A public school teacher finds a partner in learning

These days, it’s getting harder to keep students interested in classwork. Usual classroom activities like lectures, recitation, even experiments aren’t enough to sustain students’ interest. Teachers today are thus challenged to be innovative in their teaching methods.

In public schools across the country, the challenge to innovate is even greater. Cecilia Mag-isa Estoque, an English teacher at the Agusan National High School, knows this all too well. Located in Butuan City, the school has a 1 to 300 teacher-to-student ratio, with a population of 9,000 students and only 250 teachers. The school also has one computer laboratory and one speech lab, which students can use only once every quarter.

Estoque admits that public school students and teachers must deal with limited resources. But beyond challenges such as the perrenial classroom shortage, students also face personal problems that greatly affect their motivation and ability to learn.

"Students struggle to keep their focus on their studies due to lack of financial support for their daily meals, not to mention school materials," she shares. "They would rather work, play, beg or, worse, engage in vices. The sad thing is, sometimes the parents themselves do not believe in the value of education for their children."

But these limitations did not prevent Estoque from pursuing her vision to make her students see the real world beyond the classroom. In May 2005, she was part of a program to promote collaborative projects between schools. There, she met Adrian Asis, a fellow educator who taught in Xavier High School in Metro Manila. Together they came up with a project that all of their students would participate in, the "My Personal Encounter with the Little Prince Telecollaborative Project."

The project necessitated the use of computers and required access to the Internet for the entire class. But the school had only one computer laboratory with less than 20 workstations. In addition, administrators and parents had serious reservations about computers. "Most of our drop-out cases were due to addiction to computer games and video arcades," Estoque explains. "I needed to prove to the community that technology had a good and educational side, especially when properly tapped and utilized."

With this in mind, Estoque–who admits she has "limited IT skills"– enlisted the help of experts to implement the project. She asked their computer laboratory personnel to conduct a special session for her students, who learned about the basic computer parts and then progressed to creating e-mail accounts for themselves. Following this, an Internet café owner agreed to provide special discounts for the students. For ten pesos, the students could use the computers and go online in groups of 3. The owner even taught them how to use the Microsoft Internet Explorer to publish their output online.

With support from the community, the small undertaking was a success. In the beginning, only five students knew how to use a computer; but in the end all of the students were able to post their outputs on the Web. "It is tough for a public school to integrate technology in teaching, but it is possible as long as you have the focus, goal, and drive for change and improvement," Estoque says. Her proactive mindset, coupled with an original project, made her one of the winners in the 2nd Innovative Teachers Leadership Awards (ITLA), a Microsoft Partners in Learning program that recognizes educators who use technology to enhance learning.

Through Microsoft’s Partners in Learning, Estoque met other educators who shared her vision, participating in educators’ conferences in the Netherlands and Korea. "It feels good to know that you’re not alone in your struggle to give quality education to Filipino students," she says.

The 30-year-old educator believes that learning should be worthwhile, and lessons relevant to the students’ lives, enabling them to accomplish something valuable. Estoque recognizes the contribution of technology beyond just academic learning. Even before collaborative learning, the first skills her students learn and continue to practice are following instructions and being independent. Given those guidelines, she trusts that the students can study and learn even without the presence of their teacher.

Passionate about her belief in the benefits of technology in teaching, Estoque conducts a series of IT trainings and campaigns for IT integration, speaking before administrators, teachers and parents in public and private schools. "Limited funds for technology and relevant training in the public educational system could cease to be a problem if we are resourceful in tapping other organizations in the public and private sector," she insists, citing Microsoft’s partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) as an example.

Microsoft Partners in Learning provides skills training for educators throughout the Philippines. This year, Microsoft Philippines launched Potensyal, a nationwide search for the most innovative divisions of the DepEd.

"There are currently 330,143 teachers in 63 countries participating in the Innovative Teachers programs of Microsoft," says Michelle Casio, academic program manager, of Microsoft Philippines. "Cecille is part of the community of educators striving to contribute to the development of Philippine education. It is Microsoft’s mission to empower these talented individuals to effect positive change in our society."

Over the next five years, Microsoft’s Partners in Learning program will provide an investment of software and over US$250 million in cash grants worldwide to deliver technology skills training to students and teachers and to assist in ICT integration into curricula and learning.

Teachers like Estoque will be at the forefront of these efforts. "She says of her fellow teachers, "They are very excited and open to learning more about maximizing ICT in their teaching. As molders of the minds of future leaders, we cannot give up on learning new things."