Outstanding Grades 1-6 teachers

On September 5, 10 outstanding teachers, nine of them from public schools, will be recognized at the Metrobank Plaza in Makati City, together with 20 other remarkable individuals from various sectors of society.

Last week, we looked at the four high school and two college awardees:  Chelo Tangan of Cagayan National High School, Buenaventura Luces of Lusacan National High School, Vilma Ambat of Baguio City National High School, Maricel Franco of Nueva Vizcaya National Comprehensive High School, Allan de Guzman of the University of Santo Tomas, and Dr. Jericho Thaddeus Luna of the University of the Philippines Manila.

Here are the best grade school teachers of the year:

English

Marcela Jingco has been teaching English in Angeles Elementary School in Barangay Pulungbulu, Angeles City, for 17 years.

Jingco makes teaching devices from recyclable materials. She has also integrated traditional values and customs in the classroom by having her pupils stage plays, in the process teaching them to say po and opo and to show courtesy to elders through pagmamano.

Through her research on effective use of modules in Good Manners and Right Conduct lessons, school grounds have become cleaner.

As the barangay coordinator in the implementation of Republic Act No 9262 (Anti-violence against Women and Children Act of 2004), Jingco advocates women’s and children’s rights for a healthy community. She has facilitated responsible parenthood seminars, implemented livelihood training for housewives and done reading activities for the orphans of Angeles City, as a member of the health and sanitation committee.

As a member of teacher groups, Jingco also promotes teachers’ rights and welfare.

Djhoane C. Aguilar has been teaching English in Panabo Central Elementary School in Barangay San Francisco, Panabo City, for 12 years.  Aguilar has been active in the Basic Education Assistance for Mindanao (BEAM) program in Regions 11, 12 and ARMM.

A project of the Department of Education, BEAM is funded by the Australian government. It aims to help elementary students and teachers in the south. Aguilar has served as trainer and specialist responsible for making the English Learning Guides for grade school that have been published by BEAM as resource materials.

Aguilar has adapted a strategy called “Half Life,” which gradually reduces the number of pupils working on a particular task by 50 percent, until only one is left in his/her group to work on the task alone.  Aguilar says the method allows students to work independently.

As president of the East Mindanao Philippine Annual Conference of the United Methodist Youth Fellowship in the Philippines, Aguilar has helped to strengthen youth groups in local churches and gather more participants for spiritual growth and social fellowship.

Math and science

Lora E. Añar has taught mathematics and guidance counseling in Bukidnon State University in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon, for 10 years. She has developed instructional guides to teach elementary math using creative activities, such as music, poetry, literature and games so children can develop a love for learning math and, at the same time, hone their skills in solving complex problems. Añar has served as coach of the school team in the Math Challenge competition sponsored by Metrobank, the Mathematics Teachers Association of the Philippines and the Department of Education. Her students have consistently won medals at the division finals.

Añar has researched the learning styles of students to guide teachers in preparing lesson plans. A frequent resource speaker and trainer, she reaches out not just to teachers, but also to those in need. She and her colleagues have done feeding programs for day-care kids and donated supplies to indigent children in Bugcaon, Lantapan, Bukidnon.

Teodora D. Conde has been teaching science at the Andres Bonifacio Elementary School in Santa Cruz, Manila, for 44 years. With her wealth of expertise, Conde has developed creative teaching devices using disposable materials.  These include a brain model made out of used stockings, filled with cotton from pillows and sewn to form the shape of the brain; a water wheel out of disposable plastic spoons to show energy transformation, an improvised ball from discarded papers to illustrate the layers of the earth, a constellation model from threads and pins with colorful heads, a model galaxy out of illustration boards and glitter,  and an improvised rocket ship from plastic bottles to describe thrust and motion.

Conde has gone beyond science and is helping children cope with life, writing a guide for teachers to motivate their students to stay away from drugs. Using the Child-Friendly Approach, Conde is helping students deal with their needs and feelings. She has organized the “Eskuwelahang Munti” in the community for preschool children.

“The joy of teaching children is always in my heart,” Conde says, “Although I am nearing the sunset of my career, I always enjoy guiding them along the right path.”

A part-time teacher at the Philippine Normal University, Conde, who has five biological children, all of whom are now professionals, adopted two babies (currently 2 years old). These babies are now her sources of joy.

E-mail the author at [email protected].