In the never-ending evolution of mankind and development of civilization, no concept has played a more significant role than freedom.  In all societies and groups – social, economic, religious, educational, or political – the relation between the individual and other individuals always involves the issue of freedom – that is, the extent to which the individual can determine his own destiny and act as he wishes unconstrained by others.  A person therefore, with freedom, has the ability to make choices and to carry them out.  For people to have complete freedom, there must be no restrictions on how they think, speak or act.  They must also have the means and the opportunity to think, speak and act without being controlled by anyone else.  However, no such organized society can actually provide all these conditions at all times.  Thus, this struggle for freedom, be it for a certain individual or not, have come a long way when it began in remote antiquity.  This lead me to question: Does freedom really exist for human beings?

If there’s a top-ten list for the most abused words in the English language, "freedom" must be up there near the top.  To us, freedom means driving a Ford Expedition with the top down along a curving coast road on an endless windy day with no other cars for five kilometers in either direction.   Freedom to us means flying around the world on an open air ticket first class; turning up at the airport and looking at the departure board and thinking where shall I go today, Madagascar, Namibia, Zimbabwe, or the Africa?  Freedom to us means climbing the greatest heights without feeling exhausted. Our definition of freedom has become indivisible from escapism.

Freedom…a simple seven-letter word yet its exact meaning cannot be fathomed and accurately discussed in a seven-page essay or a seven-chapter critical paper.  I’ve been in existence for more than nineteen years and I have observed how the quest for freedom ruled any individual lives and has taken its toll.   I can say that a human being can be free but with limitations.  I am free to buy a commodity as long as I abide by the standards set by the society, as long as I don’t violate any of the laws of the land as stipulated in the Philippine Constitution.  I must abide by the law or else I’ll live inside the stinking prison cell all my life and impatiently rub the prison cells for life.  I’m free too exhaust my brain in the manner that best benefits me and my colleagues.  I’m free to sing and shout at the top of my voice provided I live miles away from my neighbors so that no eardrums might be blown.  I’m free to shampoo my hair with the best product as long as I still have hair to lather it on.   I’m free to eat all I want as long as my tummy could  still contain the foods deposited.  I’m free to join the gymnastics league if I have the balance and coordination in the balance beam so that I wont fall face flat on the floor.  Yes, freedom really exist as a matter of fact, only fashioned with so many restrictions.  Man’s life is a continual dialogue between his freedom and factors such as physical, psychological and situational limitations, habits, motivations, social pressure and fate.  In this dialogue, man is greatly influenced by these factors but is often able to give a personal direction to his life because he has the free will as a result of the intellect a human being naturally possess.  Without these limitations, when people exercise ABSOLUTE FREEDOM, the world would be in complete chaos.  People would shun norms, mores and other societal standards thus giving birth to the deterioration of human lives.

Am I free?  Yes, I am free but I must conform to the limitations set before me.  I must conform with the rest of  the world in order for me to enjoy a sound life.  Are human beings free?  Definitely, yes!   Human beings have the freedom but is bombarded with intrinsic and extrinsic limitations and these must always be considered in order to be in harmony with reality.

16 AUGUST 2001

DEHUMANIZING EFFECTS OF EDUCATION

            Education, as far as university students now are concerned, revolves in an educational approach which might be described as an education for “qualification”.  In this approach, education is seen as a task of achieving a state of being qualified in some form.  From a students’ vantage point, education is a matter of passing examinations, fulfilling requirements, wearing the toga and eventually receiving diplomas.  From the standpoint of a teacher, education is a matter of giving quizzes, computing grades and submitting those grades on time.  From the standpoint of an administrator, education is a matter of fulfilling governmental requirements, attaining accreditation and having students do well on bar exams, CPA board exams, and other board exams as such.  This approach evidently emphasizes qualification.  Such an approach evokes motivation among the individuals concerned.  There is always a clear task to be done and a clear reason to complete that task.  The result is that students work hard to pass tests, teachers do a tremendous amount of work correcting papers and computing grades, administrators spend so much time and effort gaining for itself the coveted accreditation.

          Although this approach has greatly influenced many student lives, it still could not be denied that it poses some dehumanizing effects.  As I fervently reflected on the topic, I came to a point of realization that I am one of those individuals who wallow in this qualification-oriented atmosphere.  It really is true that all that matters to me when I’m inside the four-walled classroom is to get high grades if not A+ grades.  Sometimes I think and conclude that these teachers collaborate to give tests all in one day.  It isn’t of course a joke, it’s a reality.  So what else could I do but to stock all information in my nutshell until my brain become exhausted and signal: INFORMATION OVERLOAD.  Yes, I oftentimes cram and that’s not an isolated case, for as per observation my classmates get their share of cramming too.  I feel too cheated since I don’t get to spend time for recreation anymore, I don’t get to talk to my boyfriend for hours over the phone anymore and worst is my time for taking a bath virtually became shorter because of the thought that I must do my tasks as a student first and be qualified in every facet of the university life.  I feel I did not grow totally as a person because I haven’t really experienced most if not all that life could offer.  I am enclosed in a cage while I get for myself education and be free again after the completion of what it seemed like a never ending list of examinations, tests, projects, and paper works given to me as a student.

 Another instance where and when I felt too dehumanized was the deprivation of quality time for my self.  While I’m supposed to be lounging in my bed and reading a mushy pocketbook for that matter, I am “forced” to get up and read my book about the law on obligations and contracts, skim my bulky accounting textbook, and burrow my face in a boring history book.  It’s really ironic for me considering that I waited all my life to be in this university so that I could be far from home and eventually be sort of independent, only to suddenly realize that its really isn’t all nice to be bombarded with school tasks while I still need to tend to all my needs and chores.  It’s all too dehumanizing but I don’t have any choice, it’s either I do the work done or be left in the abyss of uncertainty.  It’s a matter of choice between being human and not qualified and being qualified yet already dehumanized. I’d rather choose the latter for I know that it is the trend and therefore I might as well be ready with the challenges of the times.  I can’t snap out of it anymore, qualification is the name of the game and I must comply to it to finish the race.

10 JULY 2001

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