It was providential that I attended last year (Saturday, October 25 2008) the Basic Seminar on Investing in Mutual Funds and Stocks Online by Dr. Paul J. Dejillas, a stock, option, and foreign-currency trader. (http://onlinestockoptionstrader.com/) But let me share with you my short-story why I believe this is a big help in investing online with a noble purpose.
Working with and helping the marginalized sectors of our society since my seminary days until today have always been my vision, and I am dreaming that one day if God’s generosity allows, I will build a school in the rural areas, a school for life to empower them for it is an urgent call to action for and by the rural poor: the indigenous people, the rural women, the fisher folks, the farmers, the rural youth, the elderly, persons with disabilities and the informal sector.
Since then, I have sought a framework that holistically ties everything together, that allows us to understand society, the world, and our place in it, and that could help us make the critical decisions which will shape our future. I have been blessed to find a framework of "Right-Relations" or even better as "Life-Giving Relationships" in four directions: to God, to oneself, to neighbor (both as individual and as part of society) and to creation as a whole.
When I meet Fr. Fuellenbach in a lecture-seminar I attended in De La Salle University many years back, it further validated my faith that the justice-concept and justice-practice based on a holistic view of Hebraic Covenant Theology is what Life-Giving Relationship.
When I read about the RA 8525 Adopt-A-School Program of 1998 (ASP) (http://www.deped.gov.ph) to get "support from all stakeholders in education through various needs-based and sustainable interventions – harnessing technology, providing electric and water facilities to schools, enhancing health and nutrition and teacher development programs and supporting relevant education – that will eventually improve the schools, increase learning outcomes of the pupils and therefore, improve the quality of life of the generations to come," (http://www.gov.ph/news/default.asp?i=19527) I seek ways on how I can be of help.
I observed that according to this program one simple way to support poor schools is to provide them the following educational equipment, like PCs, slide projectors, color TVs (21 inches), VHS players/recorders, DVD players and photocopying machines.
This inspired me to take the same direction since I have been in education way back 1990. My initial plan to help is to pilot test my project: Tutorial Modules and Trainors Manual on a step-by-step conversion of PowerPoint presentations to be played on a digital still camera and be viewed on a TV screen.
In my intention to help poor schools, teachers and students, I started emailing people whom I believe will support my initiative. I told them that I would like to share my project: a new alternative teaching tool, which is beneficial to poor schools, teachers and students that have no enough technology and financial resources and no opportunity to afford computers and multimedia projectors.
I have two objectives and two solutions.
My objectives are: 1. Identify schools that need assistance especially those with insufficient instructional materials/equipment and insufficient budget or funds. 2. Train teachers to improve teaching and enhance students’ learning and to assure that the teachers that are trained actually apply what they have learned.
My solutions are 1. Identify partner communities/institutions/corporations that are willing to sponsor a sustainable teacher training programs to schools mentioned above. 2. Design and offer modules/manuals/short-courses to suit teachers with different needs at all levels.
Since 1997, in our school (DLS-CSB) while almost everybody was so fascinated with the wonders of Microsoft PowerPoint presentation software, I was already amazed with website creations, thus I have been creating and developing course-websites.
I took my second Masteral Degree in Learning and Teaching (MaLT 1st and pioneer batch) in De La Salle University and wrote an action research on the ways of creating a learner-centered learning environment as supported by technology. I incorporated an online component (web-based modules) in the face-to-face or classroom-based instruction.
I have been educating online, now investing online is my next goal to realize my vision to build a school in the rural areas.
At the moment I'm into Alagang Silid-Aralan (adopt and nurture a classroom) as one of Aral Pinoy's initiatives to support teachers and students in classroom level. To adopt and nurture a classroom, anybody (groups and individuals) can be a partner with Aral Pinoy through its ongoing operations and continual improvement of teachers' training, students' learning, classrooms' learning-equipments and facilities.
Aral Pinoy upholds these Life-Giving Relationships Values (L-GR Values). For Fuellenbach (1998), these essential relations extend in four directions: to God, to oneself, to neighbor (both as individual and as part of society) and to creation as a whole. Therefore, to be just means human beings should live in life-giving relationships with their fellow human beings, with themselves, with nature (creation) and ultimately with God.
