In other to reduce the negative effects of the internet on the attitude of young Filipinos, Senator Panfilo Lacson filed a bill to teach Good Manners and Right Conduct (GMRC) for Primary school pupils.
Under Lacson’s Senate Bill 1185, GMRC would be taught during children’s formative years from Kindergarten to Grade 3.
According to Lacson, the bill aims to mold young Filipinos to have strong values and morals for shaping a respectable society.
The Bill’s aim is to better mold Filipino youth to have strong values and moral foundation which will contribute to shaping a respectable society.
Lacson explained the importance of having a separate GMCR subject as he said it would enable students to understand human dignity, respect for oneself and giving oneself to others in the spirit of community, for the effective and holistic development of the decision-making skills of the child.
Prior consideration of GMRC
However, prior to Lacson’s motion, sometime in 2010, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) batted for the revival of the subject on Good Manners and Right Conduct (GMCR) in the basic education sector following the violent actions by students protesting against the planned tuition increase.
Ched Chairman Dr. Emmanuel Angeles who described the event as unfortunate said it is high time that the subject is revived at the elementary level.
According to Angeles the behavior of the young was unacceptable, and the event that transpired was unfortunate. He added that although we practice democracy, there are still laws to be followed. Stressing students should be much more responsible, imbibing good behavior only.
The violent protest action by students and youth group held at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), University of the Philippines-Diliman and even in the Ched head office in Diliman Quezon City resulted to damage to properties worth millions of pesos.
GMRC to be actual or situational training
Senator Panfilo Lacson revealed that a strategic approach of teaching will be adopted to inculcate pupil’s lessons of good manners and right conduct rather than the conceptual approach to learning so as to enable pupils to easily relate to lessons and incorporate them easily.
Lacson said teaching method should be actual or situational, rather than conceptual explaining;
That the teaching method shall be actual or situational, rather than conceptual, thereby allowing the [students] to directly relate to the lessons, readily incorporate them in practice and make such behaviour commonplace.
With the outbreak of technology, Education Secretary Leonor Briones, according to Lascon, could not help but be concerned about inculcating social values skills among young students.
Lacson said no less than Education Secretary Leonor Briones pointed out that technology without good manners is a disaster and that online or technology-driven pedagogy could not inculcate social values and skills among young students while filing Senate Bill No. 1185.
