Makati City, the Philippines, 2 July 2019 --- More than five hundred representatives from the different Don Bosco-Basic Education Departments of the Philippine-North Province (FIN) gathered in Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati City for a whole-day conference on Salesianity and education. Among the participants were the administration and faculty members from Don Bosco Technical Institute in Tarlac City; Don Bosco Academy in Mabalacat, Pampanga; Don Bosco Academy in Bacolor, Pampanga; Don Bosco Technical College in Mandaluyong City; Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati City; Don Bosco College-Basic Education Department in Canlubang, Laguna; and Don Bosco Caritas School in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
The program started at 7:30AM. Fr. Felino S. Gueco, SDB, FIN Vice Provincial, gave the opening remarks encouraging everyone present for greater collaboration and participation in the different province-wide activities. Br. Carmelo L. Martinez, SDB, the current Officer In-charge of Don Bosco Press, Inc. (DBPI), presented the framework of the textbooks produced by DBPI for the Don Bosco schools.
There were two main inputs in the morning, Fr. Renato G. De Guzman, SDB’s topic was ‘Salesian Educators: Forming Bosconian Missionaries and Evangelizers.’ The second plenary speaker, Dr. Carlo P. Magno, on the other hand, discussed about ‘Educational Assessment in the 4th Industrial Revolution.”
In the afternoon, participants attended different sessions/workshops of their choice from teaching particular subjects, to doing research, to guiding students facing mental health issues, or mentoring for school administrators. The event ended at around 4:30 in the afternoon.
This event was sponsored by Don Bosco Press, Inc., in partnership with the Don Bosco Educational Centers-Basic Education Department (DBEC). The goal of this conference was first of all to update Don Bosco school educators of the FIN Province on current issues and important trends in education. But it also aims to provide an opportunity for all the teachers to meet and share experiences and insights and to get to know each other. This was the first time that DBPI and DBEC collaborated in organizing an event for the whole province. And based on the positive evaluation of the participants, this may not be the last.
