WELCOME
After my time studying abroad and seeing many different forms of education in the Philippines, the thing that stuck out to me most was how my partner teacher and her students were able to do so much with so little. The children really cherished being at school and they were happy and working while they were there. There was not any class conflicts in the third grade classroom I was in while I was there. When given a book, three to four kids naturally gathered around, shared, and took turns reading during their recess time. Meanwhile, in the United States, my high school students fight over silly things, like being unable to share an entire field between football and soccer (and this conflict lasted for weeks!). Seeing how happy the Filipino children were made me realize that although the United States is more economically wealthy, we may be lacking in a wealth of gratitude, wellness, and community. As I begin to plan for the next school year (and my master's thesis) I aim to find ways to incorporate these things into my classroom because I have seen the value they can bring to the development of a child. Thank you, Teach for the Philippines for showing me feelings that are hard for me to put into words, but I know will fuel my future work in public education.
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Today was our first day of activities on our trip. We began the day at the Teach for the Philippines office in Makati City. We saw the modern office-space, learned the mission of Teach for the Philippines, and ate some delicious Filipino food. I think that as Americans, we take it for granted that it is the law for students to be in school until they can make the decision as adults. That is why many of the LMU teachers were surprised to hear that the grade with the highest dropout rate in the Philippines is the second grade! This organization exists to provide students with an inclusive, relevant, and excellent education. Their motto is "Para Sa Bata, Para Sa Bayan," which translates, "For the children, for the country."
After this, the group visited the Ayala Museum in Makati where Dr. Litton gave us a brief history of the Philippines which mostly entailed who was colonizing when and why until the Philippines was finally declared independence from the United States on July 4, 1946. The day most Filipinos actually celebrate the anniversary of their independence, however, is on June 12th to commemorate the day in 1896 when they were declared free from Spanish rule. The trips we took this day gave us context and a starting place to build on during the rest of our time in the Philippines as we interact with people who have lived in this educational system and as a result of this history. My teaching experience and the overall education landscape of the nation - Mary Ashley Cherney7/31/2017 We drove an hour and a half out of Manila, through rice fields, corrugated iron shacks, and small country roads to find ourselves at an impressive gate. Upon entering we saw a different landscape. This one consisted of many new large buildings, well maintained facilities, and a large list of corporate sponsors including Hyundai, Monsanto, Coca-Cola, and Shell. What were these corporate sponsors, perpetuates of capitalism and inequality in the United States, doing here? Over the course of the next couple of days, I would come to find my own answer to this question. On our first full day, we had an orientation and tour led by the students in the SEED program. These students begin the SEED program around the age of 16. They spend two years at school here, learning how to create, market, and distribute a product of their own design. Their third year is a “gap” year. They can spend it in a foreign country in an internship, at the farm, or otherwise working on their product. Then, they can continue to work on their product at their farm or bring it back to their previous community to increase the standard of living there. During the orientation, I asked specifically about what the sponsors get out of this program to which I was given, “they ask for nothing in return” as an answer. This seemed suspect to me, but what I believe to be their intention emerged through conversations with the SEED members and some of the local workers who live at the farm. In these conversations a common theme arose around moving from being unproductive to productive. The idea that was initially expounded was that this productivity bred happiness. This is a mantra that is frequently used in capitalist societies to encourage the working class to continue to work for less than what they deserve. Upon further probing into this productivity, it was clear that the productivity did not bring them happiness, but that they were productive to earn money to support their families and/or themselves. Productivity itself did not seem to bring these individuals happiness, yet it was clear from the initial message which they pitched to us that they had been indoctrinated in this belief. It was here that I began to see the corporate interests in this place. Expanding capitalist ideals to countries or areas of countries which have not fully given themselves over to these ideals gives these corporations a larger base to expand to. Hyundai will never sell cars to impoverished people living under a bridge. Shell will never sell gasoline to those without motor vehicles. Monsanto will not be able to spread genetically modified crops to areas that have been using their own farming practices for generations and know little of any possible “benefits” of genetic modification. Coca-Cola will be able to spread its brand and beverages more easily when low income communities raise their standard of living. Gawad Kalinga gives those at the lowest rungs of Filipino society a chance to considerably raise their standard of living. These opportunities are transformational for hundreds of people who live here or are part of the SEED program. However, to believe that corporations are here solely to benefit the communities and not themselves would be a farce. My first few days exploring education in the Philippines involved co-teaching and helping out in a Nangka elementary school in Marikina City. A partner teacher and I assisted in Teacher Cam’s third grade classroom. Similar to my middle school classroom in the United States, students had a lot of energy, were funny and intelligent, and thirty-five to forty students were packed into a small classroom. These conditions were not unusual to me and it was refreshing to work with younger students who are more engaged in their education on average than older students I work with at home. In contrast to my experience in the United States was the amount of resources available to the teacher in the classroom. No electronic technology existed in the classroom: no computers, projectors, or televisions. Very little art supplies were available except for a few colored pens and pencils that students shared well. Also the amount of reading materials for the students were sparse, with students unable to read the same book as a class. As I wrapped my head around what teaching would be like without much use of technology, we visited a private Catholic school, LaSalle Green Hills, in a similar area of the Manila Metro Area. This school was not a place I could relate to in the way I could relate to Nangka. This school had a large, flat-screen television in every classroom to project onto, multiple well stocked computer labs, a fully stocked art room, and multiple sports fields for the students to play and practice on. This school also treated their teachers in a much different manner than I had seen at Nangka or at my school across the Pacific. Teachers only taught during 4 out of 9 periods per day. Most of the rest of the periods were times in which teachers could grade, lesson plan, or rest in the extremely lavish teacher’s lounge, which looked more like a well furnished apartment. Teachers also can get paid more to run a club, tutor students, or teach a sport after school. The differences between private and public school in the Philippines was shocking and showed the deficiencies in the Californian public school system as well. Two questions hovered around my thoughts upon leaving: Is it possible to have fully resourced schools, as seen in LaSalle Green Hills, in every K-12 school? Or is it only possible to have these fully resourced schools by having less resourced schools to stand in contrast? My time in the schools in the Philippines has affected me and taught me in ways I never knew could. When I first heard about the study abroad program, I thought about how great an opportunity it would be as a Filipino American to give back to my motherland. However, I was wrong. It was more about what the Philippines could give to me. I had just finished my first year teaching in the United States as a Transitional Kindergarten teacher, and went through the struggles that any other teacher at a Title I school - lack of resources, pressures from administration and testing, and at times, lack of support. However, when I came to teach at Nangka Elementary School in Marikina public schools, I realize the teachers there experienced the same and more. The difference was that they did so without much complaint. I got to partner with Teacher Cam, a second year Teach for the Philippines fellow, who teaches third grade. She has an advisory class of about 40 students where she teaches MAPEH (music, art, physical education, health), social studies, Filipino, and Mother Tongue, and she was the head English teacher of third grade. That meant that she taught English to the three classes of third grader everyday, which is about 120 students in total!! I did not realize how spoiled I was to only have 24 students, but even that is a handful. I taught common and proper nouns through song and movement, and the 120 kids were singing and humming the song throughout the week I was there. There are two things I admire most about teachers and students in the Philippines - the creativity and the desire to learn. The first day I was at Nangka, the students were having a parade around the neighborhood to celebrate Nutrition Month. They were wearing hats decorated with fruits and vegetables , necklaces, and crowns. It was so amazing to see how creative the student were, and also see the community outreach aspects of the parade. Teachers are creative too. With a lack of a working printer/copier, they used poster paper, chalkboard, and even used so much music and movement to teach lessons. The teachers brought their lessons to life despite not having the basics necessities that Americans demand. Students also show desire to learn and the utmost respect for their belongings. This is something that I think many American students take for granted. Students in the Marikina schools organized their backpacks and supplies, and took so much care of their pencils and notebooks. One day, the mayor came to school and gave free school supplies to each student. The students looked like they won the lottery. They got two notebooks and two pens, and they proudly wrote their name on it. A student accidentally ripped his notebook, and cried over it. In the United States, students will purposely break their belongings. I was just so impressed by the students desire to learn, and their respect for school. When I go back to the United States, I want to bring back that creativity, and desire to learn. So many students want to drop out because schools got rid of that fun and creativity in schools. I am excited to give my second batch of students what the Philippines gave me, and see those light bulbs turn on their growing brains. I cannot express enough of my gratitude for this experience, and the impact will carry on to the States. Teaching in the Filipino Public Schools has been an experience in it of itself. Words cannot explain everything I have learned from the students, the system, and the teachers. To make this blog easier, I have narrowed my learnings to just three points.
2. Don’t forget to Learn: As a third-year teacher, and the “veteran” teacher at my school, I am always sought out when new teachers need direction. I’ve been sought out for ideas and I have lead my own PDs that I started to internalize that I was this great teacher. But I wasn’t. I have only taught for 2 years, why on earth would I be so wonderful? In the MES classroom, I stepped in with an open mind and learned from the teacher and students. I learned how to incorporate more songs in my class, how to make learning fun and engaging, and how to ____ 3. Recognize the unspoken language: I knew that walking into a Philippine classroom would mean there would be language gaps. Most students speak Filipino, with very minimal understanding of English. This was challenging, but I was experiencing what my English Language Learners experience daily! With my Filipino students, I needed to find ways to communicate: I used a lot of images, realia, and acting for them to understand me. Using these unspoken words allowed us to communicate on a level I have not experience. I know experience the importance of using these good teacher practices and know how to uses them in my own classroom. Overall, being in the classroom with a different group of people has taught me to work with what I have. As American teachers, we have a lot more materials and support in the classroom than many other countries. Therefore, the most important lesson I'm taking away from this experience is to work with what I have. If I only have 3 pencils for 5 students, I'm going to make them share the pencils. If my curriculum is not fully developed for me to teach from, then I'm going to find other teachers with similar lessons and modify them for my classroom.
The experiences I have had are once I reflect on and take with me to my own classroom. “Good morning Teacher Diana.” Every morning at Conception Integrated School in Marikina, I was greeted with this enthusiastic welcome when I walked into the third grade class led by my partner teacher, Justine. Before I began working with this class, I was extremely nervous and uncertain about entering a room full of 40 third graders, being an eighth grade teacher back in California. The feeling of nervousness was quickly replaced by excitement and enjoyment as I spent time in Justine’s classroom observing and leading lessons. The fear of working with an age group I had no prior knowledge of faded away and I felt eager to come into the classroom, even at the early start of 6 am, to teach and interact with this intelligent, respectful, and lively third grade class. One of the first things I noticed about this class, that made it such a joy to participate in, was the eagerness and happiness of the students to learn. During every activity, students would be raising their hands and shouting “’cher!” to proudly share their responses. It felt wonderfully refreshing to work in a classroom where students are looking forward to learning something new everyday and showing their excitement when they had mastered a new topic. The resources Manila’s public schools pale in comparison to those of even low-income schools in the United States. The windows and doors are simply metal frames, leaving the room open to the noise of the schoolyard and neighboring classrooms. There are not enough textbooks for every student and they must share. However, even despite these setbacks, these students do not look for ways to excuse themselves from the work and try their best to further their knowledge. It became a true joy to teach them. Through my experience in Filipino classroom, I grew to really appreciate the resiliency of the students in my school, who showed such eagerness and respect despite their challenging circumstances. Something my American group all noticed was that the students focused and found joy in what they had, rather than the often American approach of focusing on what we lacked. I saw this mentality in the teachers as well, who did not complain about lacking supplies, but made use of what they had in creative ways. They clearly showed that that it is not the materials and resources that define the quality of the classroom, but the creativity of how to use what is given that matters. I leave the Philippines inspired by the community, spirit, and creativity I witnessed in the classroom and hopeful that we can build similar cultures in the classrooms of the U.S. |
Authors:Community of Learners in the LMU Study Abroad Program in Manila (July 2017) ArchivesCategories |