Educ.

202 Psycho-Socio Foundations of Education

Name of Student: Trixie M. Domingo

Graduate Program: MAED – Social Science
Subject Professor: Dr. Helena B. Florendo

A Reflection about Filipino Cultural Values

The Filipino culture is an enthusiastic story that tells of the nation's journey through the
centuries. Customs reflect the people's faith, their oneness with others, their similarity with nature,
and their celebration of life. The Filipino's charm lies in their smiles, in the numerous religious festivals
that respect nature, the Godly and the cycles of life and in the quality of dealing with others that
treasures relationships, with friends and strangers. The nation's charm is in the diversity in ways of
life across the archipelago, the splendid colors of its folk arts and the harshness of foreign influences
that have found roots in the Filipino languages, customs and traditions.

Filipinos worship sincerely in their cathedrals and mosques. They can sing and recognize good
singing when they hear it. They smile at strangers and babies, and through lines, rain showers and
traffic. They socialize in parties, as well as in markets and community dances. They make and keep
friendships over food, over mobile phone text messaging. They are sentimental and devoted to their
families. They have profound respect for elders and show modest hospitality for guests. They are
diverse in their views but their values are rooted in their faith, their family and their community. The
Filipinos' temperament is as warm and constant as the sunshine. Their way of life is rich, diverse and
fixed. They are in harmony with others and face the world with an engagingly courageous spirit.

Every individual has a set of personal values that dictates how he or she reacts to situations in
life. These will define each person. Values are significant and the principle shared by most people in
society in regard to what is morally right or wrong. Values sometimes sway an individual’s actions.
Values is a factor that will affect one’s life, behavior, actions, and beliefs. The personality of an
individual is reflected in his values. If a person was trained and practiced with good values, even how
bad his environment is, he will still focus on doing the right thing because it is innate in him what is
good.

The basic values formation begins at home. Parents should train their children with good moral
values.
They should teach them about what is right or wrong. They should teach them the values that a
Filipino should possess. As parents, they must teach their children to become honest, respectful,
helpful, hospitable, trusted and other values that a Filipino should have. They must serve as
examples to their children.

For us teachers, it is important that we must serve as good examples to our learners because
as the saying goes, “Values are caught and not taught”. Although we are mandated to integrate
values in all the subject areas we are teaching, it is our role to become respectable models to the
learners in our daily teaching or even in the community. We must be very careful to our words,
actions, and teachings because the learners are keen observers, they will follow what they observe
and see in us. There are even times that they idolize us as their teachers and they imitate us. If we
desire a progressive Philippines, then we can start with the internalization of desirable values in our
youth in our schools.