia is its ability to connect with projectors and other screens through the micro-hdmi port. However, it is just annoying to find out the malls do not sell a Micro-HDMI to VGA cable (I scoured SM North’s Cyberzone to no avail!...oh…and yeah...not even the “powerful” CDR-King has it! Imagine?!). Good thing there’s a Sulit.com seller, and I got the cable for PHP 800 (See pictures below)

Finally, another very impressive feature of the Iconia is its battery life. I start my class at 9:00 AM (one class is equal to 1 ½ hours) and end at 6:00 PM. While it’s not entirely lecture, I also do not need to charge any time of the day (provided that I start the day with a 100% battery life). When my day ends, the Iconia still has an average of 25% battery life!

In conclusion, the Acer Iconia W3 is delivering what it is supposed to deliver. I can present my lectures through it and do some occasional writing as well as other school works, plus of course, recording grades in Excel. It works the way I thought it would. Moreover, it has saved so much space and weight in my backpack!

I wouldn’t be posting the specs of this device as they are available in any other tech website. I’ll just post pictures of how I use it in class to give an idea to other teachers who might be interested to buy it. I’ll also post the link of the Sulit.com vendor who sells the very important Micro-HDMI to VGA cable.

How to Connect the Iconia to an LCD Projector:

1. You'll need a Micro-HDMI to VGA Cable, which is something very difficult to find because stores in malls don't have them. I purchased mine from Mr. Johnny B.

2. This cable will be connected to a regular VGA cable (PHP 50.00 in CD-R KING)

The pictures below show how I use my Iconia in FEU Cavite. Fortunately, all classrooms in FEU has a mounted LCD projectors, so it's really a breeze to use the Iconia for lectures and other teaching activities.

LCD Projectors are mounted in all classrooms of FEU Cavite

Beside the whiteboard is a switch where the VGA cable is connected to display the image through the projector

LEFT: On/Off switch of the LCD & 220V plug. RIGHT: VGA Port for the LCD Projector

The Iconia with the Micro-HDMI Port. I'm also using my girlfriend's gift to me, a Logitech clicker w/laser pointer so that I won't need to go back and forth to the teacher's table when I'm delivering lectures.

Screenshot of the Powerpoint 2013. It's good that powerpoint has upgraded to this, on the left is what is shown on the screen, the smaller view on the right is a preview of the next slide.

Logitech Wireless Presenter R400

DYNAMIC DUO: Logitech Wireless Presenter and Acer Iconia W3. Teaching has become more fun because of these tools!

(DISCLAIMER: This is NOT a paid advertisement. But if ACER will give me credits or gift certificates, I will gladly accept them. =) )

Responsible and Intelligent Voting

Hello everyone,

10 days before the elections...

Have we been doing our homework? As voters, we are the ones who are supposed to decide if these applicants are worthy of the post. Every voter must be intelligent and responsible. Have you done your research? This morning, I have received a very appalling news that a candidate for Mayor here in Silang, Cavite have assigned "coordinators" who are basically tasked to buy votes. Disgusting!!!

Do not be easily swayed by the sweet words of these politicians.

Check out the attached candidates. You might be surprised to find out that there are more options than those EPALS you see around you. (For more information, click here ---> COMELEC)

Study the profiles of the candidates, click this link to read and study which candidate best suits your ideals and morals ---> RAPPLER

Also, in case you don't know which district your town/city belongs, click this link to know ---> CAVITE DISTRICTS


Be a responsible and intelligent voter!!!
Please feel free to forward or post this message to your friends, relatives, etc.

Facing the Giants

Vacation is a very important part of student (and teacher's) life. It allows us to have a breather from the suffocating requirements brought by teachers (like me, of course). But to me, vacation is also an important time to ponder upon life and learning; it is that transition stage that should push us towards an even greater level compared to the previous school year. Otherwise, we will never level up, literally and figuratively. 

As I grope for some stuff to read over the internet, I stumbled upon an article in Yahoo (Blind student graduates magna cum laude), and I cannot help but smile and at the same time shed a few drops of tears (of joy of course!). 

Marco was my student in PNU when he was in 1st year and 2nd year. (As mentioned in the article, he left for the States during the 2nd sem of his 2nd year to study under the Fulbright scholarship, so his graduation got a little bit delayed). On the first day of our first meeting, I felt a little off because seated beside him was his mother who would always be there to literally guide him throughout college life. I was a young teacher back then and my worry is that the mother might call for a PTA meeting in case I mess up! But I was wrong, mommy was really very appreciative and supportive.

What's more problematic during that time was that he was enrolled in a READING CLASS!!! I'm not a SPED major so I really had a lot of inquiries and research as to how I would teach a BLIND man to read. We eventually resorted to some READ ALOUD strategies (i.e. his mother reads to him, he processes, and his mother writes the answers to my tests, so the magna cum laude goes to his mother too.)

As I reflect, I remembered King David in his youth (1 Samuel 17). Young David was a shepherd boy who's about to face the giant Goliath. However, if you read the entire chapter, never will you read an iota of doubt or fear from David. In 1 Samuel 17:26, he even taunted Goliath by asking "...who is this uncircumcised Philistine?" (In Tagalog... alam nyo na yon)

David never allowed Goliath's size and might to destroy himself and his country simply because he knows that he has a bigger God; that they are not destined to be defeated, to be destroyed. David had a very strong faith. He just knows that he can do it; that he can face the giants.

Similarly, I have never heard or seen Marco doubt. When he was about to leave for the U.S. I asked him "Pano yan, di na kasama si Mommy don? OK lang ba sayo?" Jokingly, he answered, "OK nga po yun eh. Para walang bantay!"

Marco was literally blind but his goals were crystal clear. Despite not seeing his physical world, he has always seen that he will eventually WIN (just like David did). It took him a lot of time to achieve his goals, but he did. 

Have you ever thought about your limitations? Have you ever thought that you are bound to fail? Have you ever considered yourself a sore loser? Have you ever thought, "Wala eh. Hanggang dito lang talaga kaya ko. TAO LANG" 

Think about David. Think about Marco. They have seen beyond the walls that block them from reaching towards the goal. 

They have learned how to face their giants. 

You can do the same, too! If you trust God while doing your best, you will never fail.

REMEMBER: "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."  (Philippians 4:13)

God bless you all! =)



P.S. 

(CONGRATULATIONS Marco! If you're reading/listening to this)

Passport Requirements

A woman holds her tears as much as she can as she sips the steaming hot, perhaps bitter-tasting coffee--as bitter as her feelings. She was angry more than regretful. But her anger is all the more aggravated by the fact that she can't blame anyone, other than herself.

It was a quiet Wednesday morning. I was reading the newspaper and eating breakfast in a fasfood chain, while waiting for Papa to finish his passport renewal. Suddenly, the stillness of the place was disturbed by a woman (most probably in her early 20s) as she sobs about her "epic fail" attempt to apply for her passport.

The reason? She lacks one requirement (NBI clearance from what I have heard--yeah eaveadropping is my hobby)

As I watch her being comforted by her companion, I cannot help but reflect and think about my students and about that documentary shown in "Bawal ang Pasaway".

According to the research of the People Management Association of the Philippines (2012) , fresh graduates and other applicants fail to land on a job because of basic (but seemingly perennial) problems. "The study showed that 40 percent of fresh graduates do not immediately get hired because of the deficiencies in these soft competencies (i.e. critical thinking, initiative, and effective communication skills) ,” PMAP director for academe-industry linkages Gigi Alcasid.

Everyday of my teaching life, I would reiterate to my students problems 1&2 stated above. But it seems that they are either dazed or in limbo because no matter how much I remind them, no matter how much I bombard them with activities that aim to hone their communication and thinking skills, there are still some who fail to cope.

At times, I would begin to doubt my teaching skills.

At times I would be irked, but at times, I would also feel pity. I can't help but think about their possible "crying scenes" after job interviews or passport applications (much like that crying lady) just because of trivialities that could have been avoided only if they have utilized their common sense.

As I reflect, more than those paper documents that the Department of Foreign Affairs require for passport applications, the most important requirement is common and (supposedly) readily available to all normal human beings: communication & thinking.

Sadly, Voltaire seems right when he said, "Common sense is not common."

After the graduation ceremonies and parties, students must begin to realize and understand that they are not students anymore; that they are not supposed to be supported by their parents anymore; that they are supposed to work and put whatever they have learned to practice. 

Diplomas and Transcripts are only paper documents that employers would require. Graduates must realize that above all these, skills and competencies are paramount.

***

I just hope and pray that when I see my students cry, it would be tears of joy rather than wails of fails.

The ultimate dream of parents is to see their child become successful in life. The ultimate dream of teachers is to see their students learn.