by Shanen Lyca C. Defeo & Vincent E. Madrona, 2024 Interns of Educo Philippines

Every space children occupy equates their right for protection, whether it be their home or school, their well-being must be the paramount priority of whomever they deal with.

As Educo Philippines believes that every child deserves to enter the academe unstirred with the fear of discrimination or harm from acts they do innocently as a child, teachers from operational areas of the organization in the municipalities of Pilar, Castilla, and Donsol in Sorsogon attended the Positive Discipline in Everyday Teaching (PDET) roll-out sessions held from June to July 2024.

Covered by the Project Strategic Approach towards engaging children in their protection and ensuring a safe and protective environment for children and adolescents (STEPS), PDET highlights the vital role of teachers in maintaining a child-friendly environment and fostering a child’s confidence by understanding their behavior and the factors that affects it such as family, peers and social aspects, and deepen their capacity in applying positive discipline in the actual classroom set-up.

These PDET roll-out sessions were facilitated by Educo PH staff members in strong partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd). It brought together approximately 500 teachers from the said municipalities who were saturated with the same goal of unified understanding on the concepts relating to positive discipline within the school setting.

More than just teaching, Educo PH believes that teachers also have the means to shape students’ individuality.

Delving into the session

Prior to the conducted PDET roll-out sessions, there was a first batch of teacher representatives from the school within the organization’s project areas who were trained last May 22-24, 2024 about positive discipline methods which can be applied in the classroom. These first batch of teachers re-echoed the knowledge they acquired and, consequently, facilitated a PDET roll out session in their respective schools.

During these sessions, Educo Philippines was introduced to the participants as an organization that strongly advocates for child rights which encompasses the protection of children.

Subsequently, teachers were engaged in an interactive discussion about shifting from the traditional way of disciplining students that takes advantage of corporal punishments, possibly affecting their academic performance, into a non-violent and considerate way of teaching.

“It is satisfying on my part as a teacher to be able to produce a successful student and contribute a step on his path in the professional field,” a participant shared during the Balik-tanaw portion of the training where they were asked to recall various experiences in their years of teaching.

“It is right in time that we learn to react to challenging situations in the classroom calmly and warm as possible,” says one of the facilitators in Abucay National High School, emphasizing that disciplining children in the contemporary times is not the same as what is practiced during their time as students, further cementing the concept of positive discipline by flashing a report on the effects of negatively solving the problem with the students’ behavior.

Apart from this, the participants were given an opportunity to collectively identify strategies and apply them in addressing situational student’s problems in hopes for a warm climate in the classroom. This disentangles their perceptions about the behavior of every student that undeniably affects their performance in the class.

These discussions have been a great help to the teachers as it opens their minds to the reality that imposing negative disciplining practices on young people will only result in an adverse effect on the children’s growth and development.

Transforming minds; empowering positive discipline

This project spearheaded by Educo PH reinforced a new perspective to the teacher’s journey as educators. It served as an instrument of support in strengthening their positive behavioral aspect towards children.

“Through this training, I realized that there are also other better ways to discipline children without negatively affecting their emotional and mental aspects,” one participant reflected.

One of the teachers also shared her understanding in the context of positive discipline on the roll-out sessions.

“It helped me to fully understand the means of being a patient and more understanding teacher to my students, as they too deserve to be heard and respected,” s/he shared.

These sessions concluded with the signing of a manifesto as a proof of their commitment to protecting children’s rights, ensuring their well-being, and fostering a society where every child can thrive.

Overall, the PDET roll-out sessions have marked a significant development in promoting a child-friendly environment. It instilled a sense of positive way of teaching to the participants of the said activity.

This activity is anchored in Educo PH commitment in bringing transformative education to children while also ensuring that they are well-protected not only within their homes but also in their school environment.