Filipino public school teachers were among the 18 winners of the Asia-Pacific Teacher Exchange for Global Education (APTE) Best Practices Award.
Noel V. Sadinas from Schools Division Office Office (SDO) Nueva Vizcaya, George B. Borromeo of SDO Manila and Teacher Honey Rose V. Yu Vega were among the winners of the contest from all over Asia-Pacific.
The Department of Education (DepEd), in a statement issued Wednesday, Sept. 22, commended the public school teachers for their achievement.
“I always believe that opportunities to understand other cultures would always enhance the competence and commitment of our fellow teachers in terms of effort to create learners who are respectful of diversity,” Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instruction Diosdado San Antonio said.
Sadinas placed second in the said contest while Borromeo and Yu Vega - with her Project Tudlo which is a community reading tutorial of SDO Cebu City bagged third place.
After they were recognized, the teachers - who were also alumni of the Korea-Philippines Teacher Exchange Programme (KPTEP) - shared their experiences in APTE.
“We took these challenges as our weapon to prove that teachers like us can do more and be more,” Yu Vega said.
She explained that the launching of KPTEP’s local programs opened new doors of opportunities and more support was poured. “It is a matter of determination and compassion towards education,” she said. “It is very fulfilling to claim our achievement with the challenges we have been through,” she added.
Meanwhile, Borromeo shared that it was in KPTEP that he “started to accelerate my “speed as an educator.
With the advocacy of the KPTEP Alumni Association (KPTEPAA) in partnership with the DepEd International Cooperation Office on Global Citizenship Education (GCED), Borromeo added that he “was able to maximize my full potential” as participants were encouraged to introduce their Re-Entry Application Project (REAP).
The teachers submitted essays with supporting documents like photographs and video presentations to display their understandings, learnings, education, changes, practices, and other experiences that they gathered during the Programme.
DepEd said that the KPTEP is developed as part of the Asia – Pacific Teacher Exchange for Global Education to support the “enhancement of the quality of education in the Philippines through the capacity–building of its key educators and schools.” The contest, it added, was opened for all alumni of KPTEP from 2012 to 2021.
“Apart from Korean Teachers, teachers or mentors from partner countries are also allowed to send in their submissions for the contest,” DepEd said.
Prizes for the winners include the Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding (APCEIU) Director’s Award, the opportunity to attend the SSAEM Conference to present their essays, and a cash reward.