Reflective Essay

Dr. Rodrigo Abenes

3 Idiots
(Film viewing of Indian Comedy-Drama Film)

“Learning without reflection is a waste. Reflection without Learning is dangerous” - Confucius

The day you were born is the day that your journey begins. Once you open your eyes to this world,
your destiny is already written in the sky. But what if you were born poor and destined to be a poor, how will
you going to change it? Now, take the challenge in you.
Everyone wants a convenient life. Everybody believe that education is the best ladder to success and
the passport to a better future. According to Meriam-Webster, Education is the process of educating or of
being educated; it is the field of the study that deals mainly with methods of teaching and learning in schools
while Learning is the act or experience of one that learns; knowledge or skill acquired by instruction or
study. And now, what is the difference?
How does learning takes place in the process of education? How can learning brings you to success?
What life can education gives you after college? Now, take the challenge in you.
In this movie, it emphasizes the struggles of a student, the role of a teacher, the reflection of an
education system and the life lessons in the process of achieving your dreams. These are vital to the key of
one’s success.
Sometimes, education system excludes which is really need to be considered.
Sometimes, teachers forget how to teach what is really need to be taught.
Sometimes, students don’t know why is really need to be learned.
And sometimes, system fails education.
And sometimes, education fails teachers.
And worst, we, teachers fails our students and also fail ourselves.
Everyone believe that life is a race and our school is a place of competition.
Let’s change it. Now, take the challenge in you.

The dean of the college in this movie, ‘3 idiots’, displays a typical leadership style with rigid
principles, values, and ideologies. The film tries to show its audience the wonders of a scrupulous living. The
importance of using ‘‘the right words’’ in communication is portrayed. The manager, in a corporate setting,
can imbibe means of effective communication and its adversity if used wrongly. he Indian education system
tends to pressurize its students. The movie exhibits that even when under pressure, one should learn to
overcome hardships without losing sight of his/her passion. ‘Passion’ is the pathway to ‘Excellence.’
Satisfaction, joy, pleasure & love shall be the outcome of that passion is what the movie spells out to its
audience. In the film, the protagonist is not financially sound, but his passion for learning helps him succeed
irrespective of his limitations. In the movie, the Dean is a victim of Peter’s Principle. One should always
remember that ‘Learning never stops.’ ife is about the management of emotions. EQ (and not only IQ) is
crucial for success. The human touch behind academic excellence is a sure-shot recipe for overall success.
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This movie reflects me more about myself as a teacher, about what I believe in our system, about
when genre my students and I are fit in and about what I do now and going to do so. It really enlightens
everyone especially in the matter of mastery in your subject but what matter most is how you teach your
subject. The concepts are eye-opening such as seating arrangement according to rank might not be okay at
all. The grading system is like a caste system which higher grades are the master and the lowest grades are
the slave and it’s not nice. Results of an exam should not be displayed at all because no one wants to
publicize someone’s flaws. Good grades are okay but better grades create divide. Let the child know his own
talent and put passion on it. Don’t forced anyone doing something by living from the expectation of others.
Students now and then are like robots who blindly following their professors’ commands. Teacher must
teach in a simple language that his audience can easily understand. Reading books are important but the point
of hardly cramming a bookish definition is a stereo-type. Mental pressure leads suicide, and suicide is a
bigger killer than any disease. Teaching is not all about discussing high grades, applying to a high salary
company or working abroad. Instead, learn to teach how to earn good grades. Race increase pressure, not
knowledge. And last, never abandon your weak students. Let be a teacher you wanted for you children.
In the 2020 Best Countries for Education ranking, it was based on a perception-based global survey,
which used a compilation of scores from three equally weighted country attributes, United States of America
ranked 1st in 2020 from being the top 2nd in 2019, while United Kingdom ranked 2nd in 2020 from being the
1st in 2019. Meanwhile, in 2020 education rankings, India ranked 34th and Philippines ranked 52nd from being
55th in previous year out 80 countries in the world.
India and Philippines are both developing countries, same as China as it remains as a developing
nation according to the “Global Times”. China is consistently rank as the 1 st populous country in the world,
India remain its place as 2nd in having largest population while Philippines rank 13th in a row.
On the other hand, the rapid population growth results in the increase of school going children which
causes the problem in quality education because of the crowds of students in school. The number of educational
means and resources should be increased in the proportion of number of students which is not possible.
Population’s effects on education and the labor force will influence the opportunities available for the current
generation of young people, the largest in history.
In present time, despite of the flaws arises in our education system, the conflict in our government
intentions and stigma in our society, it is our duty as a teacher to facilitate learning in a process that our
students will never be left behind. Our job is to face the challenges together with our students and be a
companion to ease struggles in our education. Transform our students as a man that our nation needs, mold
them as a leader you wants our generation to follow, and create them a future that you want your kids to live
in. Now, take the challenge in you.

Margin, Amor O.
Ph. D. - Filipino