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Four Teachers are The Few to Inspire the Many (Philippine Daily Inquirer, Aug.

5 issue In a rare and modest moment, four educators and their 108 years of teaching experience, thousands of hours of paperwork and countless strokes on the blackboard were honored to inspire more than half a million others who toil in the nations classrooms. After months of a meticulous selection process, mobile teacher onyla !antiago of "ue#a $ci%a, special education teacher $lsa &rafilo 'uran of (otabato (ity, philosophy professor )r. o*ue Angel )erriols of the Ateneo de +anila ,ni#ersity and %ournalism professor -uis .eodoro of the ,ni#ersity of the /hilippines emerged as 0the few to inspire the many.1 !antiago, who turns 23 on Aug. 8, barely got through her speech when called to the podium. 4er #oice breaking, she told the audience how she taught a class of rebel returnees in a military camp and how she walked great distances to get to her students, among them, Igorot, Aeta and 5ankanaey, in the mountains of /alayan (ity, "ue#a $ci%a. 0I ne#er thought that the 6 to 10 kilometers I walked e#ery day to my class would take me this far,1 she said. Also a regional awardee for her dedication to the education departments Alternati#e -earning !ystem, !antiago had only brief exposure to teaching in a formal school before she decided to ser#e as a mobile teacher in her home pro#ince, pro#iding basic education to occasionally hesitant adults. 0"o one will admit that he is illiterate. $ncouraging those who ha#e ne#er had schooling to learn is #ery hard, because they will not exchange the money they can make to attending your class,1 !antiago said. Unschooled persons In teaching elementary courses to unschooled persons aged 17 and up, !antiago has learned the delicate art of putting adults on the road to learning e#en in 0scary1 situations. !he had such an experience in 8uly 3003, when the military chose her among the mobile teachers to hold classes for former members of the separatist +oro "ational -iberation )ront. 0!tanding before 98 rebel returnees was so scary,1 she said. 0:ne of them said he would take me home. $#en if I was terrified, I told him that he should respect me because I was his teacher.1 ;ut she has been rewarded many times o#er after seeing her former students impro#e their li#es< 0It means a lot because I was a big part of them. All the difficulties I had %ust go away.1 Many faces of teachers .he four educators are the fruits of this years 0+any )aces of the .eacher1 search, which was organi=ed in 300> by the ;ato ;alani )oundation Inc. ?;;)I@ and 'iwa -earning !ystems Inc. ?'-!I@ to annually commend and encourage the /hilippines seldom recogni=ed and often o#erworked teaching force. 0Aed like to show that despite the dismal picture of our education system, we do ha#e some bright spots. And the teachers are one of those bright spots in the midst of problems,1 said the ;;)Is !aturnino ;elen 8r. at the simple awarding ceremony in +akati (ity. .he 300B awardees will again be honored in !eptembers 0A .ribute to .eachers,1 a yearly gathering also organi=ed by the ;;)I and '-!I to recogni=e 0the selflessness and courage of teachers who continue the good work despite the odds.1 !ome 19,00 teachers are expected to attend the e#ent.

.eodoro, noting the parallel decline in the interest in teaching as a profession and societys regard for educators, told the In*uirer< 0At least there will be public awareness that what teachers do is important, Cespecially thoseD teachers in the basic education sector who do the most difficult work.1 2 hands clapping As ;elen put it, 0+any )aces of a .eacher1 and !eptembers tribute are two hands applauding the countrys educators for their dedication to a profession that has a lot to do with making do. 0Ae look not only at skills but also at the teacher as a total personEhow he or she influences hisFher students, society, and hisFher colleagues,1 said '-!I president Amada 8a#ellana. .he organi=ers partnered with socioGci#ic groups to come up with a short list of 13 for the deliberation of a panel of %udges. .here is no monetary reward for the honor, %ust the pri#ilege of being a role model for the rest of the nations teaching force, ;elen said. It is a position of #alue, especially at a time when educators seem to ha#e lost a sense of pride in the profession. 0It used to be that if youre a teacher, youd say, HI am a teacher. ;ut now, its H.eacher lang ?only@, said .eodoro, a mentor of many of todays %ournalism professionals. 0At least if theres recognition, those graduating from high school might ha#e a sense that it would be worthy to take up education,1 he said. Passions As emotional as !antiago was 'uran, 99, a teacher of children with special needs at the (otabato (ity (entral /ilot !chool for 12 years now and also a foster mother to her homeless students. 'uran works e#en during weekends and holidays, and her determination to educate children with cogniti#e, #isual or hearing impairment has helped raise enrollment in her schools special education classes from fi#e in 1669 to 37 students this year. 0I dont know what to say...1 said a tearful 'uran. 0.hrough the many years I#e been teaching the disabled, I now reach this success. Its not easy to teach the disabled, but I ha#e grown to lo#e themEand to lo#e my %ob.1 'urans passion is e*ualed by )erriols, who has earned the admiration of his peers for his unwa#ering commitment to teaching philosophy in )ilipino. .he 8esuit priests words said it all< 0Ang pagGiisip ay hindi laro kundi taimtim na paghahanap sa totoo... 5ung mamimilosopiya ka sa Ingles habang ang nagwawalis sa kalye, namamasada sa %eepney, ay nagGiisip sa /ilipino, anong uring paghahanap ng katotohanan itoI 5ailangang kilalanin na ang ordinaryong tao ay namimilosopiya din at naghahanap ng katotohanan ?.hinking is not a game but a profound search for truth... If you philosophi=e in $nglish while the street sweeper or %eepney dri#er thinks in )ilipino, what kind of search for truth is thatI Ae must recogni=e that the common man also philosophi=es and seeks truth@.1 )our of )erriols philosophy books ha#e been cited by the +anila (ritics (ircle. In 1686, Ateneo de +anila awarded him the &awad .anglaw -ahi for his efforts to promote instruction in )ilipino. .his teacher of 93 years will mark his 82rd birthday on Aug. 17.

Changing all that .eodoro, 79, a former dean of the ,/ 'iliman (ollege of +ass (ommunication and a staunch ad#ocate of press freedom, deli#ered brief remarks but dro#e home the point. 0.eaching is the least appreciated profession in the country and I hope these awards will correct the dominant impression that teaching is thankless. I hope these awards will go toward changing all that,1 he said. .he past 0+any )aces of the .eacher1 awardees are< mathematics and science teacher and In*uirer columnist Jueena -eeG(hua, 'r. 8osette ;iyo, after whom /lanet ;iyo was named, reading coach 'r. +aria .eresa (alderon, -oboc (hildrens (hoir founder Alma )ernandoG.aldo, school founder )eny delos AngelesG;autista, mathematics teacher 'r. +ilagros Ibe, philosophy professor 'r. )lorentino .imbre=a, theology professor 'r. 8oseph oche, scientist 'r. (aesar !aloma, 'r. :nofre /agsanghan and )r. 8ames euter.

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