Scholastic Readers Cup 2019 Awarding Message
Good afternoon Dear Colleagues.
There are three things I should not dare talk about this afternoon. First, the importance of the program called Scholastic Prime English. Second, the program itself. And the last one, the reasons why I should say a billion thanks to the program providers. The moment I utter a word on any of them, I risk of being impartial, inadequate, incomplete, and redundant.
One day early this school year, our school secretary called my attention to a phone call. ‘Sir, your phone from a parent.’ And added, ‘Mrs. Ngo’ As if implying something.
‘Ok thanks, I’ll answer.’ Ms. Blezy was right, I smell a complain.
‘Good morning , Mrs. Ngo!’
‘Hi, Sir Peter, sorry to disturb you. But I believe we should add more computers in the library.’ Her tone sound somewhat belligerent. But that is what I like about this parent, straight to the point.
‘But you see, Mrs. Ngo, our library is very small. I’m afraid it has no more room even for another small laptop.’
‘No sir! I checked our library, we can still add a small table at the left end of the shelf.’
‘Well you know Mrs. Ngo, kids need space…’
‘Sir Peter, actually I’m thinking of giving the school a computer…’
‘Ah yes, Mrs. Ngo, you are right! (laugh, applause) We have space for that small table. In fact, another table can be added to the other end of the shelf.’
‘Ok sir, just let me know the specs needed for the computer(s).’ Did I hear an ‘s’ at the end? I can’t remember now. But a couple of weeks later, our small library added to its collection not two, not three, but four brand-new computers courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. Ngo. (laugh, applause)
The moral lesson is, answer all the phone calls of the parents, (laugh) even if you expect something dreadful. Who knows a nightmare might turn into an unexpectedly great blessing.
Sure, the additional four units could hardly meet the demands of our English facilitators for our learners to read more and more books. Imagine 190 plus books read per learner last year. We’ll exceed that this year. (applause) So much so that I have to arrange for the library to open half day during Saturdays. Normally on Saturday our library is closed. And we have to open it half day exclusively for the purpose of children taking the Scholastic book tests.
It was the last Saturday of July I’m pretty sure because I was in Manila at that time attending the monthly meeting of the directors of the Association of Chinese-Filipino Schools in the Philippines. Some of the directors actually are here today. I received a text from Ma’am Debbie, my wife, telling me the president of ISA, Mr. Pena, ordered both the librarian and the school secretary to work overtime until 5 pm that day. And the computer lab had to be opened, and promised the two poor souls of overtime pay.
‘What for?’
‘Because Mr. Pena upon visiting the school saw more than a hundred learners queuing inside and outside the library to take the Scholastic reading tests.’
A few days later, the president called up asking me to submit to the Board of Directors a request for the purchase of additional computers exclusively for the Scholastic Prime English. (applause)
The moral lesson is, lure the school directors, specially the president, to visit the school more often. (laugh) When they see our problem first hand, there’s no need for us even to say a word. Chances are when they see it, they think, they meet, then they provide the answer.
Several years ago, during the Scholastic Readers Cup awarding, a school head, a friend of mine, asked me how did we manage to let the kids read those unbelievable number of books on top of their hectic daily school routine. I said, ‘Force them.’ (laugh) That’s true, we literally forced the children to read.
The trouble with our social norm is that many people when they hear the word ‘force’, they tend to equate it with curtailment of rights, deprivation of freedom, autocracy, undemocratic, and worst, violation of human rights!
Most of us, I believe, are familiar with ‘dan, dan, dan, dan’ (Beethoven’s immortal Symphony no. 5). Had it not come to our mind that without the great composer’s father forcing the child Beethoven to learn the ABC’s of musical instruments, what a great lost humanity would have suffered. True, according to his biographer, young Ludwig was somehow deprived of his childhood happiness, because he was forced by his alcoholic father to play violin, piano, instead of going out to the field to play with his friends. Should we then duplicate the act of the elder Beethoven in forcing our kids to read, read, read and run the risk of being guilty of depriving our children of their childhood freedom and happiness?
Dear colleagues, there is no need for us to deprive our children of their childhood freedom and happiness, the age of television, the advent of internet, the premature and dangerous exposure of our children to the mediocrity of the tablets have to a great extent already deprived our children of their childhood freedom and happiness. By forcing them to read the Magic Tree House, the A to Z Mysteries, Wimpy Kids, Number the Stars, to name a few, and to the eventual appreciation of literary masterpieces, we bless our kids with the opportunity to converse with great thinkers, the like of O Henry, Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Chekhov, and all the rest, help our kids broaden their horizon, placing at their disposal the means that will lead them to interact with their peers in a far more meaningful manner, thereby bidding goodbye to the things superficial, shallow, egoistic, and mean, and eventually start to embrace the wonderful world of humanity.
Thank you.