General

Sky Ranch

skyranch11Sky Ranch is one of the new attractions of Tagaytay. The main attraction, the Sky Eye (yes, not very original), is already running as well as some other rides. But there are no restaurants and the only food available was from food stalls. The entrance fee is at an introductory price of P50.

In addition to the entrance fee, you have to pay for each ride at a another ticket booth inside the complex. The queue can get long so you should already get tickets for all the rides you plan on getting:

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Visit to the Dentist

Jeanne and I dropped by the dentist after class. I actually was just planning on a quick cleaning for both of us. But the dentist was very persuasive in patching up Jeanne’s front teeth, which were decayed from feeding while sleeping. So I relented. The results were great!

 

Bamboo Paraiso: Back to Basics at Hundred Islands

Michelle, Jeanne, and I, along with my in-laws headed out of town for the long Holy Weekend. We decided on it rather late so I had a hard time looking for accommodations. I tried the hotels but they were all fully booked. I learned about transient houses and didn’t like them. Nor the idea. I figured, since you’re at the ocean, might as well stay near it.

So I looked around for a beach resort and finally found one that looked promising: Bamboo Paraiso. It has a pretty informative website and I found a good blog review. I called the resort and talked to the manager, Gerry Lacuata. Initially there was no availability but he promised to check and get back to me. After a few hours, he informed me that there’s been an availability. I called and we quickly sealed the deal.

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Investment Grade!

Fitch Ratings has given the country a much-coveted investment grade rating. From BB+, it is now BBB-. That’s nothing short of awesome! Maybe it’s just what’s needed to get more portfolio investments (caveat emptor) and maybe even direct investments flowing in. Things are really looking up! But need to be extra careful when things are looking up. Quite easy for things to take a tumble :P

K-12: Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education

The K-12 Program is a designation for the sum of primary and secondary education and covers kindergarten and 12 years of basic education. One of the features of the program is Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTBME). From the government site:

Students are able to learn best through their first language, their Mother Tongue (MT). Twelve (12) MT languages have been introduced for SY 2012-2013: Bahasa Sug, Bikol, Cebuano, Chabacano, Hiligaynon, Iloko, Kapampangan, Maguindanaoan, Meranao, Pangasinense, Tagalog, and Waray. Other local languages will be added in succeeding school years.

Aside from the Mother Tongue, English and Filipino are taught as subjects starting Grade 1, with a focus on oral fluency. From Grades 4 to 6, English and Filipino are gradually introduced as languages of instruction. Both will become primary languages of instruction in Junior High School (JHS) and Senior High School (SHS).

Supposedly the mother tongue of the particular school district will be used as the medium of teaching. As previously there has been effort to use Tagalog Filipino as the medium of teaching, the idea is good as it benefits children whose mother tongue is not Tagalog (though these children usually speak three languages, unlike Tagalog-speakers who usually speak only two languages). But what if the child’s first language and mother tongue is English?