SEA-TEACHER REPORT-GUIMARAS STATE UNIVERSITY, PHILIPPINES

Hello everyone, welcome to my blog!

Get to know Me

My name is Nanda Wanda Juliati, people call me Nanda. I'm a fourth years student majoring in English Education study program Pakuan University Bogor, Indonesia. In this blog I would like to share my journey during SEA-TEACHER program in Guimaras State University (GSU) Philippines.

I want to say thank you to SEAMEO for giving me the opportunity to be able to participate in this activity. So that I can see the world much broadly, especially in the field of education.

This is the first time I have stepped foot outside the country. I was both excited and scared, scared of what I would have to do later. There were so many questions in my mind; "how will I adapt to their culture?", "will I be able to do all of this?, especially for teaching". These questions probably wouldn't have come to my mind if I had just come for a visit, but I will stay for 28 days!. 

At that time I only hoped to God to give the best for me and my friends, and God gave a very beautiful answer to my prayer, so that my experience participating in this activity became one of the experiences that I will never forget in my life.

Arrival

On October 9, 2023 my friend and I arrived in Manila, then we continued our journey to Iloilo City.

Arrival at Iloilo Airport

In Iloilo we were welcomed by Mr. Joel V. Japitana, Ph.D., he is the director of international affairs and external linkages of Guimaras State University. After that we took a boat to the island of Guimaras and going to GSU.

Campus Tour

During my first week at GSU, my friend and I went on a campus tour of GSU's main campus. Before that we attended the flag ceremony which was held on Monday morning before teaching and learning activities began. 

Flag ceremony

We were warmly welcomed by the residents, students, staff and lecturers there. the kinship felt very thick, we were treated to typical foods of the Philippines and Guimaras on courtesy visit.

Courtesy visit

Tasting Philippines and Guimaras specialties

Guimaras State University is a big university and has 2 branch universities. The first university I observed was Guimaras State University, Main (Salvador campus). In addition to walking around to see the existing infrastructure, my friend and I also observed lecture classes. I really enjoyed the situation here, all the infrastructure is well maintained, also the university residents are very kind and friendly, they are very nurturing and always provide satisfactory answers to every question that comes out of us.

With English students

Students here are very active both in class and social media. Of course you can stop by their social media pages. There you will be presented with very informative posts accompanied by photos and captions that are comfortable to read and easy to understand. One of the pages name The Torchbearer and you can find it on Facebook.

In class, students are active in discussions, their English is very capable, they have critical thinking and stand out in their respective fields. I can admit that GSU is a good and appropriate place for talented students, because from what I experienced there are many events that involve student creativity.

During class observation in GSU

The events are Campus Icon, Acquaintance Party, Oath-taking Ceremony and Student forum, Teacher's Day, and many more. Students showcased their talents ranging from modern and traditional Philippine dances, singing, and even a costume walk. It was fun, wasn't it?

costume walk introduces legendary creatures

My friend and I also showed Indonesian dances and introduced what Indonesia is, we also sang two songs in Tagalog to surprise our friends there. The way they presented their culture was very enjoyable, presenting and giving us direct examples. We were also asked to try their traditional bamboo dance, as well as their traditional martial arts.

Trying Tinikling dance

Trying Arnis for the first time

Perform a combination of traditional dances from Indonesia

Mass dance is the culture of the Philippines

Next, we visited GSU's Baterna Campus located in San Lorenzo. I was warmly welcomed by Dr. Julius Vergara, the dean of the campus. He gave us an insight into the early history of the campus and the journey it went through to become a renowned education center in the province. There were also some representatives from the Student Republic in attendance, giving a taste of the exciting campus life.

The highlight of the tour in Baterna was a visit to a local pig and chicken farm, followed by a walk in a lush green mango plantation. My friends and I really enjoyed the sustainable agricultural practices that are at the core of this campus. In addition, our visit to the milkfish fry production pond in Cabano also showed GSU's commitment to preserving fisheries.

My friends and I were excited to go to GSU's Mosqueda Campus in Jordan. We were curious to know what was interesting about this place. Once there, I was immediately mesmerized by the beauty of the abundant mango plantations. I also learned about the different varieties of carabao mangoes cultivated on this campus.

Apart from admiring the scenery, we also had an interesting academic experience here. We were invited to visit the Western Region-Visayas Food Innovation Center, Packaging Laboratory, Baked Products Laboratory, Library, and Computer Laboratory. These modern facilities showcase GSU's commitment to fostering innovation and research in various fields.

School Observation

My friend and I observed three schools: Supang National High School, Buenavista National High School, and Buenavista Central Elementary School.

During the 3 weeks our days were divided into; two days for observation and three days for teaching practice.

The class I observed was different from my friends, so maybe we have different perspectives in terms of observation and teaching practice.

The education system in the Philippines is a bit different from the education system in Indonesia. where students have to go to school for 12 years, 6 years of elementary school, 4 years of junior high school, and 2 years of senior high school. 

 In the Philippines, the education system has some differences with Indonesia. A student's school schedule in the Philippines usually starts at half past eight in the morning and ends at five in the afternoon. During the week, students in the Philippines study the same subjects every day, including English, math, science, socio-culture and Filipino language.

The role of the teacher in the Philippines is very important in the learning process. The teacher has a central role and students are expected to pay close attention to the explanation given by the teacher so that they can understand the subject matter well. Teachers in the Philippines are also known to be creative and innovative in their teaching methods. They often organize interesting pre-learning activities to maintain students' interest and enthusiasm in the learning process.

In the Philippines, there is also a system of grouping students based on academic achievement. Students with high grades will be grouped together in one class, while students with lower grades will be placed in different classes. This aims to provide learning that suits the needs and abilities of each student.

During my observation, I also noticed that students in the Philippines tend to use Manila paper and notebooks as learning media. They rarely use traditional notebooks like those commonly used in Indonesia. In addition, it seems that school uniforms are not so strict in the Philippines, where some students in schools do not wear uniforms because they are the administrators of organizations.

Here the lesson plan of Buenavista National High School

 

 

Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education

REGION VI – WESTERN VISAYAS

SCHOOLS DIVISION OF GUIMARAS

BUENAVISTA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

 

LESSON PLAN IN ENGLISH 10

 

September 26, 2023

 

I. OBJECTIVE

1. Identify the plot, setting and characterization in a material viewed.

 

II. SUBJECT MATTER

Topic: Identifying the plot, setting and characterization in a material viewed

Skill Focus: Viewing, Literature

References: English 10 Module (Quarter 1, Book 1), pp. 52-53,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MX_fJAhmEE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovj5dzMxzmc

       Materials: short clips/videos, activity sheets

 

III. PROCEDURE

a. Preliminaries

     *Checking of attendance

     *Review of the past lesson

                Teacher asks the following questions.

                1. What are textual aids?

                2. What are the examples of textual aids?

                3. Why are textual aids important?

     *Motivation

                Form words out of the following letters, T, C, P, O, N, I, G, S, L, T, E, H, A, N, O, I, R, A, C, Z, T, E, R, I, S

 

b. Activity

*Divide the class into 6 groups.

*Have each group fill the table with the definition and examples of plot, setting, and character. They will use the materials provided.

*Have the reporter form each group present their output.

 

c. Analysis

*Ask the learners:

*From the activity that you have done, what do you think is a plot?

*What is setting?

*What is character/characterization?

*Where do you usually find these elements?

 

d. Abstraction

Ask: In watching movies, why is it important to know the plot, setting and characterization?

e. Application

*In the same groups, learners will watch a video clip entitled: “Let’s Eat.” Then they will identify the plot, setting and characters by answering the activity sheet given.

 

IV. EVALUATION/ASSESSMENT

                Have the learners identify the plot, setting and characterization in a short film, “Ripple”.

 

      V. ASSIGNMENT

                Study in advance, “What are the author’s purposes in writing a story?”

The lesson plan in the Philippines is much simpler than the one in Indonesia, which really makes the teacher's job easier and teaching more flexible.

Teaching Practice

When I did my teaching practice, I enjoyed it very much. I was very entertained by the behavior of the children who were very analytical and critical. In addition, I was also helped by the constructive criticism from the teachers who provided valuable input for me in developing my teaching skills. However, I also faced some difficulties in the teaching process. One of them is my limited English language skills. This made me feel difficult in explaining the material to students who had a limited understanding of English.

In addition, I also faced the challenge of teaching a class with students who had significant grade differences. On the one hand, I teach students with high grades, but on the other hand, I also teach students with low grades. It was difficult for me to create interesting learning in a class with low-scoring students. They tend to be passive and do not enjoy the learning process. Although I tried hard to create a cheerful and fun atmosphere, this challenge still made me feel difficult.

However, I didn't just give up. I realized that teaching and learning is an ongoing journey. I am committed to continue learning and improving my English skills in order to provide more effective teaching to the students. I will also look for more adaptive and creative strategies and approaches to teach low-scoring students. I hope that with constant effort, I will be able to face this challenge better. 

I am very happy with this activity, once again I thank SEAMEO, GSU, and Pakuan University which has become my field of study.

There is no regret at all in my heart, what exists now is the increase in my thirst for this teacher science.

Hopefully in the coming years SEAMEO can organize SEA-TEACHER activities again so that teacher education students can feel and can know the world of education much more broadly.

Thank you very much!