Book chats

Title

Book chats

Language

English

Year

1947

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

OLD BOOKS IN THE BUREAU OF EDUCATION We tully r ealize the necessity for caution in r egard to the approval of new· books to be \'Sed for schools. School books are many times more potent than most reading materials, for these undergo intensive r eading several tilnes and are accompanied by emphatic presentation techniques, followed by classroom discussion that all together make ~el ections in st•hoolbooks memorable. Yes, we fully realize the necessity for deliberaiton. Yet schoolbooks should also lead, not merely lag behind the times. Schoolbooks need not be mere records of anachronisms and the leftovers of yesteryears. Let us tak>:: a look at some of the books no·.v being used in our schools. 1. Benitez, Tirana, and Gatmaytan, Philippine Social Life and Progre~;s (1937) . Many facts cited, man'y opinions standarci ten years ago may no longer be valid. What was social life and progress years ago may be expected to be downright backwardness now. 2. Miller, Principles of Economics Applied to the Philippines . (1932). Many of the facts and figures date as early as 1929, fully twenty-one years ago. In economics, developments happen every day, much more when world-shaking events like war and shifts of sovereignty occur. This book is so old that some teachers of economics actually do not encourage their students to rent copies, much less buy them, on the ground that the book is used so little in the course. , .. BOOK CHATS By the Editor 3. Benitez, History of the Philippines. , The figures are up to 1938. There .i11 only very brief mention of events up to 1940. Nothing more is said about the events of the last eight years. A new edition should be off the press now so our school children can catch up witn their own times. 4. Steiger, Beyer, and Benitez, A History of the Orient' (1939). The facts are up to 1922 enly, fully twenty-five years ago. There are many more recent books on Oriental history. We should haTe more emphasis on OrientaJis{n, especially now that we are independent and w~ feel sympathetic kinship with Indonesia. We should have a book that can tell our children the background of . their own Oriental world and can arouse proper kinship with all Malayans. 5. Philippine Prose and Poetry, ·Volumes I, II, and III. These are supposed to be collections of the best from Bhilippine writers in English. Many writers who have long been eclipsed and who do not figure any longer in our literature are presented in these books as - though they still occupied the whole canvas of Philippine literature. New important write.rs are not even dreamed o! in these pages. Volume I came out in 1927, twenty years ago. The most fruitful twenty-one y~ars of Philippine literature in English are not represented here. Volume II came out in 1933. The most fruitful fifteen years of Philippine literature are not to be read by Second Year students. Volume III, the last, came oui; in 1938, but the latest of the selections date as long ago as 1935, fully twelve years ago. No wonder, our students are so ignorant of Philippine literatur ... 48 These vol~mes should be a living embodiment of the best from contemporary literature. They should be revised as Philippine literature 'evises itself as it evolves with the changing times. They should not be frozen in unchanging editions that get more and more useless with the passing ye11rs. There should be selections from hhe Romulo books, from Bulosan, from Villa, from J avellana, from Hea;rt of tl e Island, from our (Continued from page 41) 15. The Philippines has been chosen as the seat of the Economic Council for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) conference. The Philippine Cabinet has decided on Baguio as the place for the conference. a. What advantages does the Philippines get as the seat of the ECAFE conferences? What are the disadvantages? I 16. The government will purchase any public utility firm at a price within the means of the Philippine Republic. In line with this policy, Malacaiian recently approved the acquisition of 60 per cent of the Manila Gas Corporation. a. Will such a policy help put the government on its feet? Why? b. Has the Government proved to be efficient in business? Cite instances. war literature--yes, even from litera ture written during the Japanese occu pati.on. There have been two nationa. literary contests since the last of thr PPP books were put out. Our childre1 have a right to taste of the best fron these. But, no, they will not, not fo1 a long while yet, because our books have a tendency to lag far, far behind thr times. c. How does this policy affect pri vate business? 17. Professor H. H. Hartlett said tha1 our colleges and universities are "diplo rna factories." a. How does this practice handiearthe very graduates turned out? b. Can you see evidence of "hasty puddings" ·even among teachers? c. How Q.oes this practice affect the nation? a. Is floating bonds better than borrowing from other countries, say. the United States? Why? b. Is it profitable to buy bonds? c. What are the advantages of in vesting money in bonds rather i: private business? What are th disadvantages? d. What service to the country ccu one render by buying RFC bonds Orga~ of 57,000 Teachers Entered as Second Class Mail Matter in the Manila Post Office. Subscription rate, f'7.00 a year. FOR MODERN OPTICAL NEEDS-SEE KEEPSAKE OPTICAL-SO Escolta

Media