Link: http://www.mb.com.ph/issues/2007/01/12/SCAU2007011284459.html

Trained teachers teach better,” says Lilia Vengco, a long-time school administrator of La Salle. The statement has become the slogan for AHEAD Professional Network’s educational training programs. Vengco, along with other highly respected academicians trom the Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University System, and the University of the Philippines, conducts seminar-workshops for school administrators and teachers for AHEADPro. She encourages educators to have a clear and specific vision that will improve the quality of instruction they give to students continuously.

“A useful tool for principals and teachers is a personal growth plan that will enable them to set specific, attainable and measurable goals and that will list down their desired outcomes,” Vengco explained. “The leadership seminars aim to enhance the leadership skills of educators by making them aware of their leadership behaviors. Strategies for effective school leadership will be discussed and analyzed in order for participants tp determine which strategies may be employed to strengthen their competence and confidence,” she said.

AHEAD Pro, which is an offshoot of the popular tutorial and review center AHEAD, officially launched its teacher-training program middle of this year. It has, however, been involved in the training of tutors and review instructors for the past 12 years. Every year, it invites experts in classroom management, test construction, and student learning to conduct in-house training for its tutors and lecturers. Last year, it initiated a ftee training program for the volunteer tutors of Gawad Kalinga, a socio-civic organization involved in building communities for the poorest ofthe poor.

“I’ve always believed that smart people have the responsibility to teach,” Rossana Llenado, founder of AHEADPro, said. “Great minds are the product of good mentoring and consistent guidance. Students don’t become excellent on their own. They need very good teachers to inspire them and stimulate them to think,” the educational entrepreneur explained.

AHEADPro recruits the top one percent of U.P., Ateneo, and La Salle college students as tutors for AHEAD. It is constantly on the lookout for tutors who can help students and teachers.

Llenado believes that her company’s venture into teacher training is a timely response to the urgent call to improve the Philippine education system. “With a lot of our teachers going abroad, we have to ensure that our students continue to have very good mentors and role models. We have been dismayed by our students’ poor performance in the NSAT and other national tests. But we really can’t expect our students to perform well unless we train and develop the teachers,” she said.

With this in mind, Llenado tapped seasoned academicians like Vengco to design modular programs for principals and teachers. To date, AHEADPro has 10 modules in what it calls the ‘’Leadership Strategies for School Managers” (LESSM) seminar-workshop series and 10 modules in the “Teaching Strategies for Student Achievement” (TESSA) program. It offers both public seminars and in-house trainings for smaller groups in private institutions.

LESSM was first conducted in July at La Salle Green Hills in Mandaluyong City. Nearly a hundred principals and middle-level administrators ftom various parts of the country attended the seminar; Vengco discussed the various leadership strategies that school heads can employ in managing their schools. Dr. Cornelia Soto of the Ateneo Graduate School of Education and Dr. Leticia Pefiano-Ho of the D.P. College of Education lectured on teacher evaluation and student learning assessment, respectively.

“There are so many teachers who need training. If we are able to reach even a tenth of them, we’d already be very happy,” said Jane Marie Santos, who helps in the organization of AHEADPro’s training program.