On sick leave

For over a month I was officially on leave as a school principal. Others thought that I might be dead bored... But personally, it was truly refreshing.

1. I took more time to see things from a distance and this makes me smile at the seemingly BIG problems encountered before...

2. I experienced impermanence. No matter what you do and the role you play at an organization, humanity is so complex that it will always have a way of manifesting itself with or without your efforts.

3. Patience is a virtue. Although this is not perfectly lived, I've seen the light of things when I tell others about practicing patience.

4. Grand vacation. In this resting time of mine, I rediscovered places and the eyes of people. Where are my friends? Who are they?

5. No matter what, the family is very important.

6. The school is an important institution. It is very special as the services offered will only work IF its students appreciate and understand what you offer.

Thankless

No matter what you do and decide, there are still questions in mind. Some sectors might be questioning even challenging decisions made.

Indeed, this is sometimes a thankless job...

Learning happens in and out of the classroom

Believing that learning must not be restricted within the four walls of the classroom, we managed to 'liberalize' learning activities that includes outings and camps.

I hope that the students appreciated and profitted from this initiatives.

The Uniform

first attempt at posing


For formal visibility and presentation, I embarked on a fund raising campaign to fund the faculty uniform.

We wish to thank: Phoenix Publishing and Rex Bookstore -- our major sponsors in this project.

And then I shouted

It was my first actual flag raising ceremony after all the trimmings of welcome programs.

And then, out of patriotism and the urge to command discipline, I shouted for order and demanded total adherence to the Philippine flag. I reprimanded one student.

Later, I found out that he was of the good batch. He was indeed part of the honor roll by the end of the school year. But then, nothing stopped me from singling him out in that morning.

If one can't even stand still at a few-minute flag raising activity, how can one expect to be loyal and proud of the Philippine flag in our real life experience?

I may have gone overboard at that first brush of command. But I had no regrets and won't bat an eyelash at people who playfully pull some pranks during flag ceremonies.

But where?

one should know how the whole thing looks in order to execute even a simple tattoo


Amusing is the term that I could describe in my first few weeks as school principal. I didn't have the space to learn and I just couldn't get the way the whole thing works. I started learning 101 with the question why. Most of my colleagues start with the premise of 'this is how it goes' and/or 'this is how it usually is for ages'

Looking back, my new term as the principal must be sheer torture for some as they were expected to explain things in the way that one explains the etymology of words. But then, that was my mode of coping. I just want to know why things are made that way... Enough for me to decide whether or not such practices were worth keeping after all.

When I felt I listened enough, I realized that things are still as messy as it is. I want to start working from the very beginning. I want to know where we were all heading.

And so goes the direction-setting project.

The Ropes

I plunged into work in the middle of a school year.

I got into a very busy preparation of a school visitation by some authorities that needs to look into the school records and the facilities of the school.

I enjoyed the flurry of activities. At least, I now would know who the real actors were in the school.

The entire thing lasted for a month. When the accreditors left, we just have to deal with graduation and the failing grads which is a very good blog material in the future.

The downside in my entry is that everything happened too fast. The normal vehicular brakes is not just applicable.

The Principal

Why the principal? This was a very honest comment given by a good friend when I announced to my circle that I am considering of becoming a school principal for a while.

In her argument, it is a very thankless job making one the target of most hated and heated topic of discussion. It would put my notch of coolness down.

Well, on my part, I love the challenge and to see if change would be underway especially while on my way out of the office.

Some projects in particular that I would like to see:

1. Setting of directions in school
2. A semblance of curriculum set-up that is coherent to what the students and the teachers want
3. An inventory of projects for school improvement

FULL STOP.