EENET asia Newsletters : Fifth issue 4th Quarter 2007 / 1st Quarter 2008

Helping People, Help Themselves?

Ambassador Preciosa S. Soliven

“Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed”
UNESCO Preamble

Since 1946, UNESCO’s primary goal has been the eradication of poverty through literacy programs. Thus, the O.B. Montessori Child and Community Foundation, Inc. was established in 1983 to implement the Mothercraft Training and Literacy Course for Village Mothers and the Pagsasarili Preschools for the poor children in the laborers’ districts in Metro Manila. In 1993 these programs won the UNESCO International Literacy Award in New Delhi, India.

The O.B. [Operation Brotherhood] Montessori Curriculum matches the four pillars of the UNESCO 21st century education, learning to know, learning to do, learning to be and learning to work together. These pillars apply to all education programmes and all age-groups, while some pillars may get more emphasis depending on age group and education level.

For 25 years our Pagsasarili Preschool teachers have ignited Pillar I - Learning to be. The kindergarten self-confident “graduates” who have acquired the academic competence of third graders have repeatedly surprised the Grade I teachers of both public and parochial [faith based] schools where they have enrolled. They have exhibited love for work, self-discipline, concentration and joy.

As O.B. Montessori Child and Community Foundation, Inc. celebrates 25 years of “helping people help themselves”, the program was extended to selected provinces on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Department of Social Welfare and Development Day Care Centers in Lipa, Batangas City and Ifugao Province [where the UNESCO World Heritage Rice Terraces exists] have been converted to Pagsasarili Preschools. We have also opened pilot classes in Concepcion, Tarlac and in the Muslim Community of Taguig in the Metro Manila area. The pilot EFA-DAKAR public school in Angeles City in Pampanga has also adopted the Pagsasarili system of education. This program has enabled the Filipino child to believe in him/herself throughout life.

In 1983 O.B. Montessori Pagsasarili Preschools were established in eight working class [low income] districts in Metro Manila and in 17 sugar plantations in Cadiz and Sagay in Negros Occidental. Supported by the mayor and plantation owners, its twin project the Mothercraft Training and Literacy Course was set up.

In 2005 President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed Executive Order 483 establishing the Center for Lifelong Learning for Sustainable Development in the Philippines, OBMCI was designated as the National Laboratory to assist Department of Education [DepEd], Technical Education and Skills Development Authority [TESDA] and Commission on Higher Education [CHED] programs.

The O.B. Montessori Pagsasarili Preschool Program
Preschool education made affordable regardless of gender, socio-economic status, race or faith. These schools produce the new Filipino children, lovers of order, work, self-confident, independent and responsible citizens of the country and the “new teacher” who is trained to help people help themselves.

The Traditional System and the Montessori System of Education Compared
An arrow and an equilateral triangle can be used to symbolize the difference between the Traditional System and the “Montessori System.”

Traditional System	Montessori System
The teacher lectures the class using mainly books, blackboard, paper and pen. The student is expected to listen and accept the full authority and knowledge of the adult teacher.	The “New Teacher” serves as a dynamic link between the “Prepared Environment” and the child. This well-equipped environment for work is the missing factor in the traditional system of education. The “Prepared Environment” provides a variety of work to help the child mature into the NEW ADULT.

Ambassador Priciosa S. Soliven is the Secretary General of the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines. She can be contacted via post: Ground Floor DFA Bldg.; 2330 Roxas Boulevard; Pasay City; Philippines or email: unescoph@mozcom.ph

EENET asia Newsletters : Fifth issue 4th Quarter 2007 / 1st Quarter 2008