DR. ARIS LARRODER
Special Science Teacher
Philippine Science High School – Western Visayas
Iloilo City
As an Earth Science teacher, Dr. Aris Larroder believes that Filipinos studying Astronomy, are being trained like Westerners—their teachers merely adopting concepts of giftedness from other countries and are being introduced solely to the western concepts of celestial objects. Dr. Larroder says it is necessary to teach and learn the Philippines’ own indigenous knowledge system and practices. He believes that we Filipinos should be grateful for the western influences in many aspects of our lives but we must not forget that we have our own, which needs to be nurtured and developed. This is why in his work and advocacy as a teacher, teacher trainer, sky watching facilitator, and researcher, he persistently incorporates the indigenous concept of giftedness. He also shared best practices to other Science teachers in the region. He served as a regional trainer, introducing his advocacy of using indigenous knowledge system in the context of cross-cultural teaching of school science. He bought his own sky telescope and brought it to remote areas in Western Visayas so that communities and schools could see the planets and the heavenly bodies. Dr. Larroder’s biggest contribution to the region, however, is its very own planetarium. Dr. Larroder is the original proponent of the project that is now being used by 20 elementary schools, 29 secondary schools, and 29 tertiary schools for sky watching activities and telescope viewing.
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LORELEE DEDOROY ASIGNACION
Master Teacher I
Bata National High School
Bacolod City
A teacher’s primary function is to equip students with knowledge. But for Ms. Lorelee Asignacion, teachers can do so much more. She uses her brief time with her students not just to teach them English, but also to impart valuable lessons in life, often taking from her own experiences. Growing up, Ms. Asignacion wanted to be a journalist; a dream she fulfills now as a columnist for the Negros Daily Bulletin. It is into teaching, however, where she is able to fulfill her heart’s desires—her way of paying it forward. “I was raised by my grandmother in a far-flung town, where I had to walk three kilometers or so to get to school. My school didn’t have enough textbooks and a library. I was a scrawny, awkward teenager with very low self-esteem. I am forever indebted to all the teachers who believed in me, and now it’s my turn to enrich the lives of my own students,” she says. There are a lot Ms. Asignacion has done outside the classroom for the welfare of her students and their families: She swept streets, planted mangroves, initiated coastal clean ups, helped build shelters through Gawad Kalinga, facilitated evacuation of 72 families during Typhoon Yolanda, extended relief operations to two islands, helped rehabilitate fishing boats, and distributed school supplies to over 150 students. Through all of these, she hopes to achieve one thing: to create a ripple of inspiration.
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DR. JERICO BACANI
Professor
University of the Philippines – Baguio
Baguio City
Dr. Jerico Bacani vividly remembers how he worked hard for his education back in the day when he needed to sell plastic bags at the Baguio City Public Market to help augment their family income. It was in this experience that he learned and loved Math, to make sure that he was being paid fairly by his customers. As a little boy, he practiced counting from the heart as it was the only way for him to continue his studies. One of his signature styles of teaching, which the students love, is infusing poetry into Math and creating natural logarithm out of it. His students enjoy his innovative approaches to awaken their desire to learn more about the often hated subject. “I believe that as an educator, I am responsible for my students’ return on investment. Apart from the monetary cost, I want their time and effort to be worth the subject I teach. I want to teach Math as a life skill, not just a subject in school. After all, the concept of problem solving and the art of finding the solution to any given problem is a way of life,” he says. “Math is a beautiful human subject that is not just about numbers and figures. It is an art.”
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DR. JOVELYN GUMATAY DELOSA
Dean and assistant professor
Xavier University (Ateneo de Cagayan)
Cagayan de Oro
As early as Grade 6, Dr. Jovelyn Delosa already knew she wanted to be a teacher. “I told myself, if I could go to college, because it was quite hard to imagine college education before in Bukidnon, I would take up Education. She did get into college, at Xavier University where she is now dean.
“Back in college, aside from doing my studies, I volunteered to do catechism with children, beggars, and street kids. Then on, I knew I chose the right path,” she says. She worked as a volunteer until she graduated. She only stopped when she was assigned to faraway Indahag National High School in CDO for seven years, the most beautiful years of her life as a teacher. “The real battle is there,” she says. “It was an authentic connection with simple students. Indahag is a simple place. Students there have to cross rivers, ride on top of jeepneys, or walk just to go to school. The challenge was not how to teach the subject, but how to reach the students. It gave meaning to my life. There, I really can say I am a teacher.” After, seven years in Indahag, Dr. Delosa entered Carmel but her love for her students stopped her from being a nun. “In the convent I learned that the true vocation is love. It doesn’t matter if you are a sister, a priest, if you are married or single. So, find that love. That love for me is really in the classroom.”
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DR. CHRISTINE YCAZA GUINACARAN
Master Teacher I
Zamboangan City High School
Zamboanga City
Growing up, Dr. Christine Guinacaran, a Grade 8 teacher of Zamboanga City High School and founder of the literacy program Reading Buddies, was discouraged to be a teacher. She couldn’t imagine herself bearing all the responsibilities, and stress, that teaching entails. Until her own teachers changed her mind and inspired her to heed the noble call. Now, it is her turn to inspire others. “A little inspiration from someone in authority can make a difference in someone’s life. Who could instill that better to students than somebody in authority? This is my guiding principle,” she says. Dr. Guinacaran aims to take away all the barriers that thwart children’s learning: insecurity, inferiority complex, close-mindedness, etc. And she would always, always, emphasize the importance of reading. “I feel that a lot of underachievers have poor reading skills. If they can surmount this problem of poor reading or reading comprehension, they will be able to understand better. It will be easier for them to cope with their studies,” she says. This is why she established the Reading Buddies, a reading club for literacy-challenged students. Under the program, students with poor reading skills learn from peers with more advanced reading comprehension. She also brought this program outside the schools, specifically to orphanages and depressed areas.
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NORMITA LIWAG
Master Teacher I/ District ALS coordinator
Department of Education – Alternative Learning System
Gapan City
In her teaching practice, Ms. Normita Liwag often goes beyond traditional classrooms. Her students: prisoners, PWDs, prostitutes, and out-of-school youths. Most of them grown up manifestations of frightened, abused, lonely, and unloved individuals, and all of them require special attention and sensitive management. For these students, getting an education is probably least of their priorities. But Mrs. Liwag, the stern teacher that she is, is having none of that. Armed with determination and faith to make a difference in the lives of people around her, she spends her day teaching these people alternately between her schedules. She is also a volunteer teacher in military camps since 2000. Her teaching task in Gapan City jail, however, is the closest to her heart. At present, she has more than 80 students whom she teaches basic education (reading, writing, and counting) and secondary education. For all her hard work, Mrs. Liwag neither craved nor expected recognition. As an Alternative Learning System teacher, what she is doing is more than community engagement. She calls it humanity engagement, “Because pakikitao is more meaningful than what you do in public.” With this gift of pakikitao she ignites a fire in the lives of the poor and oppressed. Doing so helps create a livable community; maybe then, and with hope, there will be no juvenile delinquents, prostitutes, law offenders, or prisoners in our country.
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ALLELI ESTER DOMINGO
Associate Professor IV
University of the Philippines – Los Baños
Los Baños
Naturally patriotic and very much historically inclined, Professor Alleli Domingo constantly searches for unique ways to connect nationalism to Science and Math subjects. She could go on and on talking about history, especially about Dr. Jose Rizal (she’s affectionately known in the UPLB campus as “the ex-girlfriend” of the National Hero). She ultimately aims to maximize the potential of converging the sciences and the arts as powerful tools for education. What is even more amusing is Ms. Domingo’s active advocacy in creating awareness in using the Baybayin script (Tagalog alphabet) among students regardless of their educational level. Her students appreciate her very much because she not only taught them how to write their names in Baybayin, she taught them how to answer mathematical problems using the indigenous letters, too. At 58, Ms. Domingo is unstoppable. From being a volunteer trainer for teachers to doing outreach projects with international students, from anchoring an educational radio program to impacting social activities that focus on community transformation, she finds fulfillment in all the civic endeavors that she lovingly takes on.
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DR. MARILYN NGALES
Faculty / Director of Community Outreach and Service Learning
Lyceum of the Philippines – Manila
Manila
Dr. Marilyn Ngales is a proud Igorota from the Mountain Province. She chose to live in Metro Manila, but promised to preserve her heritage and lifestyle as an indigenous person. A modern Igorota, she calls herself, with strong cultural roots and upbringing after all those years of studying at universities both here and abroad. She believes that her education played a vital role in her being an educator and at the same time, in her role as the director of Community Outreach and Service Learning (COSEL) of the Lyceum of the Philippines University, whose stakeholders are mostly ethnic groups situated in the provinces of Aurora, Quirino, Isabela, Bulacan, Rizal, and Palawan. Her love for the indigenous people (IP) pushed her to do more than what was required in her post, she led the design and development of an IP Curriculum in the Philippines. As a college professor, Dr. Ngales was able to teach her students the real value of reaching out through community engagements. Aside from serving her own IP group, she reached out to other ethnic communities who are similarly neglected and disadvantaged. Through Dr. Ngales efforts, COSEL adapted the Tayan (a Bontoc term for territory or domain) program for its community service project Tanging Yaman Alagaan Natin. The objective of the program is to improve the lives of the IPs, more specifically with regards to education, and by preserving their unique culture and heritage.
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JINKY TECSON AND MICHELLE NORICO
ALS Mobile Teachers
District of Pototan I and II
Iloilo City
Jinky Tecson
Michelle Norico
Jinky Tecson and Michelle Norico are Alternative Learning System (ALS) teachers who bring education to those in need like school dropouts, out-of-school youths, non-readers, working Filipinos, senior citizens, and inmates. They teach anywhere they are needed, under the shade of trees, in playgrounds, or any available space in different communities in Pototan.
When they were both assigned to teach in prison, they had apprehensions, but their commitment to their profession was far more important. For three years now, the two have been partners in teaching inmates at Iloilo District Jail and Potatan District Jail in Pototan, Iloilo.
According to Mrs. Norico, teaching inmates has its own set of difficulties. These students lack self-confidence, are confronted by family problems, feel self-pity, among others. But the two teachers learned to adjust and carried on. They extended their teaching hours. They acted as counselors and even gave support to the activities of the inmates. One of this teaching duo’s most precious gifts: the district jail’s library. Soon, the jail will also have its own computer and projector.
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HAIDE PANDOY
Master Teacher I
Malabon National High School
Malabon City
Ms. Haide Pandoy’s boundless and unlimited love for nature has led her to create and propagate environmental awareness among her students and her community. By introducing solid waste segregation, leading house greening projects, building herbal clinics, promoting organic and natural farming, and planting thousands of mangrove trees within the coastal areas of Malabon, she sees to it that her Grade 7 and 9 Science students don’t just learn the theoretical aspects of the subject but also appreciate and understand the importance of environment to people’s lives. Among the numerous environmental projects Ms. Pandoy has initiated, she takes pride in the success of the preservation of Isla Sitio Pulo’s ecosystem. In 2008, Mrs. Pandoy started various activities to save the poverty-tormented island with 135 families living in the swamp area of Navotas, a neighboring town of Malabon. She then offered to educate the parents and children how to plant more mangrove trees and informed them about its benefits, such as coastal resiliency that can alleviate disaster risk (strong winds, flash floods, tsunamis), biodiversity, and livelihood (fishing and timber production). Ms. Pandoy says that her fight for environmental education is crucial and tough, especially since the youth of today are rather “disconnected from nature.” She’s now made it her life mission to make the younger generation active in preserving the environment. “The reality is, someone must make a stand to create a lifelong awareness in order to breed new environmental stewards,” she says.
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GERUM OCHIGUE SALATAN
ALS Mobile Teacher / Teacher I
Alternative Learning System – Department of Education Claveria District I
Misamis Oriental
Gerum Salatan’s education started at home, under the guidance of his mother. It was also at home where he first learned the importance of helping others. “My parents are farmers and community workers. They are volunteers. My father was a high school graduate, while my mother only finished elementary. They didn’t have fixed income and only cultivated a parcel of land, which was not theirs. Yet, despite their meager living, they managed to help people. And that stayed with me,” he says. Picking up from his parents, Mr. Salatan started his own community service at a very young age. At Grade 3, he was already assisting in a summer vacation class for his church, which was teaching values, literacy, and environmental issues to kids from far-flung areas. He did not get a degree in Mass Communications, like he always wanted, but he found his true passion in teaching as an ALS teacher. Mr. Salatan, like any other ALS teachers, has his own share of difficulties. Ever since he started teaching ALS, he has never received his material aid, so he got by through help from local business, which he personally approached. There is also the difficulty of teaching without a permanent structure. But these challenges only fueled his passion to educate, especially fellow IPs (indigenous people). As part of the Higaonon group of Misamis Oriental, he has been promoting IP education and designing Literacy Primers, which are distributed to all Higaonon-speaking people in Mindanao. The primers integrate Higaonon culture into mainstream education. He also helped develop an IP Education Framework, for all municipalities with ICCs or Indigenous Cultural Communities so that the lessons being taught are culture-based and culture-responsive.
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AARON TOLENTINO
Teacher I
Manila Science High School
Manila
A former staff of the National Youth Commission, Mr. Aaron Tolentino vividly recalls how relax his job was back then in government office. But said job did not make him happy. He resigned after a year and a half when he felt the longing and passion for teaching, a calling he could not refuse. Now, he’s a teacher in one of the best Science schools in the Philippines.
“I consider myself to be a work-in-progress,” he says. “Being a teacher, whose responsibility is to teach the minds and to touch the hearts of the young, I must continuously pursue a better version of myself each and every day.” He emphasizes the need to invest in and institutionalize pandragogy, a pedal of pedagogy as an art of teaching a child by an adult, and andragogy which is the art of teaching an adult by a child. It is naturally challenging but he is willing to explore uncomfortable pockets of learning, including learning from his students. Meanwhile, Mr. Tolentino’s love for writing, another one of his passions, grows over the years of teaching, and now he is sharing this gift to his students. His standard of coaching and teaching raised the bar for journalism in Manila Science High School. He involved everyone starting from his students, faculty members, and even the school principal to collaborate with them in contests nationwide. His current masterpiece: Ang Ubod, the official Filipino publication of Manila Science High School.
These 13 teachers are nominees of the 2015 Many Faces of the Teacher, which salutes the efforts of exemplary educators who devote their lives to answer the altruistic calling of education. This program recognizes outstanding teachers who selflessly devote themselves to teaching despite the obstacles that they meet. A brainchild of Bato Balani Foundation Inc. and Diwa Learning Systems Inc., this advocacy campaign desires to spur more teachers to become role models for society.