Saturday, December 20, 2008

Ban Stereotypes! For Pisay, with love

After years, I will finally touch on the issue that seemed to disturb me ever since: Stereotypes. It was never really a big deal before. Stereotypes were just stuff I see in movies where they categorize people as jocks, the popular kids, the wannabes, the nerds, the band geeks, etc. The Philippines didn't have such, if it did, it's a low-class replica. C'mon, admit it, people try their best to emulate what they see on American movies, but, sorry, citizens of this third world country that I love, we end up like wannabes compared to them. Anyway, this stereotyping thing is popular in high school. Every typical high school would have their categories and levels in the social hierarchy. But I banished all this crap because I went to a not-so-typical high school. I went to Philippine Science High School - Southern Mindanao Campus **watch me gloat**. So, in a school that requires its applicants to take two entrance exams and pass both, we could definitely conclude that this school does not house the typical jocks and popular airheads, right? And due to the existence of these entrance exams and the exclusiveness of the institution, the Non-Pisayans/Phisciers/Pisay Staff label us NERDS. They think that Philippine SCIENCE High robs a teenager of his/her chance to lead a normal high school life, that it will push its students to study, study, and study. Sadly, this is the opposite. Let me bring the Phisciers out into the light.
This is the life of a typical Pisay student: she would stroll down the pathwalk towards her classroom. As she enters the room, she would notice that all her classmates are seated, their hands busy writing things on sheets of intermediate paper, in other words, cramming homework . Ms. Pisay student would then realize that she had forgotten to do her HOMEwork, so she's rush to her seat and search for someone willing to have his/her assignment copied or plagiarized. (NOTE: any Pisay student would use his/her breaks to cram homework, lab reports, and class presentations.) When that's done, she would go through her classes normally, not listening to the teacher. She'd be chatting with friends, doodling, dozing off, or texting. Then "bam!", a surprise quiz! Out comes the notes and she breezes through them hoping she'd get the necessary information then she prays that she miraculously passes.
Finally, dismissal time. Where to go? The gym to play ping-pong or volleyball or watch the BAPS boys play? The canteen for a snack? The ABD or kiosks to relax and chill with friends? The White House (w/c has been beige for years) to eat or just hang out and wait till your carpool or ride home leaves? Or the mall to just hang out till your parents send you a text telling you to come home? Any sounds enticing, all a far cry from studying. Why study tonight when you've got tomorrow? Besides, there's no exam tomorrow, and if there's a quiz, there's always 3-5 minutes before the quiz to scan your notes, if you have any.
Yes, this is the life of the Pisay scholar, the Nerd as people have labeled. You say that Pisay robs its students his/her chance to live normally? I beg to differ. Since we know we have brains, why just bank on that? Aren't we all multi-angled and multi-talented? Being just smart is BORING. Being a typical nerd is BORING. So, here we go, exploring. And hail the hundreds of musicians, athletes, and performers (singers, actors, dancers). Behold people who can make beautiful stage plays, scripts, dances, and song performances. Behold the thousands of camwhores and vain people. Pisay didn't mold us to be diligent and responisble. I'm sorry, but in Pisay, we learned to procrastinate, plagiarize, and work under pressure. Oh, and we learned to break away from stereotypes and show the world that we were equipped with more than just brains. Take a look at this:





Who said we were robbed of a normal and fun high school life?
If that ain't fun and normal enough for you, then I don't know what normal is.