ANOTHER LETTER TO MY STUDENT

I wrote this letter to my former student who is now my very close friend. He considers me his role model, his mentor-his father. Because our age difference is not that much, I consider him my younger brother.

December 28

Do,

See! You are now honorable and I think, you more than deserve the honor. Besides being honorable, to me however you are still the ever-trusted friend. What the card says is what I consider you to be to me.

Before, I was your teacher; today I am your barkada. You have changed a lot and everything is for good. I knew then that you can be and that you are good. But what you are now goes beyond my expectations for you. You are in every move and in every word, a true gentleman. You are one of the best! I knew that I have been a part of what you are now. Although I have told you before that your parents deserve much of the credit. I am very proud to see you mature into one of the best friends I have. Because you were once my student, I knew that I was not a failure as a teacher then. I did not ever see each one of you becoming geniuses. All I ever wanted is for each one of you to become what God wants you to be. Because you are smart, you have realized that He wanted you to be good, lead a good life and be His good son. Whew! I cannot say anything more. I know that all these praises will not get into your head. You are one of the most level-headed friends that I know.

As I take a look at you now, you damn dress much better than I do! I really do appreciate the way you dress. You dress appropriately. Never have I seen you coming back home from the city ruggedly or much worse shabbily attired. You have remembered what I told you that the clothes do indeed make a man. The way you dress sets you apart from the boys. You are not a boy because you are now a man, a fine-looking gentleman at that.

Listen to the way you talk and I will tell you that you are very respectful. You choose your words. What comes out of your mouth speaks of not only intellect but good manners. You will not change, I know because you are my friend.

For all these good things I have seen in you now, I know you have imperfections still. Tawo ka ra man therefore you have shortcomings too. You have problems too. You pained too. Never mind. These things will remind you of Him.

YOU HAVE NEVER LET ME DOWN, AND I KNOW YOU NEVER WILL…

I remain.
Your good friend,

Sir Carlo

A CHRISTMAS LETTER TO MY STUDENT

This is a letter to my former student. She is one of the students whom I trusted during her time. She sent me a card and a nice coffee mug. Her thoughtfulness made my Christmas a lot merrier!

December 28

Praised be Jesus and Mary!

Once again, thank you for the card and the gift. I appreciated both the messages that came along with them. I felt like crying when I read the card. You know that I shed tears easily and because I was sure the message was heartfelt, it was not a small deal after all if I cried. I was really moved by your sincerity.

I was humbled by how you admire me. Your respect posts a great challenge to me to do much better. This is what I want you to realize though. I am just human so I have imperfections too. I hope that what you have for me is not blind admiration. I hope you will appreciate too my mistakes because for sure you will also learn from them. By now you are quite familiar with my eccentricities and peculiar mood swings. I got some not so admirable manners which I tried very hard to control. It has been in fact an exercise of patience and perseverance. I am not embarrassed when sometimes I get out of control and everything just becomes haywire. Sometimes I find it good to let out pent up emotions, pains and frustrations. I hope I do not sound so banal now.

You find me I think, as a confidant. You have no second thoughts sharing with me what you feel about people and their emotions. I am humbled by your gesture. You trust me with your inmost thoughts. Rest assured your secrets will forever be secrets with me. You confide to me maybe because I have something to share with you about what you have shared to me. This is plain and simple give and take. This is how I look at friendship, a matter of give and take. This whole idea speaks of how respectful you are. I am not trying to insinuate that I have to be respected. I know I have to earn it therefore I work for it. I know you are not just trying to please me. I know you are sincere with how you look up to me as good example. I am very much flattered. I do not know how to thank you. This letter and the card that goes with this are not enough to show and tell you how much I appreciate your actions. You are one of the few reasons which made me persevere in the teaching profession. I know I have not taught you how to be intelligent all alone. I know for a fact that I have taught you more how to be educated. It pleased me so much that in you I have not failed as a teacher. In you, I have seen my crowning glory as one pedagogue.

You have seen others fail along the way in their search for the real meaning of life. I hope they have not blamed anybody but themselves alone. We have human weaknesses because of our very nature. We are sinners. We are culpable to sin. But please let us all realize that sinning has always been an option. It has never been pushed or has been forced to us obtrusively. We were first given the chance. Shall I bite or shall I not bite the apple? I do not mean to push the issue of you becoming like the next candidate for beatification. I am sorry. I just want you to realize that your fate has been all too well-planned already. All you have to do is to take hold and control your destiny. Bring yourself to the ultimate quest in life which is ironically…eternal life of fullness and grace. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I remain.
Your good friend,

Sir Carlo

IBANG TRIP 'TO

McArthur Shrine, Palo

Mines View Park, Baguio City

Sumaging Cave, Sagada

Ormoc Cathedral, Ormoc City

Tinago Falls, Iligan City

Transfiguration Monastery, Bukidon

Plaza de Penefrancia, Naga City

Mayon Volcano Observation Post, Legaspi City

Dakak, Dapitan City

PR Bus Station, Baguio City

TOWARDS BECOMING A LEARNING LEADER

Educational Leadreship & Development Academy

-How ELDA Has Helped Me Become One

If I will tell you now that I am not actually a teacher by profession, I hope you will still listen to me. After my studies and training 12 years ago, I went home to a small town 86km southeast of Cebu. But what always confronted me made me decide to become a teacher. I am a medical doctor and most of the patients I had came from poor families that could barely afford a decent medical service. Despite this sad fact, I was still able to help them heal; however, I thought I could help more by educating these simple people how not to get sick and I have to start with their children. Thus, seven years ago I ended my profession as a healer and started my vocation as a teacher.

I went back to school as a CEAP scholar and for four summers prepared myself to become an instructional leader. From being a classroom teacher for five years, I became an academic coordinator and just this year, the high school principal of a small congregational school in Dalaguete. Because of my training as a medical practitioner, I always set high expectations for performance in school. Furthermore, I always make learning a priority, ensuring that content and instruction are above the set standards. My post graduate studies and my experience with ELDA prepared me well for the new challenges I face today.

After ELDA, the first thing I did was to sit down with my co-teachers and together with the guidance counselor assess our students’ performances in standardized achievement examination. Together with the TPAS ratings and the student evaluation on teacher performance, we identified and analyzed the factors that could have resulted to mediocre performance in some areas. LEARNING NO. 1 from ELDA – Use multiple sources of data to assess learning. We then revisited our school vision-mission and made certain that we were aligned to the vision-mission of the education ministry of the congregation. LEARNING NO. 2 from ELDA – Create coherence in improvement efforts. All stakeholders should understand that there is a common goal to which each one is accountable and that policies, practices, and resources are aligned with this goal.

As a group, we then got into curriculum re-engineering. I empower every discipline to identify our ideal graduate attributes according to the core values lived out by our Mother Foundress; thus, aligning respective syllabi and phasing them reasonably based on assessment and evaluation of students’ performance per discipline last school year. LEARNING NO. 3 from ELDA– Achieve a fine balance of mandate and empowerment. On one hand, I must make it clear to all stakeholders that change is not optional, and that common goals may require my co-teachers to give up or defer some individual preferences. On the other hand, I cannot simply impose the goal. For me to be effective, I must create a safe environment for my teachers, using dialogue rather than dictates to keep the focus on core instructional issues.

After about three months of being an instructional leader, I am currently busy modeling learning. This is the most important thing I learned from ELDA. LEARNING NO. 4 – Model learning. After making certain our lessons are aligned with the DepEd standards and with the congregational learning continuum, the teachers through consultations with me have developed classroom assessments consistent with these standards, and we are currently evaluating students’ work for evidence that these standards have been achieved. I still coach teachers using explanations, practical examples, and demonstration lessons. I always show my co-teachers that I am open to new ideas, that I am result-driven and persistent in the face of adversity. I expect the same from them.

The best thing that have happened so far was that I was able to share what I have learned from ELDA to four more private Catholic high schools in Cebu. I know it was in the minds of the people behind ELDA to develop us into better instructional leaders. They are, however, more ecstatic to know now that their efforts have paid off more than twice-in fact, four times-benefiting almost a hundred teachers from four different learning communities.

As I look back seven years ago, I was thankful I did not pursue nursing after becoming a doctor. For some twist of fate, I became a teacher. I now believe that I was really destined to become one – much more than one. I was bound to become an instructional leader. According to Lashway in 2002, instructional leadership is a critical skill that can be learned through in-depth training for that role. My experience with ELDA taught me to put more emphasis on learning rather than on teaching and make a paradigm shift from school-based management to instructional leadership agenda. My experience with ELDA has made me into an affective learning leader, I believe.

(Delivered last October 2008 at Mariott Hotel during the ELDA Batch 1 Homecoming)

'JUST WANNA HAVE SOME FUN

Chillin' in Alabang, Parañaque City Stranded in Vigan, Ilocos Sur

Dambana ng Kagitingan Museum, Bataan

Midnight swimming in Pansol, Laguna

Inside Hinagdanan Cave in Panglao, Bohol

Diving at Allen's chillspot, North Greenhills

Amidst strawberry plots in La Trinidad Valley, Benguet

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION

We are very fond of making New Year's resolutions. This is not a bad practice as long as we try our hard to keep these resolutions. Because a teacher's everyday life however is so busy, we tend to forget these resolutions. Below are my top ten resolutions for the year 2009.

• I resolve to accept that bad days will happen and that sometimes activities and lessons won't go well. I am not a perfect teacher and never will be, and that's fine.
• I will remember what it was like to be a student. I will keep this in mind on days when I feel like wringing their necks.
• I resolve to say something nice to each of my students at least once a week, if not more.
• I resolve not to let students fall through the cracks. If someone is having problems, I will make an effort to do all I can to help.
• At the same time, I will recognize that teaching is a two-way street. I will accept that after a certain point, I've done all I can, and it's the students' responsibility to get motivated and learn.
• I won't forget to take care of myself. I will eat well, exercise, and get enough sleep.
• I resolve to try new things in my classroom. I will be more creative and look for new ways to present lessons. If some of these things won't go well, I won't worry about it but I will keep trying.
• I will put more time into my own continuing education. I will read at least one article every month about teaching methods, and read at least one article a month about my area of teaching.
• I resolve to leave the classroom behind at the end of the day. I may have papers to grade, but I don't have to go home with the frustrations of a bad day. I will let myself be someone other than the teacher when I go home.
• I will get to know my fellow teachers better - give them an opportunity to vent about their classroom problems with me, offer help if I can. I will be the teacher who brings in birthday cards for all the other teachers to sign.