My ADMU Admissions Essay | btw, i passed!
Central question: Are there any significant experiences you have had, or accomplishments you have realized, that have helped to define you as a person?
Learning languages has always had a soft spot in my heart. Being able to understand a variety of them enables me to discover a new side of me which helps me get to know myself more. However, to my surprise, what helped me define myself as a person was not the actual learning, but me teaching my own language, i.e. Filipino, to other foreigners for free.
I started learning new languages in eighth grade, specifically Spanish and Japanese. Their connection, alongside English, to the Filipino language really fascinated me. I didn’t know that mere words could tell a lot about a country’s culture and history. For instance, the traditional “mano po” line of the Filipinos is actually translatable to Spanish. It directly means “hand (please).” Another example would be the word “parehas.” In Filipino, it means “the same,” but in Spanish, it means “couple” or two persons who are in a romantic relationship. In my interpretation, it’s like saying that two people who are in love can be counted as one or “the same.” By studying these languages, I am also unconsciously learning more about my native language.
To further deepen my knowledge in Spanish, I have found different study partners from Europe and Latin America. There was this one boy who I’ve exchanged Zoom calls with. We would teach each other’s languages, i.e. English and Spanish, to help each other learn more. To be honest, I really do not like having calls with my friends, let alone strangers. It makes me socially anxious and nervous. That’s why me going outside of my comfort zone really stunned me. This is how I realized that I can be really willing to do everything for the sake of the things I love.
And this is where it hit me. If I can be passionate enough to learn other languages, I can be more dedicated to spreading my own language to other people as well. I have always loved the beauty of the Filipino language; I think this is the reason why I continue to be a Filipino campus journalist for six years despite being more confident in my English proficiency. Thus, I announced on my Twitter that I will be holding free Filipino classes for interested learners. At first, I was not expecting any inquiries or private messages regarding my offer, but 16 learners around the world contacted me — telling me that they are eager to join my free classes. Being one of the instruments in teaching my own language and culture to other races made me feel honored.
While I was researching in preparation for my classes, I saw the insufficient amount of free resources about Filipino around the internet. A lot of foreigners and Filipinos themselves want to learn about my native language but struggle with the availability of learning materials. That is why I started creating free PDFs about Filipino for interested learners, as well as planning to launch a website about Filipino to fill the gap in the lack of resources. I also plan to post Filipino lessons on YouTube. As of this writing, I already started my first synchronous class with my diverse students and gave assignments.
Being able to teach Filipino to foreigners exposed my hidden self. I didn’t know that I can be this dedicated to the point that I am willing to invest my time and energy without monetary charge. Through the help of these classes, I realized how proud and patriotic I am as a Filipino citizen, and how passionate I am in everything I love.
Truly, giving is better than receiving. That’s also applicable in language learning. Being one of the instruments myself in sharing the beauty of the Filipino language around the world has made me feel more useful. This has helped me to look beyond the money, time invested, and energy spent; and see the bigger picture that I am currently painting: to show the world that Filipino is worth learning too.
Note: I applied at the Ateneo De Manila University with the degree program: AB Diplomacy and International Relations with Specialization in East and Southeast Asian Studies, and I passed.
