More than 500 teachers of the Philippine Science High School will undergo training in Adaptive Design for Learning after the Ateneo de Manila University and the PSHS System inked a memorandum of agreement last Oct. 29 that formalizes the partnership between the two educational institutions.
The agreement was signed by Ateneo President Fr. Roberto Yap, S.J., and PSHS System Executive Director Lila Habacon, and was witnessed by a benefactor of the program, JJ Atencio, CEO of Januarius Holdings and Chairman of the Dr. Rosario Bustos-Atencio Endowment Fund for the Scholarship of Public School Teachers, and an alumnus of Ateneo.
“We are proud to work together with our partners in the Philippine Science High School System as they equip their educators with the knowledge that will allow them to better serve the needs of their students during these unprecedented times,” Yap said.
Habacon said that the PSHS System is grateful to Ateneo for the teacher capability building on ADL. “This partnership is a trailblazer for many ideas that shall improve teaching and learning,” she added.
The training program was formally launched by Ateneo SALT Institute last Sept. 21 and will be conducted for three months. The ADL professional certificate course for the teachers of PSHS is expected to conclude by the latter part of January 2021.
Adaptive Design for Learning is a unique asynchronous project-based program for educators who want to learn online course design and delivery. The program offers a unique framework that enables educators to design an engaging holistic learning experience and to resist the usual temptation of dumping online content on students.
Over 2,000 educators from the nationwide network of Jesuit schools and universities have undergone the ADL course in preparation for the fully online academic year.
To make this program more accessible for the PSHS System, Ateneo is subsidizing 65 percent of the cost of the training program through the RBA Endowment Fund and the VTL Teacher Education Endowment Fund. These endowment funds were established to promote teacher education and professional development.
Atencio said that is “both a joy and a privilege for my siblings and I to be part of this endeavor between my Alma mater ADMU and one of the foremost public school institutions PSHS.”
“The scholarship fund that we established in honor of our mother was so that we could help, even in some small way, uplift the delivery of education services in the public school system,” Atencio said. The family is also thankful that through this venture, they are able to enhance the legacy of their mother, Dr. Rosario Bustos-Atencio.