Plowing Success through Research and Innovation: The Rise of a New Breed of Licerian Teacher

The 21st century has brought us all new, and young generation of learners as well as new breed of educators. After being accepted in public school, the National University Suma Cum Laude, Ateneo de Manila University master’s degree graduate, and Gen. Licerio Geronimo Memorial National High School grade 8 Mathematics teacher Sherwin Vill Soto has continued to venture, explore and commit to bring change and progress to educational sector through conduct of research and innovation.

As the glam, gold and glory of the recently concluded Gawad Montalbeño sa Sektor ng Edukasyon last October 29, 2022, at San Mateo, Rizal, the wits and faithful abode of research, Mr. Soto bags the first of the school’s Outstanding Secondary Researcher Award together with the TIKAS Heneral as the Most Innovative and Responsive PPA Implementer. It was not luck but plain aptitude, hard work and devotion to better serve the educational community through significant results and findings of his work.

“When we (I) did a project last 2021, we (I) genuinely intended to provide a quality learning experience amidst the pandemic. This award is just a bonus.” Mr. Soto stated on his fb newsfeed post.

Together with his colleagues in grade 8 Mathematics, Mrs. Helen Gamo, Ms. Esperanza Pranada, Mr. Abel Aquino and Mr. Leandro Jose Angeles, the team had accomplished an innovation of complete set of “Tagalized Self-Learning Materials for Mathematics 8” during the school year 2020-2021 and further utilized during school year 2021-2022. The aim of the learning material is to help learners of grade 8 level to cope up with the continuous widening of gap in teaching-learning opportunity between online and modular distance learners. The learning materials provide additional discussion written in the learners’ mother-tounge (Tagalog) to help them understand the concepts and skills even without the presence of a teacher.

His action research with his co-author, Leandro Jose Angeles, entitled “Action Research on Improving Academic Performance in Mathematics 8 using Filipinized Competency-Based Instruction or Fil-CBI Approach” had been published in an international magazine for teachers, Aloysian Publication, during its May 2022 edition.

The result of the research on the effectiveness of Fil-CBI approach spinoffs other programs namely: Grade 8 Math Readiness Program and Implementation of the Fil-CBI Approach in Grade 7 at school level.

Due to its efficacy and replicability, San Jose National High School benchmarked the result and findings of the action-research, which is the first district-wide implementation of the said action-research. Recently, it was chosen to be presented in the Virtual Conference of Basic Education Researchers (VCBER), a regional level conference for prominent research papers, conducted by the educational sector in Region IV-A CALABARZON

Innovating, and proving its worth and usage to education is something Mr. Soto is fixated to. Pulling this off, aiming its accomplishment and persistently contributing to the welfare of the department is what makes Mr. Soto a new breed of Licerian teacher.