For the second year, the Ateneo de Manila University held its annual teacher training summer camp called TURO GURO. from April to May 2018. This year five departments from the different Loyola Schools and four Ateneo de Manila University centers gave training to more than 600 teachers and school administrators.
This year’s Turo Guro participants came from different public and private schools–from basic education to tertiary education. There were even participants from Mindanao, Palawan, Cebu and Tuguegarao, and even from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
The five participating departments were the departments of Biology and Chemistry from the School of Science and Engineering, and the Filipino, Theology, and History departments from the School of Humanities. The centers were the Ateneo Center for English Language Training (ACELT), the Ateneo Bulatao Center for Psychological Services, the Formation Institute for Religious Education (FIRE), and the Ateneo Teacher Centre (ATC).
From April 23 to 27, the Department of Biology had a week-long science teacher training that was designed primarily for senior high school teachers, while in the following month, from May 14 to 18, the Department of Chemistry conducted a similar week-long chemistry teacher training that was customized for junior high school teachers.
Last May 3 to 5, the Filipino Department offered its own three-day workshop on “Pagtuturo ng Panitikan sa Mababa at Mataas na Paaralan.”
On May 12 and 19, FIRE and the Theology Department offered values education teachers a workshop on the Social Teachings of the Church called “Pagsisiwalat ng Pinakatatagong Lihim ng Simbahan: Mga Prinsipyo ng Panlipunang Turo.”
The History Department offered a special module on “Teaching History for Basic Education” last May 15 to 16. Last May 9 and 16 the Ateneo Bulatao Center for Psychological Services ran a seminar workshop on mindfulness in the classroom.
On May 26, the Ateneo Center for English Language Teaching led a training on translingual practice in ELT.
Finally, for the entire month of May, the Ateneo Teacher Center offered a total of eight different seminar workshops, with topics as diverse as critical thinking, classroom thinking routines, project-based learning, and 21st century learning.
There were also seminars on school leadership, teacher capacity-building,,teaching qualitative and quantitative research, and integrating education technology.
The participants praised the trainings for the practical techniques and the novel content they learned. They expressed satisfaction over the experience, with one participant ranked his Turo Guro experience as among the most worthwhile. An additional treat to a number of the participants was that thanks to the support of the Ateneo Arete, a number of the Turo Guro workshops were held in the newly built George Ty Learning Innovation Wing, and one unique element that made this year’s Turo Guro experience so memorable was the visit to the Ateneo de Manila’s Art Gallery next door. The Turo Guro trainings received an average of 4.7 out of a 5-point scale. All the trainings have been approved by the Philippine Regulatory Commission and certified to offer CPD (Continuing Professional Development) credits.
This annual multi-disciplinary collaboration was made possible through Ateneo de Manila’s various teacher education departments and centers that have joined the consortium established last year, the Ateneo SALT Institute. See you again next year!
