School_Responsibilities

SCHOOL RESPONSIBILITIES Science is one of the tool subjects which were given emphasis on the present Elementary curriculum. According to BEC 2002, Science is the learning area in the elementary grade that aims to help the Filipino learners to gain a functional understanding of scientific concepts and principles linked with real life situations and to acquire scientific skills attitudes and values necessary to analyze and solve day to day problems. Every year the Department of Education through different science associations issued a DepEd. Order or memo regarding a Science Fair in Elementary and Secondary schools which include Science quiz bee, poster making contest, Sci-dama, Science Intervention Materials and the Science Investigatory Project. This Science activity was usually held every August to February in different levels such as Division Level, Regional Level and National Level respectively. The competition aims to promote academic excellence through camaraderie and sportsmanship. As a Science teacher it is part of my duties and responsibilities to comply with the orders given by the Department of Education. So every year we are competing with other schools. Science investigatory project is one of the categories that I always compete in. In science investigatory project we are going to create a project which is scientific base. This project will be defended by two pupils in team category and one for individual. The first time that we joined the contest we won first place in the district but landed as fourth place only in the division. Although a little bit disappointed because we cannot compete for the regional I just thought that this is our first time to compete and fourth place is not bad for a first timer. After a week, the Science Key Administrator of our district went to our school and told us that the Division Science Supervisor chose us to compete for the Regional Science Fair. Of course my initial reaction was overwhelming. I said yes we will compete for the region and then just time that I realized how about the first place' Isn’t it that they have the right to compete because they are the one who won' So I told this to our district science key administrator but she cannot do anything about this since the order is from our division supervisor and she said that our supervisor knows what is best since she is in the position and we have to follow. Even though that I realized that this will create a conflict I just decided to follow because this is a case wherein I am in a situation where I have to do what is needed. Fortunately, during the regional competition we won first place and we proved to the other school heads that we are worthy of that chance. After winning in the regional competition, we have to prepare for the National competition which is the National Children’s Congress which will be held in Puerto Princesa City, in Palawan. We really wanted to join since this is a rare opportunity because it is a long time that Silang District I won in the regional competition and can join National competition. But the problem is before we can join in the national competition of course we need to travel to Palawan by plane and we need to have the budget for that. Where can we get that amount' We cannot ask the parents of the pupil-contestants to pay for their fare because we know they cannot afford to. So again I thought that maybe we should not join the contest since we cannot have financial assistance from the Division office. Although, I also thought that it is the honor of the region that is at stake for now we carry the name of Region IV-A not only the district or the division. After sometime of thinking, I decided to make a way to join for some reasons. I thought of my pupils. Should I deprive them of their right to show their knowledge to defend our project' Should I neglect this rare opportunity to compete in a national competition wherein the best of the best among regions are there' Should I ignore this chance that will help me to grow personally and professionally' So as I read the memorandum from the Department of Education and it stated there that “Registration of participants, which accounts for board and lodging, is free. Participants however, shall charge their respective transportation and miscellaneous expenses against local fund, local school board funds and other resources subject to accounting and auditing rules and regulations”. (DepED MEMORANDUM NO. 55, s. 2008) I made a request letter for the Local School Board in the municipality of Silang specifically to our mayor, requesting for financial assistance to be able for us to compete for the national competition. I personally brought this letter to our mayor and fortunately we are granted an amount of 70,000 pesos. The said amount was given to me by the municipal treasurer and later I gave it to our principal. My principal said that she will take charge of securing our tickets. During that week my principal dropped by at our house and she said that she already have the tickets. She said that she got 6 tickets one for me, the two pupil-contestants, one for her and the other two will be for the pupils’ guardians in which supposed to be the guardians are not included in the request but instead it should be the district science key administrator and the district supervisor. But since it is another situation wherein I am just a subordinate I have no choice but to follow. In other words, we went to Palawan and compete for the National Children’s Congress and bagged the third place. I was very happy that time thinking that after all the difficulties encountered all the efforts were not put into waste. After the competition, the amount granted to us by the Local School Board were subjected to liquidation as stated in the memorandum that it was subject to accounting and auditing and that is the time another moral issue arise. During the time that we’re in Palawan, (we stayed there for four days) we buy our foods and other needs with our own money. The 70,000 pesos granted to us by the LSB was not utilized for the purpose. Only the amount allotted for the tickets were used and we have no idea where the rest of the amount were. Due to shame and out of respect maybe to our principal I didn’t bother to ask her about the said amount. But there are some teachers who are asking our whereabouts in Palawan, how much we spent and so just a natural conversation telling a story of a great experience I just told them what really happened without any intention of causing any harm to our principal, just a pure conversation. But eventually this conversation came from one mouth to another until it reached the science key administrator who was furious at that time to our principal because she felt that she was by-pass and being neglected about the Palawan competition which is really true. And so the science administrator called me to her office and asked me if it is true that the 70,000 given to us by the LSB was not properly used. So this is another time wherein there are lots of consideration before making a decision, if I tell her the truth, I am sure that my principal will be very mad at me and my performance will be at stake. But if I did not tell her the truth then I allow our principal to engage in corruption because it is a public funds and I also have the responsibility because I am the one who made a request for it. And so I told her the truth, of what really happened to Palawan and she said she will going to report it to the municipal office. After a day that I talked with the science key administrator, I was called by my principal, she was bursting with anger, pointing her finger on me and saying unacceptable words to me and I answered back I am just telling the truth. I don’t regret with my decision because I know I did the right thing and just last year before my principal got retired we talked and make things right. In fairness to her even if she did not tell her mistake directly I can see her sincerity and I also apologize for what I did and we patch up everything before she leave in service. Kohlberg (Kohlberg et al., 1984) asserted that a theory of moral judgment, based on a combination of cognitive and developmental stages, was “the rational reconstruction of the ontogenesis of justice reasoning” (p.212). According to Rebore (2001), educational leaders desirous of leading an ethical life must eventually come to grips with the virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. (p.26) which are traditionally the cardinal virtues (Kanungo & Mendonca, 1996). Rebore determined that the contemporary understanding of virtue must be viewed in the context of human development in general; also, human development must be viewed as a process, which begins in early childhood, extends into adulthood, and terminates only with death” (pp. 26-27). Another situation that I encountered was still about my duties and responsibilities as a teacher. This is the fourth year that I am going to compete for science investigatory project and so I was told by my new principal that the district contest will be on September 21 of the present year. So I thought that I have enough time to prepare the project and at the same time to review my proponents. But last September 7, around eight in the morning, I was called in the office just to learn that there will be a Division Science Fair which will be held in Tagaytay Science High School on September 9-10, that will be Friday and Saturday. The first thing that came into my mind was I have a class in PhD. on Saturday. What will I do' Even without thinking that I don’t have any project prepared yet. Because of the fact that it is only two days left before the contest, I don’t know what I will do first. How can I prepare in two days' What if we did not join the contest' But my principal said that it is ashamed on our part not to join since we are a national winner and we are the champion in the division for three consecutive years. I feel like the pressure is on my shoulder and I have to do it no matter what. And because I have no choice I work on with my project within those two days and with God’s grace I finish the paper together with the display board with the help of my two co-teachers. But what’s bothering me the most is the schedule of the contest which will affect my schedule in my post graduate studies. I don’t want to absent because we are on a modular basis and I know I lost a lot when I will not attend the class. For me this is another issue in which I have to choose between my responsibility in the school and my responsibility to myself as a student. My principal said that whenever there is a school activity I have to prioritize that than my schooling and I cannot deny that being a coach is one of those responsibilities that I have to do. But I also don’t want to neglect my schooling because this is also one of my priorities. Unfortunately no one from my co-teachers is available on that date because they ate having an MTAP Saturday class. So finally I decided that I go to La Salle first to attend my class because this is the first day of my third module and then I asked my professor to allow me to live during lunch break to attend to my contestants in Tagaytay. And with God’s grace we won the first place and again for the fourth time we will compete on the Regional Science Fair this October. But in this case whether we win or lose at least I do my responsibility to the school and to myself. Sometimes we are facing some circumstances in which we have to make a decision. It is necessary for us to weigh certain factors and give considerations. Sometimes we are making decisions that favored to some but when we are making the decision we have to think if it is morally right. We have to be rational in making decisions. Rational Decision Making is a process where one desires to come to the best and most effective decision which will entail the best result. Sound and unbiased decision making offers good results, the reason why most decision-makers prefer taking the rational decision making approach to their problems. Rational Decision Making (RDM) is observed under certain basic procedures. The traditional problem solving - determining the problem, evaluating the possible solution and exercising the action is not enough to solve some problems that require much needed attention. "Somewhere along the line of development we discover what we really are, and then we make our real decision for which we are responsible. Make that decision primarily for yourself because you can never really live anyone else's life." -- Eleanor Roosevelt www.virtualsalt.com/crebook5.htm A good place to start is with some standard definitions of decision making. Decision making is the study of identifying and choosing alternatives based on the values and preferences of the decision maker. Making a decision implies that there are alternative choices to be considered, and in such a case we want not only to identify as many of these alternatives as possible but to choose the one that best fits with our goals, desires, lifestyle, values, and so on. Decision making is the process of sufficiently reducing uncertainty and doubt about alternatives to allow a reasonable choice to be made from among them. This definition stresses the information gathering function of decision making. It should be noted here that uncertainty is reduced rather than eliminated. Very few decisions are made with absolute certainty because complete knowledge about all the alternatives is seldom possible. Thus, every decision involves a certain amount of risk. Just like Lt. Alioto in the case of commitment to service, he had to choose between his duty to his family and his duty to the country. References: BEC 2002 Web site: http://www.usafa.af.mil/jscope/Cases/casesindex.html www.virtualsalt.com/crebook5.htm www.deped.com.ph http://www.oppapers.com/subjects/case-study-on-decision-making-page5.html