ICLiP Apprenticeship

When I learned that we are going to have an apprenticeship in ICLIP, I was really excited. I have never taught young children in groups before. It was always one on one sessions wherein I could focus on the child and easily make a connection. I felt that this would help me a lot by giving me a feel of a real classroom setting where there is more than one child bouncing around as you try to compete for their attention with everything else. The thought was scary in a good way. I immediately had a feeling that I would enjoy this more than my experience with UPIS (which was also fun, by the way) because working with younger children always paints a smile on my face.

 I had no idea where and what ICLIP was before. I have never heard of it prior to our EDR110 class so this experience was totally new to me. I imagined it to be a small school with children in uniforms and several classrooms with medium size classes but my guess was wrong.

When we first went to ICLIP, I was surprised that it was part of the local government unit's  compound. I did not expect it but I was glad to see that the local government cares about education. I liked the place because it seemed very peaceful and wholesome. I especially liked the river but I wished that it wasn't cluttered with trash.

After Ate Julie introduced the beginnings and the present situation of ICLIP, I was much more excited because we would be teaching children that are behind their peers in reading. These children are the ones that need more focus from the school. But sadly, the most public schools don't usually have the time or teachers to do remedial since we have limited rooms and budget. With institutions like ICLIP, this gap is bridged and children are prevented from going to the wrong path.

We were assigned to the beginner English class because my groupmates were more comfortable in English. I actually wanted to be in the other classes just to see how different it is to teach in Filipino. But of course, I had to compromise. Even if I were given the option to have a lesson plan of my own, I still wanted to work with Nico and JR because I was a actually afraid that they would have a hard time dealing with children who speak very little English and at some point they will need to code switch.

 It wasn’t really a surprise that we only had an average of four students since it was the most advanced level in the programme, I believe. I was expecting a small number but I was a little jealous that the other groups had more students because I believe that we also learn from every child that we teach. This means that they got to interact with more students and therefore got to learn more from them. But nevertheless, it was also a blessing to have fewer students because we were able to get to know them more in the short time that we spent with them.

The least number of students we had in the apprenticeship was two. The most was five. I admittedly am very bad with names but I got to remember three of them; the three that went to our actual demo. If I remember correctly, they were all in the third grade which is the same as my youngest sister; therefore, I got a comparison point in terms of skills. At eight years old, my sister is now reading English independently and can write long sentences and paragraphs in that language with some mistakes in spelling. I remember, a month ago, she was asking me to proof read her poem. And so, when I met the children in ICLIP who are the same age as her but can barely understand English, I knew that ICLIP’s work is very much needed by these children. I was glad to be part of it, even for just a few days.

Among our students, I believe that Alexa Nicole (who coincidentally has almost the same name as my youngest sister, Alessandra Nicole) learns the fastest. She is always the one to raise her hand and give answers. It makes me happy to see that there are students in ICLIP that are learning fast and are very participative.

On the other hand, there is Ruth Jean who was identified by Ate Julie to be making the slowest progress in the English class. She is easily distracted and excited that she tends to not hear the instructions clearly most of the time. But even so, she is very enthusiastic and participative too. She is a very sweet child who I will remember most because she was the one who suddenly tied my long hair, saying that it was too hot.

It is also nice to note that when we volunteered for Children’s  Day, the children who I got to meet for the first time didn’t hesitate to talk and interact with us. There was this small boy who clung to my arm everywhere we went and everyone else also seemed to welcome our presence well.

One thing that I learned in the Children’s Day celebration though is about how physiological needs play a great part in the general attention span of the children. In the morning, they were generally easier to manage. But as noon came near, the children were already hungry and didn’t want to participate nor listen anymore. By the time that we were in the fourth station, they were all running everywhere and very few would like to participate in the games prepared.

Over all, the experience was something that I learned from a lot. It is something that I wouldn’t forget and definitely I would like to try again, given the chance. I am considering volunteering in Iclip once I get my schedule for next semester settled.