DepEd San Juan highlights ‘harvest season’ at the 2nd LEMCM

DepEd San Juan reported a number of achievements reaped in the recent months during the Second Learning Engagement and Management Committee Meeting (LEMCM) with the private school owners and managers held on 27 June 2019 at the Auditorium of Philippine Chen Kuang High School with around 50 education leaders in attendance.

Philippine Chen Kuang Principal Mr. Steven Wong accepted the participants with warm hospitality as he thanked the San Juan Private Schools Association (SAPRISA) officers for the opportunity to host this event for the second quarter.

OIC-Superintendent Dr. Alejandro G. Ibanez addressed the audience with a grateful heart for the unwavering support that the private schools gave in regional events. He stated in his message, “The recognition we receive is but a fruit of our continuous collaboration with you. We may have overwhelmed you with DepEd policies and memoranda before but because of our partnership, we became number one in the region.”

According to the Math Supervisor and Testing Coordinator, Mrs. Helen C. Acedo, DepEd San Juan ranked first in the National Achievement Test (NAT) conducted for Grades 6 learners in the School Year (SY) 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 out of the sixteen divisions where most of the test-takers came from the private schools. NAT for Grade 10 shared the same top rank for SY 2016-2017 while San Juan ranked 10th for SY 2017-2018 which was still a good place considering the Mean Percentage Score (MPD) it garnered. “We look with great pride at the numbers as San Juan enjoys the highest scores in the different learning areas tested through the MPS, probably in the entire country as well, since NCR has a higher score than the national MPS,” related Mrs. Acedo.

Moreover, she shared a similar feat in the recently concluded Accreditation and Equivalency Test with a whopping 94.77% passing rate compared to the anemic ratings of the other divisions, the second of which came at a rating of 70.45%. This record-breaking performance is equivalent to 272 passers out of 287 test-takers referring to the learners outside the formal school set-up under the leadership of the Alternative Learning System (ALS) supervisor, Mr. Anselmo B. Joven, and his program specialist, Mr. Erwin C. dela Cruz.

Meanwhile, MAPEH Supervisor Dr. Susana L. Luceno, gladly reported the lustrous performance of private school athletes in the Palarong Pambansa that contributed to the strong finish of the NCR with a total of 13 Gold, 4 Silver, and 1 Bronze medals from Team San Juan. She narrated how the local government of San Juan headed by the generous mayor, Hon. Guia G. Gomez, appreciated this remarkable accomplishment. “I am happy to announce that the City Council has finally approved a resolution that will give financial incentives to our athletes. Each winner of gold, silver, and bronze medals at the national level will take home P10,000.00, P8,000.00, and P4,000.00 respectively.”

As if to continue with the litany of breakthroughs and wins, Education Program Specialist for Social Mobilization Mr. Cristopher E. Cabradilla recognized Xavier School (elementary) for bagging the First Place for Gawad Kalasag 2019 (KAlamidad at Sakuna LAbanan SAriling Galing ang Kaligtasan) at the Regional Level. This pertains to the readiness of the school in disaster management as deemed by the standards of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

As for Journalism, English Supervisor Mrs. Marnelli B. Tolentino, mentioned the 3rd Place Winner, Juan Gabriel Martin, in Larawang Pampahayagan from Aquinas School during his bid at the National Schools Press Conference. She, later on, invited the other private school representatives to participate in the said contest in September for the Division Schools Press Conference to increase the chances of making it to another winning streak come 2020 in the various writing categories.

These accolades are attributed to the fact that prime movers in the private schools committed to do their best not only in terms of academic standing but as well as in the other facets of learning. Planning Officer Demie E. Atienza lauded his counterparts from the private schools as DepEd San Juan registered 100% accomplishment for the End of School Year Report for SY 2018-2019 and the subsequent Quick Count for the new school year, the first again in the region. He likewise reminded them on the systems and protocols on the Enhanced Information and Data Management System. He urged the crowd to continue being supportive to the performance of the Division being number one in the submission and finalization of reports conducted online.

Aside from celebrating the said milestones, different resource persons from the schools division office reiterated a number of important DepEd policies as gentle reminders for the participants. These include the updates on the renewal of government permits and schedule of fees for tuition and other important reminders given by the Private School Coordinator, Mr. Cabradilla. Administrative Officer Allan Eliezer M. Mal-in emphasized the salient provisions of the Child Protection Policy and the Anti-Bullying Act. He cited relevant details as to the manifestation of these acts in the schools and how administration officials may effectively respond to the issues on hand. Similarly, Dr. Emma Sendiong, the Values Education Supervisor, reminded the participants of the various forms and reports that needed to be submitted to the office for compliance.

Meanwhile, Chief Education Supervisor Dr. Helen G. Padilla underscored the Omnibus Policy on Kindergarten which usually has caused confusion in the enrolment of kinder and grade one learners. Senior Education Program Specialist Dominique T. Rivera explained to them the updates on the CPD Law in the context of the private school sector and how else the schools division can be of help to them after the legal counsel advised against the possible partnership between their organization, SAPRISA, and the DepEd San Juan.

These friendly reminders were punctuated by the discussion of official communication channels made available for them by the OIC-Assistant Superintendent Mrs. Flordelisa D. Pereyra. She remarked, “We highly appreciate the responsiveness that you have shown in the last few months. We hope that you will continue to reach us through the platforms we installed for you to facilitate healthy conversation on various matters of interest to better improve our service delivery.”

SAPRISA President Dr. Ingrid Yap, Directress of Kids World International Inc., emphasized in her concluding speech, “While San Juan City may be small in numbers, our combined resources enable us to shine more brightly. We have a pool of talented and brilliant minds that we need to continuously nurture so it is important that we keep ourselves organized and connected to compensate for what we lack in comparison to big divisions such as Manila and Quezon City. I am confident that we will remain united and even grow bigger as we welcome new members from our ranks.”

SAPRISA is set to celebrate its tenth year founding anniversary in October, with perhaps another round of bountiful harvests in the horizon.