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.
WHY REVIEW?
With such stiff competition for jobs in today’s world, a college diploma by itself is no longer a guarantee for a successful career. For those just starting out in their chosen profession, it is not enough that you have a degree—what counts is where you got it. Sometimes that can make a world of a difference.
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.
Being accepted to the country’s top schools, however, is not easy. Since many seek for acceptance into these schools, these institutions set high academic standards for accepting students. Aside from limiting slots, they require applicants to take qualifying exams and interviews.
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.
A highly effective review may be a student’s way to gain quality education. Getting into a good school is, in turn, a step toward a bright and promising future. http://www.aheadph.com
Nah! Dusts on the 2007 Bar Exam will never settle. Yes, it never will!!!
hehehehe kakatuwa talaga pag mga nag aral ng law nag usap usap… they are always like barking chua-chuas
@ .
???
is this e.e cummings-style exchange?
Congratulations San Beda College of Law! 93.3% passing percentage! No. 1 over-all! Hanep!
@ ***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.
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!
@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.
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!