Who should be blamed for poor performance in English?

English is a second language to Bhutanese so it’s not a big concern. Know the truth and it is a concern. More than the national language we correspond in English.  In schools, students write in English more, read in English more, speak in English more and everything that student does in school is more in English medium. Why poor in English? Equally the question looms, is performance in Dzongkha better than English? For now let me dwell on former.

We know that the performance is poor in English if the scores of exam is a scale by which we draw lines of standard. This issue is not very new to us for any surprise. The question of education standard itself has been on debate for years. There are some local school of thoughts who say the standard is on fall and other side we also have some school of thoughts who say it has gone up. It is a hot bed for debates and discussions.

There is a need we crane our necks to see beyond the question of poor performance or standard. The students couldn’t perform well. For this neither can we blame students nor teachers. They did their share of responsibility-learning and teaching. Teachers, they do full compliance on curriculum checklist as designed by CAPSD. Students, they do their learning as taught. Where did either of them, or any of the stakeholders go wrong? Who is to be blamed for this? This is a home work for students, teachers, parents, education ministry, and policy makers to answer. These remain incomplete in the book of education. We have thrived on the issue for long but never raised ourselves out of it. It was a long conundrum for our education system.

Source: Google

We whined questions are tough. We have pointed the reading habit is poor, I agree. We said it is too technical and lengthy, time given was not enough. The poor performance is attributed to those reasons, simply these impeded the performance.

We cannot always sit on comfort, with these whining solutions. It’s a misnomer to label it solutions. These are mere excuses. It isn’t solution in itself. We have lived this way and nobody sees anything beyond. At least this is an indication at this point in time. It’s a case; we knew there is worm inside intestine, we also knew that there exists a cure for it. But we couldn’t spot what has led that worm in, which is all-time panacea for it. In the same line, our issue is to dig out what factored for poor performance. The clicks and tricks that has to be unearthed.

Report says urban students could better perform in English than their rural friends. There is truth in it. There are many parents-most of the urban dwellers in fact, the first language in family is English. So, performing well in English is the trait inherent. Whereas, in rural areas students hesitate to utter a word in English unless they are in class.

Despite all odds and dim future in going with it, we sit hopeful, optimistic and positive of the radical reform that the present Education Ministry is under way. We hope our teachers become better teachers, students become better learners and score board is colorful. We anticipate the question of standard and poor performance would be dropped with this major surgery that the Education Ministry is under process.

The question stands on our way-who should be blamed for poor performance or standard; students, or teachers, or parents or policy makers? Who should look beyond and where? Should we wait, wait and wait… for solution to come from blue? These are food for thought everyone must put on their plate of thought over and over again.

We accept we are wrong somewhere at some point. Need to spot that point. Where do you think is a problem area? 

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Dear Rapist

Dear Rapist,

You are omnipresent; as cousin, in-law, step-father, uncle, friend, boyfriend and in worst case as father and brother.

Sometimes I feel my own home is not a safe place to live in. I am literally homeless, lesser fortunate than animals. Even animals have a safer home under their owners but I am not. I am disowned by everyone, like an abandoned one in another world. I have never had a twinge of thought that I am homeless. I thought I have everything that world has to offer. Today, I understood that all earthlings have turned against me. Everything I expected for is not mine. Simply, my world is far from my reach. It is adrift far, by ruthless, inhumane, self-centric, egoistic, hedonistic around me. It is undoing of human.

I am born to your daughter. I was happiest around to see myself equally fortunate to have a father. You haven’t turned away and gave my mother a fatherless child. I was as fortunate as any other daughter. I have received all of you as father. I thought I have everything the world has to provide but it was short lived, fleeting one for I was raised like a pig in sty to slaughter one day. Love and care has been stolen. I was literally slaughtered when my insane, shameless father has used me. I repent over and over, as daughter to such an animal. It is undoing of human.

Such a wonderful circle of brother, cousin, in-law and uncle I was in. I thought the circle I am was the best. Happiness within our circle was unmatched; it was a heaven on earth. Air that I breathe was all happiness. Every pat I got, with caressing kiss was laden with pervading love and care. But earth is also a hell. All those that I enjoyed was soon gone, the circle has disappeared when he (brother, cousin, in-law and uncle) has used me. I was thrown out of circle. It is undoing of human.

As a gregarious human, you and I got bonded as girlfriend and boyfriend. The kind of relationship that we had was exemplary. It was like Romeo and Juliet were reborn to continue their love. I never had a wink of regret over choosing you amongst many choices the world has to offer. I found much in you, incapable of many. But you proved it other way; to quench your insatiable pleasure you used me despite my reluctance, I was not ready for that. It is undoing of human.

I'm one of the victims

By the ill fate, my dad was long gone, I was just two. It was hard for single mother to bring me up. She cannot reach herself where necessary. She felt for better replacement. She had to find a second one. I was happy that he was really good man. I called him my dad, step-father though. He had shown me father in him. But that was his one face, he has another to show; he started using me. I never felt any bad to my mother for finding one. It is undoing of human.

I have the Mount Everest ambitions and hope to climb in life but I had been pulled down never to reach its nadir. Today, I am victimized; I have no dreams, it was shattered. I have no hopes, it was dashed. I have no ambitions, it was sky-high to reach. I have no trust, it was betrayed. I have none to lean my trust and confide, they have left me in lurch. Everyone was against me. I can only trust god and no one else. I only pray, let there be no hell on earth. Let other girls or women undergo such unbearable hardship out of inhumane acts. Let the world be a  peaceful home to live on. It is ok, I have lost my world today I attribute it to my previous karma.

If this is what world treats me with, I would rather choose to take live in hell than on earth. It’s fine there suffering, there are many undergoing the same. By the virtue of being Buddhist, it is intolerable of such act. Everyone is related one time or another in our previous generations.

If you cannot help, please never hurt. Love and only love can be peaceful panacea. Love and only love can reign. Please spread LOVE.

With much anticipation,

Yours faithfully,

(Victim)

M.Ph: Love

Email: love@gmail.com

Address:

Love,

C/O Love,

Thimphu,

Bhutan.

P.S: Getting into shoe of rape victim isn’t easy, much more could be expressed than my words could suffice. Much is felt than I could put into words.

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Dream once Dream-able

I have no desire to live a life of luxury. It is beyond purse of mine. Owning a number of Prados or BMWs or Range Rovers and such glamorous cars could fit to categorize as seeking a luxury. An Alto or a Muruti 800 is a necessity at this time and age.

With all kinds of taxes levied in the name of reducing out flow of rupees and bringing back to shape an ailing economy, Alto is out of common man’s reach. The tax component of 55% (if imported from India) on naked price of Rs.3.5k (appx. Cost for Alto) is a wounding pinch to pocket like ours. The ultimate cost would reach a half million. This is over the limit of common people.

Completed my undergrad in mid-2012, and my biggest desire was to buy a marooned Alto. Should the ban get lifted, I thought my dream is no far. Waited for the present government to press a relief button on ban of vehicles as pledged during election campaign, but today it had literally pounded a thousand hammers on my dream-it had smashed and remnants of it could never integrate to form again at least within the tenure of the present government. It has given me a feeling of daylight robbery of a common man’s dream.

I understand the government’s concern of depleting rupee reserve, which would ultimately lead to adverse balance of payment. Absolutely I agree to it. But there were any substantial studies being done to study levels at which different activities and sectors had contributed to outflow of rupee earnings. A reason that many people knows that hydropower constructions contribute a major chunk of fuel import. Obviously government knew fuel import of Rs. 7 billion is done previous year. Out of it, Rs. 5 billion was for diesel import. There were need for some considerations and relaxations here rather than just blanket imposition of thick tax component. Taxes must be imposed but not to such extent the government skyrocketed. One could be suspicious of the move-politically.

Source:Google

One thing that government could have put a bit of relaxation to allow first time buyers tax-free purchase for small car, like Alto. This concern was raised but it fell on deaf ear. For a first timer, small car like Ato is a necessity and not luxury. This could have done lot of justice for many first time buyers. Undoubtedly this category of the people would be commoners, the ones who cannot afford to buy luxury.

Now decisions stand all-approved and there isn’t stepping back at least at this juncture. Many new model cars are ready to hit the road but my Alto car would still remain a dream once dreamt. I shall never dream hitherto until yet another time that I spot a window to see through my dream.

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Equitable Development to start happiness at home

Home is the root of everything-charity begins at home, happiness begins at home and list shall go on.

It is an aggregate of families that make up population of the nation and an aggregate of at-home happiness that make up Gross National Happiness (GNH). In my understanding, GNH could be called an Aggregate of At-Home Happiness (AAHH). In the absence of happiness at root, GNH can never be realizable object. If GNH is an end, building at-home happiness may be the only means.

Striking a balance between material wellbeing and spiritual wellbeing is the goal of GNH. That balance is indeed difficult equilibrium; when material wellbeing is tailgated by almost everyone than spiritual wellbeing. With the kind of speed at which we ride on wind of change and modernization, that equilibrium of ours remains dim and distant, blur in our eyes. Should we shoot at the target, the strong winds of change would veer it off. GNH could remain a concept for times to come and thereafter if the means of at-home happiness is not sought. Happiness of every home is prerequisite for GNH. By this token, patchy development can never lead to happiness. Rather, it serves means of unhappiness for others left unattended. By this same token, the development of country must be equitable. 

Social problems surrounding around urban areas are the price that nation pays for centralized and patchy development. Had the developmental activities been taken up at equanimity, the urban woes that we face today can never stumble our way.

Today, we see many villagers-literate and illiterate, educated and uneducated, qualified and unqualified migrating to urban areas with a bundle of hopes to find a better living and contribute to their families at home. These hopes in them deserves due respect but before they could walk on their hopes, the precious human lives are squandered away when meted out with lives of strays in urban areas. Keep aside fulfilling the good hopes of helping families, they end up grounding into urban pleasures of fights, drugs, lootings, vandalisms, burglaries, and so on. These are ways they dashed their hopes and more importantly the colossal hopes placed upon by parents. The huge loads of investments made in them through sweats and blisters by parents are disposed-off in a matter of seconds.  We might be able to bring these dashing hopeful youngsters back home, at their villages only if they’ve the platform to nurture their hopes and not giving it a premature death. The way is only through provision of equitable development. The development that is evenly spread which would blockade the village brain drain. This gives them window of opportunity to look through for building happiness at home and keep them distant from getting into urban world inflicted with social woes.

Thimphu:Hub of Bhutanese Hopes

Thimphu is the only place where youths see as better place to build on their hopes of searching better lives until meted out with dark side of it. They get entangled into net of urban problems after failing to nurture their budding hopes and dreams. This is sad on the part of development-Thimphu simply couldn’t cater to whole of nation’s search for happiness. So, why not give them the way to grow their hopes at home? Let them start their happiness at home. This is only possible with an equitable development, the development that places equal opportunities.

Khomshar: Beautiful devoid of equal development though

There are a whole lot of areas in eastern Districts starving for development. They cannot stand at a development height equaling with their counter parts of western and central Districts.  There is an urgent call for bringing up laid-back Districts like Zhemgang. Should one rate on the scale of basic amenities, the Dzongkhag doesn’t have a Transportation Bus for general public.  The one plying once, dropped on failure to get adequate passengers. The roads are not pliable most of the times. The bridges are taken away by the wrecked monsoon infesting worries to parents who send their children trudging those muddy meandering roads to schools.

Dakphel-Buli highway is long due for blacktopping. The road conditions have stuck to what it was a decade ago. This simply shows being neglected. It is a laid-back case, the sidelined one.

Here I have mentioned of Zhemgang, the land I am bred and brought up. Many eastern Districts share the same stories. This is where we cannot start happiness at home. I am working at Thimphu after studying thirteen years at Zhemgang and finally graduating from Gaeddu. This is not because I like Thimphu. It is simply because I don’t see Thimphu in Zhemgang. It is well spaced from development. Building hopes at home is hardly near in vicinity. So, is the case of start-kicking the happiness at home, otherwise many would love to be around their homeland.

Everyone wants to start happiness at home, so give the way for it. Equitable development, we usher you with a golden welcome mat, for this is the only way we can sow and nurture hopes on our own land.

PS: Just written to add to my blogging posts, randomly and disorganized. The facts might have been blown out. The case could be otherwise and not as reflected herein.

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When 2 is less than 1

Human by nature is gregarious. Life of solitude is an extreme case-only hermit and ascetics do that. They separate themselves from mundane human pleasures of the current life, in pursuit to attain real happiness. They repel their mind from the magnetic force of momentary happiness. This is high Buddhist way of life. We cannot fit into this life of theirs but living a simple Buddhist way, yes anyone can.

Pulled and dragged by the gravity of unconsciousness, we immerse ourselves into samsaric ocean of pleasures. We get into bonding as husband and wife, girlfriend and boyfriend, and myriad of relationships. Relations always never last long, it succumbs to fatal fate of time, and relations falls like the autumn leaves. The evergreen relations are the rarest, with poisonous ego and anger ablaze. Love and only love can extinguish it. Nothing can supersede the love, the seed of all good. In relations, love takes a locus point. But both must have it. One way traffic can hardly survive it. Love would remain covered, if not searched with your body, speech and mind. There is a need for continuous interactions. All of hypotheses, assumptions and presumptions do any good to relations. These are to be dodged and abandoned from the vale of relations.

Source: Google

If relations doesn’t work, then 2 is less than 1, 3 is less than 1 and this shall remain true unless we anchor on the tenets of relations-love, understanding, forgiveness, continuous close interactions, truthfulness, faithfulness and spectrum of adjectives alike. So, never prove mathematicians wrong, that 2 is less than 1.

In the formulae of relations, never write ‘2 is less than 1”.  

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