Indeed, the realizations from writing this article-series on reexamining Davao of the Past is to re-locate and recalibrate the self in the study of Asia. Geopolitically, Mindanao has been relegated to the periphery of the Philippine nation-state and consequently of the Southeast Asian region and the world. My only wish is to offer fresh insights on the historical value of relearning Davao and Mindanao of the past for that matter.
The best way to make students hate math is to show its usefulness in accurate computation, then imply that this is its only purpose. Students have always assumed that the only skills you need in this discipline are memorization of rules and proper execution of them. This makes math so mechanical, so routine, and, as an effect, so uninteresting. There must be something about math that is more than computation – something more human.
It is high time to get rid off and stop supporting policies that promote Islamophobia, xenophobia, and disregard of the democratic rights of the people masquerading as policies to “secure” the people of the United States of America. In the words of the victims of 9-11, “Not in our name!”
Institutions like schools and the media play a great role in legitimizing what are “proper” (and thus more prestigious) uses of language, but often simply echoing previously drawn lines of asymmetrical power relations between haves and have-nots.
Ever heard of that song by Dionne Warwick and later revived by Luther Vandros - A House is not a Home? That is how I can describe what the Meranaw people feel about the rehabilitation efforts of President Rodrigo Duterte and the Task Force Bangon Marawi to Marawi City.