West Visayas State University

‘We need to work together in selling and promoting math to our students.’
Thus said Adonis Mosquera, Regional Education Program Supervisor for Mathematics in the Department of Education Region VI, during the closing rites of the three-day 3rd Regional Math Investigation Training-Workshop held April 27 at the Center for Educational Excellence in WVSU, La Paz, Iloilo City
Before the newly-sworn officers of the Mathematics Teachers Association of the Philippines Iloilo Chapter and 84 other math mentors from all over Western Visayas, Mosquera stressed that the Ilonggo math teachers “must continue to search for knowledge and enhance their content-pedagogical capabilities in order to trigger the curiosity of students towards math that will eventually lead to them loving and living it.”
He further stressed that, “initiatives and trainings like this (Math Investigation) is one of the best evidences of teachers’ commitment to further their crafts.”
“Math Investigation should be an integral part of the curriculum because, assuming that the teacher perfects the skill of facilitating such, it provides our students relevant learning experiences that will make them critical thinkers.”
“Teachers play the most crucial role in ensuring that the best kind of education is delivered to their students. They must serve the best interest of their learners”
Participants to the three-day event included teachers from five provinces and 12 divisions of DepEd, representing about 40 schools, universities and colleges in Western Visayas. It was sponsored by MTAP-IC, Inc. and endorsed by the Department of Education Region VI and the Commission on Higher Education (ChEd).
Themed “Enriching classroom instruction through Mathematical Investigation and Modeling in the K-12 Curriculum,” the three-day math workout was facilitated in by four main resource speakers who were trained by the University of the Philippines National Institute for Science and Mathematics Education (UPNISMED).

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“We are in a historic educational milestone. And so we wish to rally around this new K-12 curriculum so we can help our fellow Ilonggo educators to ensure math literacy in the region.”

This was said by Dr. Herman Lagon, a graduate of West Visayas State University and newly elected president of the Mathematics Teachers Association of the Philippines-Iloilo Chapter (MTAP-IC), Inc. in reaction to the government’s plan to extend the basic education program from 10 years into 13 years in the proposed K-12 curriculum.

“Our advocacy is simply math literacy. Hence, MTAP-IC has been consistently offering seminars, conventions, and trainings for math teachers in both basic and tertiary education in Region 6 for nearly five years already. Although a tough benchmark, we will try to keep this tradition and design venues, partnerships, and projects to cope with the demands of the K-12.”

Dr. Lagon, subject area coordinator of Ateneo de Iloilo and a WVSU graduate of PhD in Science Education with Specialization in Mathematics program, was elected president of MTAP-IC, Inc. for 2013. He succeeded Dr. Alona Belarga, director of quality assurance and instruction of West Visayas State University (WVSU). Dr. Belarga, also a product of WVSU, was president since 2009, and is now one of the organization’s advisers, while Dr. Lagon was her vice president in 2012.

Also voted for office are Prof. Jonathan Glorial (WVSU), vice president, Dr. Rosemarie Galvez (University of San Agustin), secretary, Mr. Kim Jay Encio (Paref-Westbridge), assistant secretary, Prof. Rhodora Cartagena (USA), treasurer, Prof. Maria Cecelia Amparado (USA), assistant treasurer, and Prof. Lindley Kent Faina (University of the Philippines in the Visayas).

The other members of this year’s Board of Trustees (BOT) are Dr. Alex Facinabao (USA), Dr. Harold Cartagena (Iloilo City Community Colleges), Engr. Ramon Jardiniano (Western Institute of Technology), Mr. Mario Bañavo (Iloilo City National High School), Mr. Matthew Lasap (Ateneo), Mr. Roberto Sagge, Jr. (Iloilo National High School), Mr. Stephen Raymund Jinon (Paref-Westbridge), and Prof. Alexander Balsomo (WVSU).

Essentially, all but Prof. Faina and Engr. Jardiniano are products of the math program of WVSU colleges of education and arts and sciences. Two are LET topnotchers, two graduated summa cum laude, and seven were DOST-SEI scholars. Read more...

The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) through its Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) Infrastructure and Facilities Upgrading Component released last October 24, 2012 the PHP 17 Million check for the priority project “Establishment of the Green Technology Business Incubation Facility (GTBIF) at WVSU main campus specifically for the construction of a three-storey building and purchase of pharmaceutical/cosmetics equipment. The GTBIF, a multi-tenancy technological/industrial facility providing shared services and business-development services in Western Visayas, is a joint collaborative effort of  DOST-Technology Resource Center (TRC) headed by Director-General Dennis L. Cunanan and WVSU headed by Dr. Pablo E. Subong, Jr. CHED, chaired by Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan, supported the pioneering project GTBIF which will provide a comprehensive service package covering a wide range of activities ranging from housing of offices and/or production facilities, consulting in areas of technical, business management, subsidies, access to start-up venture capital, organization of internal and external education and training, promotion/marketing of the tenants via media, databases, contacts, etc., particularly in the areas of herbal pharmaceuticals and information and communications technology. This facility will be extended also to priority  R&D projects and technologies more specifically as resource generation and poverty alleviation. The expected outputs of the project would be to provide a nurturing environment for dynamic and effective interaction and collaboration between academe and private sector particularly the SMEs., commercialization of WVSU R&D outputs and other potential businesses in the region, and most especially the technological and  entrepreneurial culture and related skills to enhance economic growth and alleviate poverty. Read more...