We’ve seen, in the past three or four days, a sudden buzz of comments and activities in this blog centered on the bar exams. Three times the site broke down due to the surge in traffic. After more than 1,500 combined comments in two blog entries (here and here) relating to the 2007 bar exams, we’ve seen, after a long and suspense-filled wait, the victors. Questions arise as the dust settles.
Why the sudden flow of heavy traffic? To be sure, the 2007 bar exams is not the most controversial — that is perhaps reserved to the previous commercial law leakage. Perhaps it’s arguable that it’s not the most difficult, although let’s not really go there. Suffice it to say that while examinees may have been caught offguard with what is “co-determination” in labor law, previous examinees were less fortunate when the “writ of amparo,” years before it was introduced and became controversial in the Philippines, was asked.
Maybe the interest lies in the fact that only 5% originally passed, then pulled up to 20%. Many are asking if the questions are really difficult. Some are unfairly asking if this is a weaker batch. Why do they have to pull it up to more than 20%? These are only some of the questions that have surfaced. Still, no matter what the criticism is, the increase certainly benefited hundreds of examinees.
Maybe it’s time to revisit the bar exam reforms.
Related posts:
by m
07 Apr 2008 at 10:37
ancient na talaga kasi ang essay type…. we will be ready in due time if ever there will be reforms… but we need a reform now…. now na….. sana ang bar ay tulad nga dati…. 2x a year binibigay….. kasi yung mga flunkers they will be having delay sa pagiging lawyers…. multiple choice na sana at 2x a year ang bar……..
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by A Glance Once More - 2007 Bar Exams « Macka
11 Apr 2008 at 00:11
[...] it in the 2007 bar list do not deserve to be lawyers. Until now, I (with them many puzzled ones) cannot reconcile what went right and what went wrong in the checking process with what ought to and what ought not [...]
by URIEL
15 Apr 2008 at 06:46
reforms for the bar exam:
1.if the examinee ,who passed, is not contented with the result of the examination he/she can retake the bar exam until he/she will be contented;
2.if the examinee,who failed,is not contented with the result of the examination he/she can retake the bar exam until he/she will passed;
3.only those who got an averaged grade of 83 in their law school t.o.r are allowed to take the bar exam.:(
by arwen
16 Apr 2008 at 16:10
my warmest congratulations to the new set of bar passers!!!be faithful to your oath..to those who did not make it, i understand your plight..but dont end it there..continue to dream and believe..it’s all about having faith..see you in La Salle on September..lets take it again!!!godspeed..
by ***asterisk***
18 Apr 2008 at 13:32
i am planning to take the 2008 bar exam and i am not sure if i will be one of those who will jubilate when the result will come out or one of those who will “sourgrape” (sorry for the word) because of the systems adopted in checking the answers…i admit that i am not very good when it comes to the three L’s required to a woul-be- lawyer (Law, Language & the Logic) but i would still want to try my luck hoping that after the “hullabaloo” of the 2007 bar exam, the examiner would be more lenient in checking the answers of the 2008 bar examinees… i am from the province and from a “whom-we-seldom see-some-of-our-professors” law school ( in taxation lang naman.j.hehehe.) that is why i am not confident enough in taking this year’s bar exam. I have read some of the comments of those who did not make it and some of those who emerged victorious, and i observed that passing the bar exam is really the “make-or-break” to all those who aspires to become a lawyer. As i take the plunge this september and finally commit a “suicide” (read: no formal review classes, jobless for 4 months, filing fee and airfare to & from manila were all donations.heheheheh) i just hope i will be one of those who will emerge victorious despite all the odds. Congratz to all the new lawyers..to those who did not make it, try again this september. with your determination and willingness…disgrasya na lang kung hindi pa kayo maging lawyer.
the 2008 bar examinees do need your prayers. KUDOS!
by pussycat
18 Apr 2008 at 17:02
@ ***asterisk***
i really admire your courage and “come what may attitude” in taking this year’s Bar exams. i’m one of those 1,289 fortunate examinees who passed the recent 2007 Bar exams and i can’t really tell for sure if talaga’ng mahirap nga ba yung Bar exam namin o sadyang naging unusually strict lang talaga sa correction process yun’g mga examiners namin. perhaps you’ve already read enough in the numerous blogs in this site na there’s no sure-fire formula for passing the Bar. i do believe its true. a lot of factors come into play (preparation, luck, divine intervention, etc.) in determining whether an examinee makes it or not. thus, it seems to me that majority of the examinees are more or less on equal footing pagdating sa Bar exams.
as for me, i never seriously expected to pass. while i can tell the whole world that I tried my best during the Bar review, deep inside, I felt my review was a far cry as compared to the highly intensive Bar review most of my classmates in law school had (i was a working student/reviewee and i was not allowed to take a Bar leave at the office and during the Bar month last September and I was still working at the office from Mondays to Fridays). all I can say was that I tried to make the most of whatever time was available sa akin. I just told God during my prayers na siya na lang bahala sa akin sa exam ‘coz hanggang dun lang talaga ang nakayanan ko na effort. I haven’t even finished my “first reading” in all the subjects when September came too quickly, so what “second reading” are they talking about??? hehehe
therefore, I can conclude that divine intervention played a big role in my passing the Bar. so don’t lose hope given your situation. during the exams, I was holding a Bible and silently praying and chanting Psalms 23 as we entered the gates at La Salle and I learned that many were also praying for me. inside the examination room I was praying and calling the names of all the Saints I know, and believe me, when it was time for answering for answering the questions, believe me, I could (almost) hear the angels whispering the answers in my ears even it was the first time I’ve encountered that question (read: Principle of Co-Determination in Labor Law). isn’t it a miracle??? this only goes to show that even if all the odds are against you, as long as your faith in Divine Providence remains unshaken, regardless of the final outcome of the exam, you’re in good hands.
i just would like to react to your statement comparing taking the Bar exams to “suicide”. while the term may seem to be an understatement, pero suggestion lang, why don’t you use more spiritually-sounding phrases such as “leap of faith”, “pilgrimage”, etc. that way, it will be more in accord with your belief in God that He will help you pass the Bar, di ba?
In all sincerity, I wish you and all the Barristers taking the forthcoming Bar this September all the luck. may Almighty God be always with you.
by just kidding
18 Apr 2008 at 19:16
hehehe..atty.D wat year k kumuha ng bar exam?yabang m din ah…weakest b?cge nga sagutin m questions..bk nga d m alam ung global injunction..nyahaha!!!
by gregory
18 Apr 2008 at 20:51
some tips on how to pass the bar exams:
1. make sure that an incumbent justice relative preferably a son or daughter is also taking the bar (remember ericta, purisima, now puno, velasco, morales and santiago);
2. make sure that there will be “unusually strict corrections” in some subjects;
3. pray that there will be an advanced or premature decoding of the “names of the law schools” in order to identify the justices’ relatives and subsequent adjustments made;
4. don’t study too much!
by bert
18 Apr 2008 at 22:54
@ gregory,
did you take the 07 bar exams?
i bet you did. same with me but i flunked it.
so dont give me those friggin’ tips on how to pass the bar, it’s just a lame excuse for those who did not.
i got an 86.34 average on my first take except i got 48.87 on my ethics. i dont know my grades this time except i failed.
yeah i feel sad and bitter for flunking it again, but i would never discredit those who passed. they never had a hand on it if there are indeed anomalies in the bar exams.
yeah, i feel there is need for reforms, but it will not be achieved by attacking the bar passers.
yeah, there may be some who flaunt that they are good and passed it even if they just crammed to achieve it; they only do so because they passed it. if not, the same will be made as an excuse for flunking the bar.
so stop this whining and making the rest of us non-passers have the image of a spoiled kid. i myself dont want the pity of the victors nor of the people around me.
i’ll just regroup the scattered pieces of me, and attack again this wall called bar exams.
by gregory
19 Apr 2008 at 07:48
bert, my son did. just like you, he belongs to the 77.09% who failed to make it. one thing i can tell you though, he is not, neither am i, attacking or discrediting the bar passers. we are happy for them. if at all,it is merely incidental. rather, it is an attacked on the very institution which supervises the bar exams. now, you may ask… do i have any evidence to support my position? if you are familiar with the name card which all bar candidates are required to fill up before the start of the exams, it contains the complete name, name of school, customary signature, right thumbmark of the candidate before it is inserted in the envelope and sealed, correct? if you open this envelope, you get to see not only the name of the school but also all the others items mentioned above specifically the name of the candidate. now, premature decoding or disclosure of the names of the candidates is not allowed. it is strictly prohibited! did it happen in the 2007 bar exams? i quote hereunder justice azcuna’s statement which was published in the march 29 issue of the pdi…
“Azcuna said the high court took two days to release the results–the decoding of the names was done last friday–because the office of the bar confidant wanted to double-check the schools as some institutions had apparently changed their names.”
now, tingin mo ba concerned lang sila sa names of the schools? sa strict corrections?
i pity my son and the others like you who were victims of an unseen hand. former chief justice panganiban is right when he said that the results of the 2007 bar exams was “highly unusual.” coming from an eminent and credible former member of the high court, i can only say AMEN.
by gregory
19 Apr 2008 at 08:03
bert, if you see some errors (others etc), my apology. it was just a case of pressing the wrong key without editing it. anyway, allow me to share with you a message from aldous huxley, ” THAT MEN DO NOT LEARN MUCH FROM LESSONS OF HISTORY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT LESSON HISTORY TEACHES.’
1981 – justice ericta’s son took and passed the barex
1999 – justice purisima’s nephew took and passed the barex
2007 – the relatives of four incumbent sc justices also took and passed the bar
i respect your opinion, i know you will go places and ultimately become a member of the bar. keep on punching!
by ***asterisk***
19 Apr 2008 at 09:06
@pussycat
thanks for the advice…sorry for the word i used in my previous post…can’t find exact word/s to describe my plight right now. i agree with you that faith in the Divine Providence really plays an important role in taking the Bar Exam and it’s what i am doing right now. Truly it’s a “leap of faith”…daghang salamat. Please include me in your prayers.
by Atty Outlaw
19 Apr 2008 at 21:49
to mynameismike: you may have a “good command” of the english language as what you proclaim but I’m afraid I have to kick your a$$ back to the $h!+h0L3 where you came from. you don’t know what you’re talking about and you are definitely in no position to give any suggestions here. you’re not even a law student! you should remember that little knowledge is dangerous. pasok ka muna law school tapos pag graduate ka na mag-bar ka agad tapos saka ka magkumento dito. By that time, you’ll realize that it is stupid of you to have made these comments and suggestions. Tingnan natin kung saan ka dadalhin ng pagiging english expert mo! Baka 1st sem pa lang sa law school, mag-drop out ka na!
by pussycat
19 Apr 2008 at 23:28
@ ***asterisk***
yes, i will surely include you in my prayers. i may not know you personally but i could perfectly relate to and understand the uncertainty and anxiety that you must be going through right now. God in His infinite wisdom surely knows you and your current predicament and that of the thousands of other barristers. God willing, i believe you too will triumph in the Bar exams. yes, Justice Azcuna was correct in saying that the Bar exams is not really difficult after all. for the examinee who is intellectually, psychologically, and spiritually prepared, nothing is insurmountable.
it really makes me sad to note though, that i also have a lot of close friends and even my best friend in law school who didn’t make it in the recent Bar exams. i cannot make a comment on how they conducted themselves in their Bar review since i am not a privy to it. but my only advice to them is not to lose hope and to rise up after the fall to pick up the pieces of their broken dreams.
try reading the Bible (specially the Book of Psalms and Proverbs) in between your review schedule. it won’t eat up much of your review time, i suppose. reading the scriptures is beneficial for you at this stage because not only is it spiritually uplifting but it really gives you the confidence to face the Bar exams even when you know that you’re up against all odds. when you feel like you’re about to give up, just consider what our Lord said to St. Paul: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). i too felt God’s power during the Bar exams. as i’ve said in my previous post, i felt weak ‘coz i know for sure that my Bar review was really inadequate, but it was God who filled up all my shortcomings during the Bar review. i hope He will do the same thing for you too. that way, after the 2008 Bar exams is long over, you can honestly tell yourself and the whole world that your Bar experience was truly a “leap of faith.”
i wish you all the best in your Bar review. may God bless us all.
by legalese
28 Apr 2008 at 17:46
Congratulations San Beda College of Law! 93.3% passing percentage! No. 1 over-all! Hanep!
by hollowpoint
12 May 2008 at 01:35
@ .
???
is this e.e cummings-style exchange?
by goimon
12 May 2008 at 08:52
hehehehe kakatuwa talaga pag mga nag aral ng law nag usap usap… they are always like barking chua-chuas
by '
15 Jun 2008 at 15:25
Nah! Dusts on the 2007 Bar Exam will never settle. Yes, it never will!!!
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by Good Luck to the 2008 Bar Examinees at Atty-at-Work
18 Jul 2008 at 23:02
[...] release of the results of the 2007 Bar Exams marked the beginning of a discussion, at times heated, on the Supreme Court’s decision to lower the passing rate. We have the [...]
by ahead
24 Sep 2008 at 15:20
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That many parents today are very much concerned about which grade school, high school, college, and university their sons and daughters attend is not surprising. Many are willing to invest a small fortune just so their children get the best institution. This attitude mainly stems from the notion that graduates of prestigious schools are best equipped for their future careers and, as such, are preferred by most employers.
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Highly competitive school admission standards have pushed parents to seek the best possible preparation for their children. But parents can only do so much with their busy schedules. Students need “trained guidance” when preparing and reviewing for the coverage of the entrance examinations.
Thus, the review. Better yet, the “patterned” reviews such as those offered by Ateneo.
Preparing for the exam means, at best, reviewing for the right subjects and the right type of questions. This kind of preparation is not easy to come by. It involves a “patterned” review course that covers the subtests and question types of the actual entrance exam. The student thus gains an advantage with a solid review in a good review center under the supervision of instructors who really know about admission tests, test-taking shortcuts, and problem-solving strategies.
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by Evonne Astafan
10 Mar 2010 at 15:20
lol – I had to read it twice, but I got the point