Visiting Japan is one in the bucket list of many Filipinos and I was blessed to be able to go there multiple times for vacation even after working there for almost seven years, in companies like Hitachi, Toyota and Sony and as a teacher in elementary and junior high schools under the Board Education as a job opportunity being a descendant to a Japanese grandfather. Two of my sisters are also teachers and during dinners, we used to share about daily work school events and circumstances, or even culture and norms which we couldn’t help but sometimes compare schools between Japan and the Philippines.

Most of my nieces and nephews study in Japan as my siblings have decided to settle there permanently. As for my kids, they have been enrolled in public and private schools here in Iloilo and for us, parents, the schools they go to actually don’t matter, academics per say, but we are more concerned about the character formation of our children, as we are all aware that based on the nature of growth, or cycle of life, humans enter adolescence stage, and today’s generation-Z, are totally hooked to phone applications for entertainment, games, social interactions or making friends internationally.

I am aware that my kids have to live life offered today by scientists, inventors and programmers and it is inevitable not to use gadgets. However, there are parents like me, who would wish to let their children pause from using their phones for a while, especially when influences are kind of difficult to take care because despite our guidance, kind or strict advice, peer influence and trends are too strong! We all have been through this stage of defying our parents and guardians before and so do they, given!

But what if, the only way families could cut internet connections or keep their kids away from gadgets isn’t possible? Ever! Why? Because public schools seemed to be too dependent on group chats, and that instructions, homework and tasks are laid down inside the GC, or that even learning materials are attached through the GC! How hilarious, when parents try to ban their kids from using their phones, to help them stay away from dating sites, take for example, is quite difficult to do because kids would reason out that they’re using their phones for school! Tendency is, it’s definitely a valid, strong alibi, leaving the parents with no other choice but just trust, hope and pray that their kids will never lie or do anything serious! Then we can only keep on engaging in conversations or guidance that, we pray harder, might work!

In Japan, as the board of education, invests on their children as the future leaders of the nation, the foundational education is quite sacred that they are too keen and strict on implementing school policies in elementary and high school, and that one of which is to keep students’ mobile phones in their lockers before entering the classrooms, which they can only hold again after aall the school classes and activities dismissal. Within school hours, should they have emergencies, advisers have lunch with them inside the classrooms, thus, they can speak with their teachers about their family concerns or that they may use the coin pay phone to call their parents.

But alas! Where does the Philippines Department of Education stand or how do they help keep the kids away from the internet’s threat when parents are moving towards that direction for the safety of their children or when dangers arise? Oh, teach us how?! If it’s necessary in school and we can’t monitor our children 24/7 because they spend most of their time in school?!

According to studies, the youngest age involved in dating sites is 13, and it is illegal, holding the parents liable for misguidance. But how about the schools for minors as accomplices, indirectly? Should we just let our kids fail in academics, if we stand firm on NO PHONES? That way our children can experience nature, or ride on bicycles, and hang out with their cousins, rather than stuck on screen with their online chatmates or dates?

As much as I would like to promote international friendship, the case is not the same for dating applications, which even our 12 year old student, know about and admitted to have used to make friends. Sigh and sigh again.

Paging, rather, hash tagging #DepartmentofEducation #Philippines