How to Implement the K to 12 Program

Just like most teachers,  I have doubts about the my own capability to implement the K to 12 program. Before I came to the Regional Mass Training for Grade 10 Teachers held at Xavier University last May 17-18, 2015, I had the following misconceptions and uncertainties:

1. My classroom management is poor if my class is noisy.

2. A K to 12 class is ALL activities, leaving the teacher rather useless.

3. An effective teacher is a disciplinarian with loud and commanding voice.

Teachers were acting as students during the training. Sometimes we got engrossed in our own problems but we still learned what we needed to. It was the positive environment that made the transition from personal to scientific discussion easy.

These notions that I had in mind were proven wrong by the trainors that we had. I am very pleased to have attended the training and gained these insights that would help me become a better teacher.

1. Maintain the positive environment inside the class, NOT the silence. As long as students are working towards the goal of the class, we don't have to worry too much if they talk about their lives in class. When you need them to be, they'll come around.
As Usec. Dina Ocampo said, "We have to address their social needs first before we address their cognitive needs."

2. A K to 12 science class BEGINS with an activity where students discover and ENDS with processing where teachers facilitate the formation of correct concepts. The teacher will always be a vital component in the classroom. I need not fear losing my job to a robot.
What I need to work on is my mastery of the content and my questioning skills. How do you ask the same thing in different ways?

3. Working around your strength is better than becoming someone you are not. Most of the teachers I admire have a loud and commanding voice that radio would have loved them. Sadly, I don't have that kind of voice but it's okay. I have other strengths and students will still learn from me.
For example,  most of our trainors have voices like mine. They compensated this with interesting activities, mastery of the content, and positive attitude.

The small things we do makes a lot of difference in our students' lives.

The K to 12 program is a challenge. We live in an era of great educational reform and for this to work, we have to do our part in educating our children for the unknown.