The Philippine Association of Chemistry Teachers annually holds seminar-workshops to celebrate the National Chemistry Week. For 2021, this Webinar was held from February 13 to 20 and the theme was 2IM������Ƶ: Enriching Professional and Ethical Competence of Science Educators. The topics were (1) Ethics of a STEM teacher, (2) the Role of Counseling on Teenage Mental Health, and (3) Mindfulness in the Classroom.

The first lecture, on the Ethics of a STEM Teacher, was delivered by Abigail Thea O. Canuto, an Assistant Professor working for the University of the Philippines-Diliman. She wonderfully outlined the importance of teachers as ethical role models as they show students the application of ethics in Science, through the reflective “Complete Act of Thought” way of thinking. She also emphasized on the need for teachers to create a “Scientific Community of Inquiry”  in the classroom where students are able to ask questions about Science, are able to discuss Science with each other through class activities and are able to gain a “sense of wonder” in their understanding of it. 

The following lecture, the Role of Counseling on Teenage Mental Health, was by Dr. Jaclyn Marie L. Cauyan, College Secretary, College of Education, University of the Philippines-Diliman. She emphasized on the importance of mental health and its effect on students and teachers, even more so being amidst a pandemic. Teachers, having the most influence on the youth, are at the forefront at being able to help in the mental health of their students. She expressed the importance of teachers being able to connect to students as a way, not only, to help in their academics but in their overall growth as well.

The final lecture was by Michael U. Jimenez on Mindfulness in the Classroom. Mr. Jimenez focused on how Mindfulness as well as elements of meditation can be used as a way for teachers and students to focus on the present, on their work. He discussed how these practices could help to deal with anxieties of the past and future or the distractions of technology in the modern world.

While the talks contained a great deal of important information, they were not the end and be all of Chemistry Week. The participants gained access to asynchronous sessions moderated by Jasper Perez and Emil Escalante where they learned even more about Psychological First Aid and Colorful Electrolysis. Overall, the event was a great opportunity for all involved to pass on or learn even more about teaching Chemistry and will be continued in the future!

Dr. Voltaire Organo, ������Ƶ President, gave the Opening Remarks while Dr. Jose Andaya, ������Ƶ Director, introduced the Guest Speaker.

The Guest Speaker, Dr. Sheryl Lyn C. Monterola, gave a very inspiring and thought-provoking lecture on “Eyeing the Future Jobs: Empowering STEM Teachers for a Reskilling Revolution”. Dr. Monterola is an Associate Professor of the College of Education of the University of the Philippines Diliman. She is also the Executive Director of the Center for Integrated STEM Education in the Philippines (CiSTEM).

Dr. Monterola emphasized the need to reskilling and upskilling to maintain competitiveness for the jobs in the future. She enumerated the skills that the students should learn that will fit and match the requirements for the jobs of the future. This is where the STEM teachers should be able to teach and develop the skills required in the 21st century.

“Data is the new oil.” This was mentioned by Dr. Monterola to articulate that with the increasing volume of data that we have everyday, we should be able to analyze them and use them appropriately for its intended purpose.

Dr. Monterola discussed as well the pedagogies that the teachers can use in their teaching. She presented the Design Thinking Process (DTP) and its usefulness in an organization and inside the classroom.

The election of Board Members and business meeting followed after the lecture.

The Philippine Association of Chemistry Teachers together with the Chemistry Department of Ateneo de Manila University celebrated the Chemistry Week 2019 and the International Year of the Periodic Table of Elements last February 23, 2019 at the PLDT-Convergent Technologies Center, Ateneo de Manila University.

The Seminar-Workshop was attended by 135 participants coming from the National Capital Region(NCR), Region 3, Region 5, Region 7 and Region 11 (Compostela Valley).

The event started with the Welcome Remarks of Dr. Gilbert U. Uy, Chair-OIC of the Chemistry Department, Ateneo de Manila University.

After the Welcome Remarks, an Inspirational Message was given by Dr. Glenn V. Alea, President of the Philippine Federation of Chemistry Societies (PFCS). Dr. Alea’s inspiring message was summarized in the word “IM������Ƶ”. The letter “I” for Influence, “M” for Mentorship, “P” for Personality, “A” for Ability to relate to students, “C” for Crave for knowledge, and “T” for Technique.

The first lecture “Collaboration between the Academe and the Industry to Uplift the Chemistry Profession” was given by Engr. Limuel Razo, Corporate Vice-President for Manufacturing Network of UNILAB. In his talk, he articulated the role of teachers in the choice of career of the high school students. He discussed the on-going initiatives of Unilab with the academe and the professional organizations like ������Ƶ to help the teachers to further improve their teaching. He mentioned the availability of their services and manufacturing plants that will serve as training laboratory for the teachers and college students. He informed the teachers that Unilab is offering scholarships to students and assistance to the teachers who are taking graduate studies.

The second lecture was given by Dr. Erwin P. Enriquez, Professor, Department of Chemistry and Program in Materials Science and Engineering, School of Science and Engineering, Ateneo de Manila University. His areas of concentration are: 1) printed electronics 2) nanobiosensors 3) nanomaterials 4) nanochemistry; and 5) materials science and engineering. He presented and discussed the use of the Periodic Table in the 21st element. His talk was very informative and relevant. His talk includes the following: 1) artificial intelligence 2) nano-technology 3) endangered elements 4) new allotropes of carbon 5) quantum regime and internet of things (IoT). He urged the participants to inform the students about the endangered elements and challenged them not to frequently changed their mobile phones due to the limited resource of indium. He presented as well the current studies being done in their research laboratory in nano technology and new materials.

The third lecture “The Good and Bad Elements: Thinking Ethically about the Environment” was given by Dr. Airill L. Mercurio, Chair, Biological Sciences Department, College of Science and Computer Studies, De La Salle-Dasmariñas. She discussed the several factors, involving the elements, that may ruin our environment.

The fourth lecture “The Nuclide Chart: Exploring the lesser known Periodic Table of Elements” was given by Dr. Jasmine Angelie V. Albelda, Senior Science Research Specialist of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute. She discussed the isotopes, the alpha, beta and gamma particles and the current researches being done at PNRI.

There were four workshops during the afternoon’s Parallel Sessions.

The Philippine Association for Chemistry for Teachers (������Ƶ) in cooperation with the Philippine Normal University, The National Center for Teacher Education, conducted a seminar in celebration of the National Chemistry Week on March 4, 2017 at the HRD Auditorium, Philippine Normal University.  Dr. Ester B. Ogena, President of PNU gave the Welcome Remarks during the event. There were 130 ������Ƶ members who attended the seminar.  

One of the speakers was Dr. Voltaire Organo, Professor from University of the Philippines-Manila. He gave a talk on “Putting the  “O” in  Organic Chemistry”. The second speaker  was Mr. Garry Galvez of Taal National High School who shared his research study on “Metavisualizing Your Chemistry Classroom”.  Balik Scientist Prof. Corazon Salumbides, who is currently a resident scientist in the Science Centrum,   graced the event and showcased chemistry kits which are useful tools for  improving K to 12 chemistry instruction. The event served as the melting pot of chemistry teachers from private and public high schools and universities who shared experiences, challenges and researches  in the teaching and learning process in the chemistry classroom.

You may visit this link for pictures during the event.

Seats are limited.

You may pay until March 1, 2017.

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