<#322 Desk Column>

 

 

By Rigoberto Banta Jr., Head Student Editor

 

    Entering into university cultivates the potential of a scholar: the academic freedom that higher education provides through training and exposure is an opportunity for self-realization. In order to maximize the opportunities of education for oneself, is it possible that the utilization of a comfort language will develop amongst students? Or will a foreign language, say English, provide higher utilities for the students?

    Developing students who are ready for the world stage is the result of an effective training in university and there are several ways to achieve it. What we see, however, is a trend where English is stereotyped as the language of educational achievement. We can say that students need to learn English and to be trained in this foreign language because it is a necessary tool once they enter the globalized society. However, as an educational institution, CNU should insist that English is only a tool for learning. CNU should focus on how students learn and not what medium students should learn with, as it will only tend to follow a burgeoning trend.

    If this is so, what are English classes for? Are they made to accommodate the increasing number of foreign students at CNU? Many may be misled into thinking about English classes in this light. English classes are another way to develop the challenging spirit amongst CNU students. Through English, local students can communicate with foreign students and exchange thoughts. Through English, more foreign professors and members of the academe can enter our university and contribute to the academic excellence that our university is striving to attain. CNU can never be an island if it aims to become a great university.

    This concept should be readily available to each and every student of CNU and they should try to ponder the steps we need to take in this changing world of ours.